Julian Romance

Opening

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(Some few pages are missing in the manuscript at the beginning of the narrative referring to Constantine, Emperor of Rome. )

GOD gave him the reward of his conduct. He lay down on the bed which brought him rest from this world ; he rejoined his people, and was gathered unto his fathers . Julian, the Wicked , took the government after him, the Church having had peace for fifty-two years . He arose over all the Empire of the Romans as Julian the Tyrant , renewing the persecution against the people of the Christians . He commanded that the houses of idolatry be opened , that their altars be built, and that the images of wood be worshipped. He ordered , moreover, that there be erected and established houses of assembly for false teaching . He seized the churches and plundered their treasures ; he expelled the Bishops from their cities to wretchedness ; and all the Holy Covenant was exposed to mockery and derision. Some of them were given over to prison and to stripes, to tortures and torments ; some endured afflictions and oppression ; some were persecuted , others stoned and torn, and yet others were smitten about their bodies . Some became ill by reason of the persecution and , in conquence of these wounds , came to the end of their existence . Some were dragged through the streets like dogs without the permit of the judges . Others changed their dwellingplace so as not to change the truth of their Master. The goods of others were given as a spoil ; and these were robbed of their substance in order not to be despoiled of the love of their Lord . Some were exiled to the land of Miletus and to other distant places for the Name of their Master. Then, again, there were some who ultimately renounced the trial ; for when they saw the frightful torments and cruel tortures, they renounced the contest of their confession and took upon themselves the faith (sc . of another persuasion) , thus withdrawing from the path of the Testimony. Yet some were strong in their faith and did not renounce the truth, but caused the verity of their faith to shine before all men ; they took upon themselves heavy afflictions of every sort with divers bitter torments and difficulties of every kind and, by force of their endurance, they gained their crowns for their confession. And now language fails to describe all that was dealt out to us . From the story of the triumphs of Mar Eusebius , Bishop of Rome, whose name we have proclaimed above, can be learned what persecution was extended to us in the days of Julian the Wicked . Our language is , accordingly, too poor and limited to give the history of this old man, remarkable in victory. He was, indeed , the firstborn in the confession of the Faith ; he was the first to mix his blood in the basin of the trial of faith , like a wrestler eager to engage in the chances of battle . He sent the idea of turning back to the devil , and cast it away. He took the crown of victory from his secret enemy . This old man, laden with victories , is a source of admiration and a marvel ; he was well upon the span of his years, he was over ninety years old , yet he was like a man in the prime of life. In this wise he went forth to the conflict, strong and mighty ; he obtained a good name and exceeding success . He was alert in his mind and quick in his expression ; rich in knowledge and forceful in language ; accomplished in all good things relating to the fear of God , and also in worldly matters . And why is it necessary for us to open our account with the history of this old man , admirable in victory, for his history and the testimony of his conquests are written by distinguished expert persons of his time, for they were well acquainted with the labours of his conduct and also with the strong combat of this true shepherd ? For he showed in himself a copy of such and left it to the Church which imitates him and, in himself, he accomplished that which is spoken by our Lord in His gospel, namely, that the true shepherd is interested in his people, and delivers himself to death for the Church . He , indeed , proved himself the true shepherd, inasmuch as he gave his life over unto death for the flock which had been entrusted to him. He went with fortitude to the conflict ; he began and finished , and he gained reputation and victory. He inherited the life which passes not away, and the marriage which ends not in the kingdom to come, but which shall exist for ever and ever, So be it, Amen. The combat closed which took place over the faith of Constantine and of his three sons who reigned after him.

The history of the conquests of blessed Eusebius, Bishop of the church of Rome, in the days of Julian, the Tyrant, and uncircumcised.

AFTER that the end of the days of Constantine, the king, the believer, the lover of Christ, was come, he was gathered unto his people in peace, and he joined the number of his fathers, having left for himself a good reputation and a remembrance for ever in all the churches under heaven. After him the government was taken over by Julian the tyrant and wicked one , he , who in his folly and by the working of demons , denied God his Creator, turned from the right faith which he had received from his childhood, and renounced his promise , withdrawing from the truth . He went after the errors of devils , gave himself over to their divination, and was led by their will. He went mad and crazy after the worship of demons and the adoration of idols more than the pagan kings that were before him. He renewed persecution against the Christians ; he ordered the houses of idolatry to be opened and their altars to be built ; that idols were to be made , and that those of wood should be worshipped ; that the houses of assembly of false doctrine should be built, which had been overthrown and destroyed by the Christian kings before him ; he exalted himself and waxed strong against the churches of Christ ; he took their treasures and despoiled them of their vessels ; he drove the bishops into misery from their cities, and mocked at the Holy Covenant of God.

Speedily a just judgement overtook him. God did not permit him to prosper and to have success in his kingdom , but took him quickly from life ; He shortened the measure of his days , lest the measure of his sins became too great and strong. This madman subjected the servants of God to cruel sufferings and God , in justice, recompensed him according to his evil deeds . His destruction took place in the land of the Chaldeans , as Eusebius, the blessed Bishop of Rome and Martyr, had foretold when he was being judged before him. Not a few afflictions and torments of every sort did he put upon this old man, admirable in the contest, and he had no shame even for the weight of his years . This aged man was ninety- seven years old when he appeared in the combat of his confession ; yet, in spite of his age, he turned not aside from the truth, nor did he withdraw from his faith, but acted like a strong young man in the prime of life . Thus he behaved in the combat with strength and bravery, and obtained a good name and victory, gaining the crown of his confession.

He is the first martyr who testified at the beginning of our persecution ; as a strong wrestler he opened the contest and became a pattern and a fine example to those who come after him, to walk in his footsteps , and to imitate him in the contest .

He was alert in mind, eloquent in speech, and powerful in word ; watchful in spirit, perfect in his directions, and admirable in his combats ; while in worldly knowledge he was quite an expert ; and, furthermore, in the refinement of wisdom, of philosophy, of patience (preaching) , and of science, he was well versed .

By the true knowledge he got of his nature he was an object of wonderment to the whole world ; and , what is more praiseworthy and glorious than all , he was complete also in the divine wisdom, being learned beyond limit , which was altogether an advantage to himself and to those who beheld him . It is to be admired and wondered at that he was perfect and complete in all things , this blessed old man , and that he lacked nothing to make his perfection . Moreover, he was zealous and concerned himself with divine interests which are never-ending. Never did his soul tire of the service of righteousness , even to his last breath . Long had the old man been near the close of his life and was reaching the end of the road of his way, yet he never ceased to enrich his purse (sc. spirituality) with the profits derived from his talents . This activity to increase his heavenly merit came to him at the time of old age, so that he might augment his provisions for the way of his long journey. Thus, when the spiritual influence came over him, he, like a hungry man, transported by joy, leaped up and devoured it, gaining during his old age the good portion of the faith in which he was not untried from his youth. He walked before his Master victoriously, for he carried about with him the full instrument of his enterprise . In truth , such is the way of the wise merchant ; for he was able by his knowledge to gain life for himself, this zealous and active servant, and with boldness he could give account to his Master of the talents which had been confided to him. As the zealous and diligent workman who , from the morning, has started to work for his master, and in the strength of his youth has borne the weight of the heat of the day , so he ceased not to work for his Master ; and when again the shadows of youth declined , and he brought upon himself the disposition of old age , he did not fail in his service ; his work of righteousness was greater during his old age than during his youth, when his voice was high and his face open (confident ) . He received from his Master the wages of his labour. But why need we praise one who has no need of our praise in words ? His perfect conduct, his praiseworthy deeds and admirable victories, these will ever tell his praise . That we may not miss the excellent testimony of this spiritual man, and rob him of the publicity due to the continual labour of his guidance , the pains and sufferings of his frame and the divine echoes which were spoken by him, let us come now to the commencement of his history, and narrate the details of the contest of his confession .

After the death of Constantine, as we have written above, Julian the Tyrant determined to go to Rome with a big force from the upper lands of Gaul where he was ruling, in order to seize the reins of government on the throne of Rome, and become the autocrat of all the kingdom of the Romans. When the blessed Eusebius grasped these circumstances according as he understood them , and made certain concerning this tyrant who had begun to reign, he was pained at heart and filled with anxiety of mind. He sighed and said ' Aha ! the glory is departed from our churches and our sanctuary is given over to destruction ; our covenant to ignominy and our people to persecution ' . The report of the paganism of this crazy one had become known , and sadness had thereupon taken hold of the saint of God ; and bitterly, like Jeremiah, he wept for the Christian kings who were dead ; he wept for them, and said : 'Woe to our realm that has been robbed of your surveillance ! Oh , upholders of our faith, peacemakers to the the Church, zealous workers , who have endured labours in thorny fields ! You plucked out from thence the weeds of sin and the tares of heathenism , and you laboured with the plough of your faith . You have there sown the good seed of your teaching which has yielded fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty-fold , and some a hundred-fold . Behold the wages of your labours before you, and your good memorial in the world !' Echoes of these conditions and many others , equally painful, the blessed Eusebius brought to his mind concerning the house of Constantine , the Christian kings , because of the grief of his heart and the sadness of his thoughts ; and while he somewhat refreshed his reflections with tears flowing from his eyes , like a good shepherd who grieves for his flock when the wolf is about to destroy the fold, calls his sheep , and they assemble before him, so in like manner the blessed saint , when he learned of the approach of this wretched one , with great assiduity sent for and summoned before him his whole church, from the greatest even to the least. As dear children he counselled them , and said : ' See, my children, that you take heed to yourselves and be firm in your faith ; keep yourselves in your truth and be courageous and strong, for the wolf is ready to reign over us and he is tempted to try the church ; see that you do not relax your hold on the truth, and that you despair not in your trial, for the time is short and exceeding little and your trial comes to an end . God will not slacken His Hand from off His flock, which He has purchased at a precious price . He will not leave it entirely in the hands of wolves for, even if it happens for a time that the cursed tyrant rule over our kingdom for our discipline, owing to our sins, let that be sure and firm for us, my sons, that after its beginning the end will come. From everlasting God hath not withdrawn His eyes from His . Church, but, at all times, His eyes are upon her for good , even in the time of her punishment when He does not redeem her from her trials . We must therefore not fear and tremble at the report of the paganism of this tyrant, who to-day exalts himself and is arrogant, and to- morrow perishes and is no more ; his remembrance is blotted out and lost . But the good memorial we have obtained in our faith cannot be adequately expressed in the whole universe . We should therefore rejoice and be glad, as people true and perfect, when temptations happen to come upon us . Like good gold which reveals the glory of its beauty in the furnace, and those who look upon it admire it , so are the perfect ones when tested in the furnace of temptations. By means of the trial of endurance is known who are the true people . Without contest , without triumph, and without persecution, can neither crown nor victory be won . ' 'By the testing of their patience they will receive full praise and, at the end of their course , when they have deserved it, they will have the victory. We do not praise a man as an athlete who has but the name of one , if he show not the proofs of his stubbornness in the combat ; nor is it enough to bear the name of Christian if you show not the proof of your patience in torments . Let us hear what the Apostle Paul says, that necessity perfects within us the quality of patience, and patience produces trial , probation rouses hope, and hope brings not shame-a process belonging to persons who are confident , and believe they have the hope which will not make them abashed. Put away from you idleness , laxity and depression of spirit ; take up the combat with sin and break its point with the spiritual armour which you obtain ; battle with error and dry up her force.' 'You have need of strength , you have need of vigour. As you have learned from that founder of the Church , head of the apostles , the pattern of an athlete, and you have learned the way to turn from (deal with) the challenge, the demon will never be able to wrest from you the victory , as you are clad in the helmet of righteousness and your mind is braced with spiritual armour ; however much he exerts himself to contend with you , the victory is wrested from him, yet he goes on more than ever deceiving with his guile ; he is an impudent wrestler having no shame. Though blameworthy, he still makes war. Never does he cease from his strife . He fights with the strong and true by means of disturbing and deceitful snares. He becomes a giant before the feeble and before those innocent folk who are of weak mind ; that he may deprive them of the grace of Christ, offering sighs for their softness , who of their will, while they had the liberty, were weak in their combat . '

' Be attentive, my brethren, keep yourselves in your faith, be strong and firm-hearted , relax not yourselves before the devil , your adversary, lest he get too strong for you . He is a poor wrestler before those whose faith is firm and whose love is sincere before God , their Creator . Those who are true cause him pain by their conquest ; when he fights with them, they have no fear and they tremble not at the torments and the dangers which he causes them to undergo at the hands of pagan kings and judges of wickedness . As for us also, my children , let us take care to profess a good faith in Christ . Let us not be slack in the combat that is to try us ; for he who is strong and courageous in his ideas during the right time of the fight yields up his body to stripes , yea, oftentimes , he delivers his body unto death in order to obtain the crown of victory and a glorious name . '

'It behoves us equally, as men, mighty and courageous , to be the first in the combat and ready to take our part as athletes . It is necessary to start at the beginning as we finish ; for by the hand of Simon Peter it has been permitted to us ; thus let us be first in the faith of Christ , which has once been given to us. Let us be a good example and a fine model to believers and true persons who desire the exalted grade of the confession of faith, to give a good picture of our patience to the other churches placed in our

16 JULIAN THE APOSTAT

country. That is true and just, my brethren ; as St. Peter has taken us to be partners with him in the chiefdom and in the selection, let us also be associates in the affliction of his death . In the great struggle of his Cross , we ought not only to be partners in his own pains , but also in the sorrows of his Master ; as the blessed St. Paul has said that, if we are his partners in his sufferings, we must also be his partners in his consolations . It is fitting for disciples to take on themselves personally the types of their superiors ; thus the chief of the disciples received in himself the example of his Master, and asked to be crucified head downwards . So dear was the death of his Master to him that he asked to embrace the foot of his Master's cross during his death . We ought to resemble him who was a merchant in things spiritual, who was so rich in good works . He was perfect and abounded in works of righteousness . He had the key of Heaven and Hell ; he was trusted in the house of the divine treasure . Blessing is given to him ; the seat is awarded to him ; he has excellent promises granted to him. In all that he gained , he wearied not with it ; but he undertook to rest from his labours . He did not try to keep for himself that which he had obtained, but hastened to obtain that which he had not gained.' 'It is incumbent, then, that you emulate these zealous ones, for having been upright they gained the kingdom of Heaven by reason of the interest which accrued to them from the money and the talents to which they had been faithful , having in their stewardship guarded the interests of the Creditor . They invested for themselves in that security which " eye hath not seen and ear hath not heard , and which hath never entered into the heart of man " . Or ever the blessed Eusebius had delivered himself of his eloquence , the Deacon Epanetus , presumably in hopes , said unto him: ' My father, cut short your speech now and engage yourself in the combat ; rouse yourself from sleep and hasten to the contest . For a long time your old age has attained to the highest rank of the faith .' The saint of God was well pleased when he heard these words. He looked sympathetically upon this Deacon, and asked him, saying : ' What is your message ? Tell it to me .' The Deacon Epanetus answered him : ' I had but arrived at the outer door of the church in consequence of the business of Thy Holiness , when one of the officers of the king, named Adoctus, asked for you, holy Angel . He is one of the ministers of the tyrant, as I learned from those who were with him. There were with him distinguished persons and ten priests of sin , the gifts of the king in their hands and presents for Thy Holiness . ' 'In the hands of Adoctus was the tyrant's sabre , unsheathed . He wished to pass into the outer door of the church, but I did not suffer him. I had him arrested by the guard at the gate , in order that Thy Holiness might know of it. I was astonished at this servant of sin , how he could have dared. He is not angry at what I have done to him . He has not even disputed after he understood what was our mind . Behold, he awaits your command.' The blessed Eusebius , when he heard all this , was not troubled, nor was he afraid ; he desired and rejoiced that, when the door of the confession of faith should be opened , they who had merited this gift shall be called blessed for ever. When he read their testimonies and meditated on their triumphs , his mind rejoiced greatly at these recitals which were read to him ; but he was somewhat afflicted on behalf of those in his flock who were hitherto not well taught, and he did not know how they would come out of their contest . When he saw his flock sad and silent , he stretched out his hand , confirmed all his church, men and women, and comforted and consoled them in the following words : ' Take heart, my children, and fear not ! Remember the words which I have spoken to you. Imitate me, who am an old man upwards of ninety years . As a man who is thirsty and longs for the draught of cool fresh waters, so doth my soul thirst and beg that I may be the first in the contest, and the last to suffer persecution ; that in me may be found the beginning and the B end of the persecution of the Christians, and that with me the wrath of justice may cease, and that God may be reconciled with His people . But you, my sons , show a good will before God , and be ready and prompt for a good confession in Christ. If in His mercy He has the will to act as is His wont, so that the cruel time passes over His Church, your good wishes will be accomplished ; but if, on the other hand , it is just in His eyes that His rod of chastisement should continue powerful over you , then, my children , we dare not faint by reason of the punishment lest we be strangers and not children , according as the blessed apostle has said : “ If we have no punishment, we shall be strangers and not children . He whom God loveth He punishes, as the father punishes his child . " ' With these consoling words he encouraged his people . Protontas , guardian of the door of the church , entered and stopped him, speaking thus : ' Adoctus, the minister of Julian, has sent by the hands of your servant to His Holiness to say that " If His Wisdom desires that we hear each other on the matter, for which purpose I was sent to speak to you, command, and we shall come to thee ; and if again you wish it in the presence of this people here assembled , I will give such glory to your old age as I am ordained . That depends on you yourself, but tell me your will. ” › The blessed Eusebius bade unto those who were with him that the impure should not enter and walk in the house of God ; adding, that to deliver up one's soul to go out to them is more fitting for the people which is of the city ; ' we might then know what is the wish of the wretch, what is in his mind concerning our churches and our people . Let us send back to him, by the hand of his messenger , the reproaches which are appropriate to his madness .' When the good shepherd gave himself up to walk out of his church, all the people followed on his heels . He walked before the clergy of the church like a general before his army (lit. flock).

Those who accompanied him on his coming out of the church were all of one mind , a crowd of men and women , about one thousand , nine hundred . and thirty souls . He rejoiced and was gratified at the assembly of his church , and especially that they had a firm purpose . He blessed and praised their faith . And while the blessed shepherd remained at the outer door of the church with his folk, as by the grace of God , a radiance of splendour overspread the face of Eusebius , the blessed ; he looked like an angel, so much so that when Adoctus saw him, he admired and wondered greatly at his appearance. As though speaking to a kind father, he questioned him, saying: ' Are you Eusebius, who is become commander and governor of the people of the Christians ? ' That holy and saintly man of God replied to him frankly and with great strength , saying : ' If you wish to know, verily I am the least of the apostles .' Adoctus replied : 'We love the glory of your old age, if that pleases you, and we do not wish to diminish your glory as far as in us lies , because of your wisdom and your clear understanding. But Julian, the King for ever, holds the sovereignty of the world. As dealing with a man trained and wise , pure in body and holy in his thoughts, the Pontiff, chief of the priests approaches you, wishing that you serve God all your days ; and , by the hands of the honoured ministering priests of Zeus and Apollo, he has sent you the priest's vestments, with which you may serve and be agreeable to the gods . That you may believe our words , here is the official letter, sent to you first , as the head of our kingdom and priest of the gods , that you may know what goodwill he has towards you. '

He held out and offered him the letter of the wretched fellow, which he took as a man who understood with what it was concerned . The purport of the letter which was sent to him by the tyrant was as follows : ' As for a long time we have had experience of your methods and tested your knowledge, it is our desire not to detract from your glory, nor to diminish aught of your greatness, if you will be quick to understand what your life means , and help yourself. It behoves us not, on account of passing events , to

thrust aside persons who are brilliant in their wisdom and enlightened in their knowledge, so as to estrange them from us, when they are able with the power of their know— ; ledge to aid us in the business of our government , or in the affairs which are due to the gods . We have regarded matters with the enlightened eye of our knowledge, and we are able to recognize that , if we do not grant pardon for things of the past , our kingdom cannot be strong. Few would remain in it if we hugged the wish to revenge ourselves for them or scrutinized them too closely. But it is necessary that we demand from you this one thing only, that, from this time, the gods be adored , that their temples be opened, that their altars be built, and that no one deprive them of their sacrifices and offerings : The old things are passed away ; we wish to bring about a renewal of things, as a person should understand of himself, that we should love and worship the gods that die not, whose compassion is become abundant even towards those who have spurned their glory. Why should you, of all persons , be sad at this , one learned and well- versed as you are, for you are not seated beside malefactors ? You are a man of knowledge, and you should never spend your time in external affairs , beneath which are the risks of offence, but turn whithersoever it is pointed out to you, and give ear to these leaders . Even though the government of the earliest kings was feeble, necessity compels us to obey their commands, and to come into agreement with their wills and resemble them in their worship. It beseems wise persons to yield their will to temporal governors , as I have written to you ; and , wishing you to know and comprehend what is our intention as hinted in our letters , we have not taken it into our head to treat of the perversity of the house of Constantine of corrupt mind, those who, without their knowing it, followed the madness of the Galileans and pursued their error . They broke the commandments which the kings who were before them had imposed ; they changed their laws and confused their methods when they were very much superior to them, rich in knowledge and enlightened in understanding, persons who by their wisdom could regulate in the night of the world . If these astonished the world by their marvellous actions , the will of those who have destroyed such beautiful orderings and rules of the kings who were before them, who have sullied the cult of the gods in their pride, these latter will not maintain their desire after their death . Your mind should seize upon their folly, so that you diminish not your glory and be lowered in your greatness , as I have written to you above. You must not trouble me with many details ; for you are not a child that you should be disturbed perforce by the knowledge which you possess . I say to you as to a man of wisdom who are set as head and commander over all the people of the Christians, the first communication of our government has been sent to you as a man to whom is due all the reverence of the Nazarenes . We are not deceived in our mind that , if with a good will you will hearken to our commandment, and return to the worship of our gods , the whole multitude will come after you without any surprise, and you will gain by your docility the life of your soul, and our government will be spared the shedding of much blood. We , indeed , do not desire the loss of our power, nor even to lessen or diminish the number of our armies. You will work a great advantage to our realm if you will do this thing ; and we, in return , will render great services . We will make you a chief and commander for all times ; we will make you a minister and chief priest to the holy gods, lovers of holy persons like you . You shall be admitted to the mysteries of the gods , and you shall know the ancient secrets , and you shall know also that which will happen after us . You shall be reborn of the gods , and so renew your old age, and rejuvenate your grey hairs, and what is more than all, you will be like unto gentle children. You will be the child of the gods by grace ; you will enter into the mysteries of our government as heir to the mysteries of the gods . We shall entrust to your hands all the treasures of the churches as the treasurer of the gods who die not . Now, in order that you may credit our words, and that I may interpret my promises, see , I have sent to you in accordance with your high state ten priests, servants of Zeus and Apollo , that they may complete those things that we have written to you ; they are charged by us to carry all into effect. May the gods , protectors of the world , put into your mind the protective thought, so that it may aid your soul , and you may find grace in the eyes of our government ! '

After the written message of the detestable one was read before the people of the city, Adoctus bade these pontiffs enter in the vestments of their priesthood , and they offered to the blessed Eusebius the presents which were sent by their hands from the tyrant Julian , abundant gifts , like those of kings, priestly vessels for service , beautiful and grand robes of royalty and a crown to match , the entire outfit and garb of the highpriest-hood .

The saint of God regarded not the gifts of the impure, but he turned his face from them. He mocked at them and at him who sent them . He chided the priests of sin, and said to them : 'May Christ rebuke you and your father, the devil, him for whom you work. Depart, say to this madman who has sent you : "Let him and his gifts go to perdition ! " which was said to Simon, his equal, by that chief of apostles sent by God . You also , priests of sin , and oracles of error , you who have deceived the innocent and lead astray the simple by the secrets of your aberrations , destruction will suddenly come upon you at a time when you will not know it and at an hour when you do not expect it ; when punishment will be exacted from you with justice, and the wiles which you have muttered will come upon your own head. He will be surprised and astonished, the tyrant who has sent you , when the report of your destruction shall reach his ears .' Adoctus was amazed at these words and , for the purpose of his business , felt it necessary to speak calmly to him, and said : ' You have truly not considered our dignity as we have wished for yours by the way in which you have acted with regard to us, O Father ! It is that the just King for ever, holder of the world's power , has rightly made you to pass in his letters as equal to him, and out of respect for your age, as that of a good father, he has sent you gifts . You, however, in your pride, have with painful words of scorn stoned him as with stones . Understand that I am innocent of your blood ; I am obliged to fulfil that which I have been commanded.' He drew his tyrant's sword and approaching Eusebius with it unsheathed , said unto him : ' Know that the king has indeed offered you a choice between these two things . Choose one of the two , either the king's gift and agreement with his wishes , for which he will make you head and leader over all the priests of the gods , as you are now head of all the bishops , or else this sharpened sabre , at your discretion, and now, take heed what answer you give to the king, who has sent me to you.' The saint of God was pained within himself and said to Adoctus : ' Really I am ashamed of you, that you apply the name of King to a madman , and what is more, a tyrant , who has left God, his Creator, and rendered his adoration to his creatures . The fool has fallen from the truth and renounced his faith . He has become insane after the worship of demons and the service of idols . What have we to say further but this which the prophet said to God : "We have been slain for Thy sake every day, and we have been counted as sheep for the slaughter. Eusebius inclined his head before him to be killed, and gave his neck to the sword, saying : ' Draw near , my son, and make an end of that which you have been ordered . ' When Adoctus saw this , he was abashed ,. and cried aloud before all the assembly of the city : ' I have not the order to kill you , but to be a witness for you , as he who wields the power of the world has sent letters to you to be your witness . As there is room yet for pardon, see that you get your soul and help yourself ; here is his letter in your hands .' Zeal seized God's holy one, he took hold of the letter of Julian and tore it up, and cast the fragments to the winds . He turned to Adoctus, and said to him : ' As your master has been torn by this first letter which he has indited, in the same manner may he be torn from his kingdom ! May he have no success, and may he not prosper in the rule of the Romans, but may his destruction be outside of his kingdom, because he revolted from God, his Creator, and he robbed Him of His adoration , and denied His confession ! Though he knew full well that worship was due to God the Creator of All from all His creatures, he rendered his worship to demons and to devils, which can never be compared to His verities . See them like mad dogs eagerly awaiting the time when they will lick up his blood in the hour of his destruction . This is, forsooth , the wages which shall be rendered to those who are attached to and work with demons .'

When Adoctus and those who were with him heard these words , and saw that which passed , they were moved to the quick, and tore their garments . They felt themselves possessed of great fear, because of the letter of the governing power which had been torn . They threatened the saint of God ; they knew not what to do to him, first, because of the assembly of the church and, secondly, because they had not the command to kill him . Full of anger, they turned their faces from him and appealed to the chiefs of the city. They disputed with them severely , and said : ' Men of Rome , know and see what you are doing. The evil that is taking place to-day in your city is not a light one. You do not seem to reckon with the trouble which it is going to bring you. You have heard with your own ears the insult which Eusebius has offered to the king, and his blasphemies against the gods . You have seen with your eyes that he has torn the king's letter. You are not disquieted in yourselves, nor have any pain, prompting you to demand satisfaction for the insult offered to the king and the gods by this wretched unfortunate fellow, who will not be long before he perishes . May you revenge yourselves on him according to what is due ! You are become like persons in whose sight the letters of their master are despised , and who have befooled his orders, and opposed the fear due to his power ; and it has already come about that you have treated him with contumely, while you have been treated with all consideration by him . As loving brothers he has written to you letters full of restfulness which proclaim peace, letters which rejoice the heart and gladden the soul . In this manner, his power has already been derided by you, inasmuch as you have not demanded satisfaction for the tearing of his written message. Suppose, according to the command of the government and the appointed regulations , letters had been sent to you by the hand of angry persons, who were full of wrath and ready to destroy, fear and trembling would perhaps have seized upon you, and the letters of him who holds the sovereign power of the world would have been greatly respected by you. Since now he has not as yet used force with you , let us consider that he is not king, as you have most likely thought. See now what you are about to do, for that which was enacted to-day in your city is no little evil . If you wish it , there is a mode by which to remove the danger from your city. What is it alone that we have to do ? Give us permission to do as we are ordered , and the danger will be lifted from off you, and you will be guiltless .'

Then Volusianus, one of the chiefs of Rome , answered Adoctus, saying : 'What have you been commanded by your master ? Tell it to me, so that I may know his will , and that I may give you a hand in this business of yours .' Adoctus answered him : 'From that which has once been read before you , and which you have heard with your ears, you ought to know the king's will. If you wish to pay heed to it , there is no need for further questioning.' Volusianus answered him : "That which has been read before us was sent to Eusebius, the bishop , and not to us, and what pleases him and he wills it, you will answer with regard to them ; what is that between you and us ? ' Adoctus said : " There is one thing that we have to say to you as commanders and governors of the town ; and we are further aware that those who are assembled with Eusebius at the church are your brothers and neighbours . Fulfil the behest and persuade every one to go about his business, helping on the king's affairs and confirming his ordinances, in order that we may settle the matter, so that misfortune may not overtake the city , and we and you may be spared the blame.' Volusianus replied : ' We have no order from your master as regards these written messages . We have laws which were given to us by the kings who were before you, so that we can do nothing without the written command of the king .'

Adoctus answered : ' I had no fear for the risk of this affair which has been enacted before your eyes , nor at the thought that this latter epistle would be torn as was the first, and that I might run into danger on account of a misdeed. I received letters also for you coming from him who holds the power of the world , namely, Julian . ' Volusianus answered him : 'We have never taken a step outside the limits of that which is fitting . We have done nothing which is hurtful to ourselves . Why then should any one think of us anything unusual ? '

Thereupon Adoctus presented the letter of the wretch to Volusianus and his comrades ; he sent them a multitude of words of folly, which we do not find necessary to write down in our history ; we shall quote only those which have a bearing upon our narration. At the end of his communication he wrote to them thus : ' Because your city has always flourished by the power of the gods, when these departed from it for a time under the government of the kings before us, it was ready to go to ruin. As I know your firm faith in the gods before the time of the house of Constantine, I have given my soul for you ; by means of my sacrifice and holocausts I have appeased the anger of the gods against us. We cannot deceive ourselves as to the anxiety and fear with which you were affected towards the gods who die not, who do not appreciate mere vague words as showing the faith of man , but they regard actions , clear, praiseworthy, and constant . It follows, therefore, that when the gods viewed your faith expressed in your ideas, when they recognized and probed your inner thought and perceived your love in regard to them , that they judged rightly, and determined that, from the beginning, your city was worthy to flourish and be splendid in holiness , that she should fortify herself and become powerful , and that she should have much cause for joy, and regale herself in the feasts . Show, then , your goodwill for that which the gods have been pleased to do ; give your hand to Adoctus, the right hand of my kingdom, and to the holy priests with him, that they may accomplish the will of the gods , and that they may perfect the design which they had in mind. For it has been the will of the gods that a great altar be erected before the door of the great church of Rome, at the place whence there flared forth the error of the Nazarenes throughout all the realm of the Romans. On this altar let there be offered the sacrifices of reconciliation for the indulgence of your city and for the pardon of the inhabitants thereof. If Eusebius repents and turns from his error and remembers himself, and carries out our wishes, let him be the first, as the high priest of the gods , to offer the new sacrifice upon the new altar, for the peace of your city, and for the existence of its inhabitants . If he resists always in the error of his thought, if he mocks our command and insults our power, he shall be reserved for the verdict of justice , and the priests of Zeus and Apollo shall offer sacrifices to the gods . As King in power, I could bring such things about, even though you should be unwilling ; but as I have recognized your love towards the gods, and that you have for a long time desired it , it is on that account that I have left all to your will as brothers and friends , to show that we are well disposed towards you. Furthermore, you will receive from us rich gifts , and benefits will pass on to your children and to your children's children for many generations .'

When the letter of the base one was read before all the people of the city, there were some among them that rejoiced and were glad, and others who were sad and grieved . The rejoicing was on the part of the Jews and Pagans, and the sorrowful mourning on the part of the House of God . The chiefs of the city also were sad, for they were believers ; they did not know what to do on account of the affairs of the Treasury which they held. They said to Adoctus : 'We are placed over the affairs of the city, and not over the sacrifices of demons . If your master commands you anything, here is all the city at your disposal ; do that which has been commanded you . We do not oppose the will of your master, nor will we strive against our brothers ; for all those who are united with Eusebius in the church are our brothers and neighbours . It is not our business to build altars or to destroy churches .' Adoctus said to them: ' Now you show openly against yourselves that you are of the opinion of Eusebius and of those who are with him.'

Volusianus spoke as the mouthpiece of all his companions , and said to him : ' What then do you imagine , that we are going to renounce the God who created us ? ' Adoctus said : 'Who is the Creator of all ? ' Volusianus answered him : ' Christ, who was crucified for His creatures .' Adoctus replied : ' If you are of that opinion, how many misfortunes you will have to suffer ! ' Volusianus answered : 'Who has seen and who has heard anything like this , when the king has as yet not been seen of us, nor has as yet sat upon the throne of our kingdom, nor has as yet reigned in dominion over us ? See how his threats and anger are heralded in the streets of our city in place of the king's presents and gifts . What else is left us of all this but to change our country, so as not to change the truth of our God ; and to become strangers to the power of the Romans rather than to be strangers to the faith which our fathers have left us ? It is really a matter of wonder and astonishment that, while as yet our master is in the higher places , the news of his paganism has preceded him in all the places of our kingdom . ' Adoctus answered them : ' Since you are of this mind , I will go to the king who has sent me, and he will know how to act with you on account of your insult .' The Jews who had assembled to see how this matter would pass disputed with the chiefs of Rome , and said: ' Since your mind is seized with the religion of the Nazarenes, you wish to bring evil on us ; and because of you our city may be ruined , because you are not willing to submit to the will of the king. Be well assured that the will of the king will be fulfilled even though you wish it not. We will join hands with the king to accomplish his will. Scarcely yet, and it is a long time since joy has come upon us , as much as you wished it ; it is even now in the setting. Spare the thought that our gladness shall be waning, for the time is come that the daughter of Abraham be gathered , and that she console herself for her sadness , and that her mind rejoice and delight itself at the gathering of her children, and at the revival of her temples . This is her day, when she claps her hands and stamps with her feet . She will lift up her voice and say : " Oh, my enemies, rejoice not ! I am fallen, but I will arise again ; the time is come that I rise . I rejoice for the day that I fell . Behold , to-day, I rejoice at my humiliation."

The Jews made use publicly of such expressions before all the people of Rome. They beat with their hands and stamped with their feet, and they danced . They incited and encouraged the pagans in the building of the altar. After Adoctus went the Jews and the pagans, about three thousand men . They said : ' We certainly give our support to the king's will . There shall be constructed an altar to the gods at the doors of the arrogant and bloated church , for she has destroyed the temples of the gods and cast down their altars . She destroyed and laid waste the Synagogues (lit. houses of the Sabbath) . She burned the houses of their assembly. When will the day come that we shall see her temples broken down , and shall mock at her, as our forefathers mocked at her in the days of the house of Diocletian and Maximian, famous kings , who destroyed her lofty temples and laid bare the foundations of her palaces ?' When the blessed Eusebius learned these news , he sent to Adoctus : 'You have nothing to do with the precincts of the Church . It is a watch which has been entrusted to me. I prefer, indeed , to die for it , that no stranger tread it. If the Jews, our enemies , excite you against us , take good heed of what you do , for all the people that are with me are ready and prompt. They are resolute to destroy and be destroyed . ' When Adoctus learned these news , he called the Jews and pagans and said unto them : ' Eusebius and those who are with him are, as I learn , quite ready to fight . The matter which is the source of contention can no longer be hindered . Take the counsel that I give you . Close on them the outer doors of the church . Treat them in such a manner that Eusebius and those who are with him are put in prison, until the altar is built, and the sacrifices are finished. When the will of the king has been done, and the names of the gods are called upon their assemblies, then the doors will be opened . If they have the strength to fight with us, let them do it.'

This deliverance pleased the pagans and Jews . They closed the outer doors of the church. They set guards at all sides . Eusebius and those who were with him were put in prison for two days. The Jews and the pagans began to build altars . When the chiefs of the city saw that the Bishop Eusebius was put in prison with all the clergy of the church, with the Christians who were with them, and they had cognizance of the stratagems that the Jews and the pagans had between themselves that , when the altar should be built and the sacrifices made, then they should open the doors of the church, they should come upon them, sabre in hand , and without the order of Adoctus they should kill them , the chiefs of Rome were much afflicted , and were saddened greatly. They knew not what to do. They were afraid because of the matter of the Treasury which they held , which they could not reveal against themselves . They sent in secret and informed the rectors of these convents , and said : ' Come quickly to the aid of your brethren who are in the church, before the sabre of the persecutors has sway over them.' But the peoples of the Jews and the pagans who watched them closed the outer doors of the church ; they put in prison Eusebius the Bishop , and those who were with him, until they built at the door of the church an altar to Zeus and Apollo . There was agreement between the Jews and the pagans that, when the altar shall be finished and the sacrifice have ascended , the doors of the church should be opened ; they should enter by force without command, and exterminate them. 'Let them come to their end now, before the sabre of the executioner massacres them. As for us , we cannot make ourselves known publicly, because we are seized by an unjust power.' When the rector heard these news , he sighed , and wept with a loud voice and said : ' Oh , woe unto us , for we have sinned ; evil kings reign over us ! ' He rose up in haste and greatly confused , and informed all those convents that were there. He assembled all the religious who were in the convents of Rome and its environs , all those who were able to fight in the army,, to the number of a thousand, four hundred persons ; all were of one word and of one soul. They lifted up their voice and wept for the humiliation of the church, and the imprisonment of their brothers. They gave the right hand one to the other to die for their brothers who were in the church . They fortified and heartened one another ; they clothed themselves in might and heroism ; they entered Rome with great courage, being enforced and carrying batons. There mixed in with the Romans to the number of five hundred men. They were of the country of Mesopotamia , of whom these out of zeal for God had changed their costume for the costume of monks , and had their hair cut . They entered with them into Rome, being well armed , that no one might possibly know them. All the city was troubled before them. They made straight for the church, where they learned that the altar was being built . When the pagans and the Jews saw them, they began to be afraid before them. The Lord cast fear and trembling over the Jews and the pagans ; they began to take to flight before the religious on all sides . These fell upon them with batons in the streets, and beat them like dogs . There died on that day of the pagans and Jews many people ; only a very few persons escaped ; they who hid themselves in secret places. and clefts and in the sewers of the city, escaped . Of the race of the religious not even one was injured ; the Lord protected them by His Hand and preserved them.

Adoctus , when he saw that the sword began with the Jews, and saying to those priests who were with him : 'Save yourselves as best you can, ' himself mounted his horse and saved himself. When those priests saw that Adoctus had left them and run off, fear and terror seized them , they ran for protection to some shelter . They found a large disused idol-house , distant from the city about two miles . They entered it and sheltered there for some time , until they found an opportunity to escape thence . When the sword ceased and there was tranquillity, the Jews and the pagans could not show themselves publicly in the whole city. Adoksis said to his companions of the convent : ' Now that Christ has given us rest, and our eyes have seen their desire on the enemies of the church and the insulters of the Cross , we are going to open the doors of the church and console the blessed Bishop and his flock .'

They opened the doors of the church, entered , and saluted the Bishop Eusebius and those who were with him. There was joy in all the city for the deliverance which God had worked for the church. It was debated among the brethren as to what had become of those priests of sin. When the discussion among them was examined , and it was known that there was not a death among those priests , they prayed the blessed Eusebius to allow them to go in search of them, whereupon the saint of God said to them : ' My children, leave the dead to bury their dead ; as our Lord has said , we must occupy ourselves with our combat , and be fit for that spiritual interest which shall fall to us, and be not by our zeal a hinderer of our battle, and find that we are fighting against ourselves ; at the time of our troubles God calls us to be witness , not to make war with our persecutors . He , being All -powerful , could do all when He was taken by the executioners ; He could have destroyed them by the breath of His mouth . So as not to prevent the way for which He came into the world , He gave His executioners opportunity to take Him, so as to show them that He was taken by His own will . He affected them with a little breath of His divinity, and delivered His soul to those who held Him. He, who was not suffering nor dying, owing to the nature of His body, endured the torment of crucifixion, tasted death according to our nature and , by His death, loosened the decree of our mortality. If this good Master, who is superior to and high above pains and death , to save His servants tasted death and suffered pains, how much more does it behove us , servants mortal and suffering, to taste of the pains of His crucifixion by the passion and torments of our faith , so that we be not alienated from that which occurred to-day ? From now onward we ought to think of our combat. For who knows if there were not among those who died to-day persons who reflected and felt sorry for their error , whose souls we might have led to penitence, and gained their lives, so that they need not have died to-day in their paganism , departing with their sins , deprived of hope , and losing their lives ? So among those priests, who can contemplate the future and know whether there are not among them persons whom grace calls , whom penitence may draw, and who may gain their lives, as the priest Charbil gained his life , and they who are like him ? ' The blessed Eusebius had not yet finished his admonition, when some one came to inform him that, as regards these impudent servants of sin , the centurion tremblingly went in search of them and had brought them in chains before the altar which they had built ; all the people of the town contending and shouting that they should be burned on the altar which they had built . ' I have been sent to let you know this. ' The blessed Eusebius arose in great haste and went into the city, found them disputing, and made a sign with his hand to silence them. When they were silent , he spoke with them and said to them : 'Men, sons of Rome, take heed , and see what you do to-day. This pagan tyrant has for a long time greatly threatened our city for your true faith, and especially to-day when he has heard what has happened to his co-religionists ; through the madness of his paganism he will destroy your city, and kill you.' The people of the city answered and said : ' Our city.

shall be destroyed , and we shall die , and these unclean ones of our kingdom shall burn in fire ; but we are once for all determined to die for the faith of the church .'

The holy Eusebius , however, counselled them in a pleasant and flattering manner, and said : ' What benefit , my children, shall accrue from the death of these wretches ? The more they continue in their error, dying in their sins, the surer will repentance be lost to them . But if it satisfy your will and is right in your eyes, let them be put in convents , that they may learn the faith of the church ; perhaps they will return from their iniquity and renounce their error, and find their souls by their penitence, gaining a way out from their destruction and their sin. No, my children, you must not agitate for their death, if you be so minded.' Thereupon some wise and distinguished men of the people of the city rose up and, discussing, said to Eusebius : 'Penitence is indeed out of the question for persons who have cut themselves adrift from repentance ; impure ones who have had the audacity to build altars to demons and to idols in a holy place where a sanctuary is built for the Most High God . What penitent feeling have these, even when they promise to be penitent ? Their penitence will be stratagem and a ruse ; as soon as the tyrant shall have pressed them, they will deny their penitence , and will turn and cruelly avenge themselves upon us . Their death determined upon by us is just , because they are an evil stock, and on the swamp of trumpery their roots are planted . They never bear any fruits of penitence , so that that is accomplished with them which John the Baptist preached, that every tree that beareth not fruit shall be cut down, and go into the fire ; still more that which our Lord has said , that every plant " which has not been planted by My Father who is in Heaven , shall be rooted up quickly ". By these divine echoes we have their destruction proclaimed . Who will stand upon their defence but he who agrees with their error ? Allow, then, this evil plant to be rooted up from our city, before it send out shoots of bitterness and overwhelms us . Thy Holiness ought not to be mistaken as to the firmness and watchfulness with which our city guards the faith which the apostles have committed to it. It is in vain and to no purpose that the assemblies of our city threaten these unclean and defiled ones to make them leave the streets and squares of our city ; before the doors of our church they build altars of pollution to demons and to idols . If their crime does not recoil upon their heads , the innocent and simple will soon be annoyed ; and it is in justice that we have to vindicate their account .'

The blessed Eusebius listened well to these reports ; he tried hard to save from death these error-stricken ones , so as to bring them to penitence, but he displeased the inhabitants of the city. They began to address Eusebius : ' O you orthodox one of the church, give a helping hand to the faith which our ancestors , the apostles, have handed down to us . For all the churches depend on you. Christ supports the seat of Simon Peter ; he who, out of zeal for the faith, justly avenged himself on Simon the magician and those who were in agreement with his imbecility. Resemble him, and avenge yourself on these unclean children of error. Let their commissioner, Julian , be to blame for that which the priests of sin have done . Let the enemies of truth be burned , let the enemies of the church be given a portion in the fire . Let them be offered up themselves a sacrifice to demons ; for by these things your faith will be glorified , O fair and true shepherd ; by this will your faith be praised , innocent and holy high-priest ! by this will your old age be triumphant, having borne the burden of His Church and of His flock. O just shepherd , rise up before your flock ! Sponsor of the church, demand punishment on these despicable ones for their contempt in having trodden the bridal chamber of her spouse ! It is to you that Christ confided the Church , His spouse, see that you do not neglect to avenge yourself on the mockers . Apply the sickle in your zeal and cut out the sheaves of tares . Let them have remorse for the altar which they built. If you have any fear in that , and have compunction over the death of these wretches , enter gloriously into your C2 church, and we will take upon ourselves after you the risk of their burning and the vengeance of their death . ' When these words resounded on all sides and were heard by the saint, he was pained , and lifting his eyes towards Heaven, raised his hands to God, and said : "Thou knowest full well the secrets ; Thou hast proved my heart and examined my thoughts to understand in what manner I have wished to save these miserable ones from death . It is not that I am afraid of the anger and threats of the tyrant, as some people think . For Thy compassion does not demand their vengeance , rather the penitence of these erring ones in the hour of their judgement, which now misleads the children of Rome . They take upon themselves the destruction of the sinners more than their repentance . We commit them all , O Lord , unto Thy will.' With tears in his eyes he returned to his church. He had taken to heart the destruction of these guilty ones , now bereft of their repentance .

There was a dispute among the people of the city after the blessed Eusebius returned to his church. Some were afflicted in themselves because they had gone against the will of the just shepherd ; and they agreed among themselves to do the will of the innocent of God . Others again pooh- poohed their speech , and said : ' It is not fitting that there should be pity for those who , without any reason, had the audacity to profane the house of the Lord . ' The words of those who threatened the wretched priests became heated ; in the warmth of their zeal they bound them, and cast them on the altar. They gathered under them faggots , and burnt them upon the altar which they had built. When the flames had consumed their bodies until nothing remained , they destroyed the altar and scattered its ashes (to the wind) . They threw them in the river which passed through the centre of the town.

On that day the chiefs of Rome entered into a covenant, all the men known and renowned , the chiefs and the commanders of the city . They fixed the conditions, and took oaths that they would be of one mind and one thought, that they would exempt themselves from the government of the city and from the affairs of the Treasury , which they had held , that they would be of one and the same idea and agreement, with a pure mind without guile, that they would publicly profess themselves before the tyrant acknowledging that they were Christians , that they would not be abashed at his power, nor even tremble or be afraid of the threats of his indignation . If any one should force them to renounce , they had decided to take upon themselves tortures and torments . They set before their eyes the seizing of their goods, and the pillage of their fortune, and that they should rather be strangers to their lives than renounce God , their Creator. They said one to the other : "The city is the head of the power of our government ; if renunciation begins with us, we become the cause of destruction for all the countries which are under our sway , and there will fall upon us the responsibility for their infidelity and for their sin . If it be that we have to give up these things, then it behoves us , as persons sound in their belief and perfect in their truth, to cast behind us the care of the world and the concern of its possessions , love and feeling for wife and child, brothers and sisters, with all that the world contains , and take only heed to ourselves and our combat- how to please God by our confession , and having a frank countenance , not ashamed to behold Him, as He has ordered us in His gospel ; as persons zealous and strong, let us run to the combat which is set before us , and contend with sin , and overcome it by the resistance supplied by our endurance . As athletes equipped for the work, let us shame the time, and wrest from it the crown of victory ; let us be a cause of interest and a good example to all the countries under our rule. What profit shall we have from the world if we gain it , and lose our soul , as our Redeemer has said in His gospel ? ' (With this) they called to mind texts from the holy books and worldly witnesses suitable to the occasion ; they encouraged and consoled one another. When the blessed Eusebius learnt what activity the chiefs of Rome were exerting that the true faith of the church might not be renounced , and that they gave themselves to death for the truth of their God, his spirit was glad and rejoiced for the zeal of their faith and for the firmness of their mind . This blessed old man was not tired of the love of God which he had acquired ; he rose and went to the place where they were gathered , and spoke to their hearts ; and consoling them with several texts gathered from the holy books, he encouraged them , and fortified their minds. When he had praised them and glorified their faith , he commanded them several times to go each one to his house. They approached him, bowed down to him, and were blessed by him. He filled his mouth with benedictions , blessed them, and said to them : ' Blessed are ye to the Lord your God, Him to whom you have committed your lives , Him whom you have loved and wished for more than all else that is in the world , and you have decided to walk in the way of His crucifixion ; you have accomplished that which our Lord has said : " He who loves me, let him come after me, while he who does not deny himself and take his cross and come after me , he is not worthy of me. " And in order that we should not despair when trials light upon us, and that He may continue unto us the desire of his love , He encouraged us, and said : " Hope in my love ." So let us then, my children , hope in the love of the delight of our Maker and not grow weary in misfortunes. By the worries of a period of time , we shall gain the life eternal ; we shall not even be afraid of the wrath and threats of the tyrant . God will not entirely withdraw His hand from us, nor will He suffer us to go to destruction . Let us hear the apostle Paul, who says : " We suffer in all things , but we faint not. We are harassed , but we are not guilty . We are persecuted , but we are not cast off. We fall , but we perish not. " With other divine statements the apostle consoled in his time those who were persecuted ; he was like unto us . It behoves us also, my beloved ones , that we , with these echoes proclaimed by the sacred Scriptures , console our soul in our persecution , casting our hope upon God , our Maker, for He is able and powerful to ward off from us the attack of persecution and, by His mercy, grant remission to our sins as is His wont, and redemption to His churches , and to you new lives in His kingdom , when you shall have been witnesses by your good will .' Having blessed them, he dismissed them , that each one might go to his own house in peace, and he himself returned to his church, joyously confessing and glorifying God. Julian learnt all that was passing in Rome. He was very threatening towards the inhabitants of Rome ; he was full of anger and wrath against them, he had resolved to destroy them to avenge himself on them for their having burned his men, who were beaten down. There was one who, by his knowledge, was able to calm the mind of the tyrant, namely, Aplatus, a man expert in knowledge, and renowned among the philosophers ; and although he was much of a pagan, he gave good counsel and just . He was one of the advisers of the tyrant, and the advice which he gave was accepted . He was called by Julian in secret to ask his counsel as to what should be done. He revealed what vengeance he had set himself to execute upon the inhabitants of Rome, who had insulted him, and mocked at his letters . He threatened them severely, and said : ' I will avenge myself as is fitting on these rebel servants who have dared in their temerity to stretch their hand against the priests of divinity. They feared not the vengeance of the gods , for they burnt their priests without any necessity on the altar which they had built. They did not even fear the just power of our government, not having any shame whatsoever ; while they added to their wickedness by ruining and destroying the people of the Israelites , because these conducted themselves according to the will of our government . Myriads of knaveries and wickednesses have they inflicted upon these. What ought we to do in return for this , O wise sage, and friend of the gods ? ' As Aplatus was a wise man and a lover of peace, he allowed the tyrant from the commencement of his conversation to speak so as to make a detour to bring the tyrant to his mind. He said to the tyrant : " The power of your kingdom is to destroy or to do mercy. You have the power

(40 JULIAN THE APOSTATE

in all that you will as king. There is no person above you to reprove your will in that which you do, except the holy gods , and these do not desire the destruction of men. Who is there that is born among men , who dares to refuse the will of the king and live ? ' Julian answered : ' If I had willed to act according to power, as I have said to you , I would not have troubled you in these things which I have been thinking about. There was no mistake in my mind that everything is permitted to me as king. Yet although it is permitted to me, I do not wish to exercise my power, so that even in this very thing our straight dealing may be known to all men. You , then, as a man expert and wise , give a right and just counsel as regards that which has been asked by us . Do not be intimidated by reason of our power, nor prevaricate in a matter of duty ; for we should not show mercy where it is not fitting, namely, to rebels and assassins who do not deserve it .' Aplatus answered : ' Since I have received the liberty from your power and have the assurance not to gloss over what is a duty, I reply that you have the power as king ; but in this case , as your rule knows , the other powers of the kingdom are subject also to the regulations of that which is in duty right , and to the laws of justice . If one wishes to override the rules of that which is correct, and transgress the laws of justice , he spoils (lit. overturns ) the name of royalty which he ought to glorify, and in its place comes the name of tyranny, which brings upon its possessors eternal shame and blame ; in such a case he has not the right to be named " king ", but " tyrant " , one who governs affairs without laws . God have mercy on your kingdom when it overrides the laws of justice, seeing that all the regulations of duty come from you.' Julian replied : ' Why is it that they demand rules of duty and fixed laws of justice for rebel servants and assassins , who do not put before their eyes the fear due to their masters ? ' Aplatus replied : " Your Divinity has given me permission , feeble as I am, and we have been commanded by the power of your might that, as your feeble one shall understand , he shall give counsel for your peace of mind . Now it has appeared to us the right thing, O King powerful and glorified for ever, considering that as your power has not yet been seated on the throne of the kingdom of the Romans, the glorified and adored name of your power has not yet been called to take over the government of the Romans , and that we have not yet received the acclamations of our realm in this city , which is the capital of our government, and the mother of all the cities under our sovereign rule. As for those who do not receive the acclamations of royalty in this city, their power is less than that of kings , and it is outside of the writs of the kings among the Romans . On this account , O glorified and puissant king, we approach the power of your might with the permission and the request that we may have patience with this city, because it has long been the capital of our realm. We ought not to hasten and summon over it the sword before reigning, lest we be called enemies , and not governors , for it is not seemly before reigning to seize the throne of the kingdom by means of arms , swords , war, and the shedding of blood ; for in this case we should be called " tyrants " and not kings . But if it be the will of Your Highness, and it seemeth right in your eyes, let us bear with the annoyance of their defects for some time longer, until the kingdom is secure in our hands , and we overpower our enemies , and triumph over them in battle . We then, clothed in victory, take up our government according to law and , as a king and ruler, according to the rules of duty ; Your Righteousness will be able to take vengeance on malefactors , and this will be exacted from them with justice, for having transgressed the bounds of that which is right. Each person will be recompensed according to his actions. We , like humble servants of their masters, have been ordered to bring forward to our awe-inspiring one by our persuasive request these matters as they appear to us . The decision now rests with Your Divinity .' Julian replied : "Your counsel is pleasing in my eyes , and I accept your words. I overlook and pass over everything , but I cannot neglect to avenge myself for the priests of divinity, lest the gods they served be angry at the neglect of their vengeance . ' Aplatus replied : ' Leave to the gods the vengeance for the priests, for when it pleases them, they will avenge themselves. Who can understand the secrets of the gods and enter into their mysteries ; or who can know what is their will in that which they do ? Maybe these offered their service negligently or complainingly, for their own use ; or they offered their sacrifices ( sacrament) in a mean spirit or with presumption ; or perhaps they seized upon the stolen firstfruits and , thus defrauding the gods of their vows , have by their greed deprived them of their offerings . It is on account of the anger of the gods that this lot has befallen them , one in which there is no mercy. This is hidden from us, but it is revealed to the gods in what way they were negligent when they suffered punishment, and why they did not come to their help when the flames had revenge upon them. Let us, therefore, give to the gods that which is ordained for the gods , and content ourselves , for the time being, with the things that are appointed for us . Now we should be anxious as to how to acquire a shining reputation for the government which has been administered by us in a just manner.' The advice which Aplatus gave to the tyrant was pleasing in his eyes, and he fulfilled it . This cursed tyrant, when he arrived in Italy, sent heralds before him to Rome to announce his arrival. All the city was seized with fear and was troubled . The chiefs of Rome, who had entered the covenant by oath, were not at all afraid or agitated . On the contrary, when they learned that the tyrant was near arriving , they cast off the cares of the world, and the concern of their possessions ; they distributed their belongings generously ; they visited the poor, the afflicted , the orphans and widows . They dispensed no little amount, for they were men of wealth . The rest of their possessions and that which they had acquired , they entrusted to their household . They appointed persons of confidence as trustees over their belongings , both within and without. Before the tyrant came to the town, these had left their houses and become strangers to their habitations ; with the blessed Eusebius their sojourn was in the church of God, until the day on which the tyrant entered their city, when he had them bound and sent to prison. The entry of Julian into Rome was in the month of Adar in the year 673, according to the reckoning of the Greeks , the 25th of the same month , five months after the death of Constantine . On that day the tyrant entered Rome with a great show of his forces, with the might and force of his armies , and with a large number of legions , and rows of men clad in armour. He was carried away , dazzled and overwhelmed . His mind was lifted up and taken in by the divinations of his paganism ; and he could not realize in his madness that he was a man . As regards his face , he had assumed a threatening and intimidating appearance , so as to cast terror and fright upon the inhabitants of Rome . The population of his city were frightened at his aspect ; they took to flight and hid themselves from him. There was no one who went in or out in the streets of the city for many days . When the tyrant saw that great fear had seized upon all the inhabitants of Rome , he gave gifts to his troops , and put over them generals , whom he sent into the other cities until they should receive orders . He sent his heralds into the city to announce peace , and to promise pardon . They had scarcely shown themselves before him , when all was tranquil ; the sword ceased , and mankind was at peace . The tyrant commanded that there should be shows, and that all the population should assemble in the theatres of the city, when he promised with oaths that henceforth there should be peace and no more danger. When all the city was assembled as by order of the wicked one, and all the show- places were full to the doors , Julian clothed himself in the robes of sovereignty ; and mounting, seated himself on the throne of the kings . The tyrant looked before him to receive the acclamations of the kingdom from the city assembled , so that , having sat upon the throne of the kings , he might not be put down in the records of the kingdom as " Tyrant ' instead of ' King '. The inhabitants of Rome lifted up their voices , and said : 'If indeed you seek from us the acclaim of the kingdom , give consideration to our request, and then receive the acclaim.' Julian answered them : 'What is your request ? ' They answered : " That there shall be peace concerning all our cults .' Julian shook his head, and kept silent . But these strove with him, and shouting at him, said : "You wish to sit on the seat of our kingdom. Leave the idols to themselves , and you do that which beseems you . If it seems well to you to win our city, the persecution of the house of Maximian must depart from our midst . Behold us , we are thy servants ! Our city takes pleasure in this , and our people aspire to it, for kingship is fitting for you when you make peace in your realm . The crown and dominion are to decorate you ; let but your mercy be spread over all persons equally.' For quite a long time they pressed home these arguments . The tyrant signalled to them to hold their peace . When they ceased and were quiet, he conversed with them , and said : 'What is this base corruption that possesses your city ? There are not a few scandals and evil doings that are carried on in it . If a decree from our royal will would investigate the scandals and the evils , scarcely a third part of the inhabitants of your city would be saved from our sword ; but since this is the commencement of our government , we deem it much more fitting to grant pardon to all the guilty up till this day, and shower pity upon the malefactors .' 'Let this then be known to you, O children of Rome, that pardon is granted to your city. From henceforth there will be neither pardon nor pity, and not life to him who dares to upset the orders of our rule , or who keeps to that former notion of tyranny. And as for the truce which you have asked of me concerning the cults, I promise to make peace, that is to say, provided these come to a right mind and are to be trusted in the worship and the adoration of the gods ; that they show concern and activity as regards the sacrifices and the offerings of the firstfruits , that they be not evaded . When they have satisfied the gods with their part, they will be permitted by us to exercise themselves in the sacraments of their errors as much as they wish, without having fear of anything whatsoever. And as to the implacable Eusebius , we once had it in our mind secretly, and judgement was very near being openly carried out in his case . The other stubborn ones who were with him, who threw themselves into his folly, and who are not disturbed by their wickedness , nor have repented of their scandals , and who cling as yet to their first stubborn opinions , and who have not set the fear of our might before their eyes to know that these matters are as they are ; see , they have not even appeared before us because of their pride, so that even in this very point their obstinacy be known. For persons such as these there is no pardon, nor compassion , and not even life . From now indeed, I will avenge myself on them with fitting justice for their scandals and the wicked actions wrought at their hands.' At the same time he sent to take them from the church with great dishonour . They were beaten and thrown down . They made them undress ; they took their habits of honour and clothed them in soiled garments of women, according to the command of the iniquitous one . With this odious costume they brought them before him. But the tyrant did not look at them, nor even put a question to them ; but they put them in chains and irons , and sent them to prison with great ignominy, until the time come to hear them properly. The people of the city wept bitterly at the humiliation and ignominy of these men , distinguished and respected . But the chiefs of Rome , servants of God, were not at all sick at heart in consequence of these affairs ; they rejoiced greatly, and were delighted in their minds , that they were worthy to enter freely into the contest of the confession ; they confessed and glorified God . The tyrant commanded that the blessed Eusebius should not appear before him ; that he should also go to prison, but in his priestly garb , without irons , until the day of the festival of the gods be restored . They did unto him as was commanded . The thought pleased the tyrant that, during the festival of the gods , he would offer up the blessed Eusebius as a burnt-offering upon the altar in the regulation costume of his priesthood, so that by this affair it might be known to all men that, as regards the high-priest of the Nazarenes, in his person he made expiation for the priests of the gods . But, as though to do honour to his idols, he loosed the saint from the ignominy of prison, and said : ' Verily , it is not fitting that he should suffer insult , a man who had been doomed as a sacrifice to the divinity, once he has been set apart for the gods.' The blessed Eusebius was not moved by this utterance , but he was offering a continual prayer in prison to God for the peace of the churches and for the redemption of their children, and for the conflict and patience of those who were with him ; he encouraged their faith , confirming their minds with the texts which he gathered from writings, when he recited before them the account of the triumphs of distinguished persons who were similar to them , who left all that they had gained in their wonderful contests , and by their good witness for Christ , ended their lives in the time of the wicked Maximian. When the tyrant had passed four weeks of days in Rome, the madman commanded that the great altar be built at the door of the church of Rome, where the first altar was built . It was built as he commanded . His heralds were sent into the city to announce that ' ten days from this time the great feast of the gods will be restored . Let therefore every person look to himself ; let him cleanse his garments ; let him consecrate his person ; for the day of the gods is holy as themselves .' When these mad words were heard in the streets of Rome, all the inhabitants were astonished at his paganism , and they wondered at his insanity. When nine days were passed, the tyrant ordered that, at the beat of the drum and the blowing of horns , the heralds should go into the city, proclaiming that ' each person with a good will and with a sincere heart should be ready and prepared at morn to rejoice and delight in the great feast of the gods, and especially for the divine espousals of Zeus and Apollo , who up till the present are in great wrath with us , inasmuch as we have as yet not taken vengeance for their priests . For these are the sustainers of the world , and from these come help to us mortal beings . We have to offer them the sacrifices of reconciliation with their divinity, which is hidden from all , and cannot be understood by the eye of flesh, except by means of an image alone . To all these manifest images of the hidden divinity we have consecrated the sacrifice for their altars , namely, Eusebius , chief of the religion of the Nazarenes , that he may be the sacrifice as a sweet savour to the divinity, tending to the repose of our city and the existence of its inhabitants , so that you may serve the gods with all your heart, that there may come upon you times of rest , goodly years charged with joys .' The report of these expressions of madness smote the soul of the people of the city. The inhabitants of Rome were pained and in mourning, sorrowing at the (impending) tragic death of the blessed old man. They resolved to die with him, or to save him from butchery at the altar by their cries . On the following day in the morning, Julian was arrayed in marvellous garments of royalty, and over these garments he had further the priestly garment that , in the two costumes , he might celebrate the feast of his idols. He sent to call for the wretched priests , children of his error, and commanded them saying : ' Be ready and prepared ; at the hour when the drum shall beat , and when the people of the city shall go before the altar of the gods , take heed that, with the splendid vessels of your service upon the palms of your hands, carried with solemnity, Zeus and Apollo come in all their splendour with the voice of praise by crowds before them ; when the blessed art of every kind of song be moved to give forth its voice at the time of their coming . ' When the priests received the command and went forth , the tyrant ordered the drum to be sounded . All the people assembled before the altar which the tyrant had built, so as to be able to save Eusebius from being burned on the altar by the noise of their cries . When the tyrant had learnt that all the people of the city was assembled, he then came too with the great pomp of his forces . He mounted and sat down upon the throne which was prepared for him facing the altar, and the armed troops stationed themselves on his right and on his left . When the accursed one turned and glanced at the crowds of the city, and saw that they were mournful and downcast , and that they were clad in soiled and torn garments, he was much annoyed . He rebuked them, and said to them angrily: 'What mean these disgraceful garments in which you are appearing before the face of Majesty, perpetrating an insult on the great days of the gods ? You are dressed as if for the house of mourning for the dead , whereas you are come to the marriage-feast of the gods . You have insulted our commandment, and you have mocked at our proclamation . Know well that by your rashness you have asked for destruction on your city and upon yourselves . And what does this signify that you are in mourning and low-spirited ? Disclose what is in your mind , and make known your will that we ourselves may also know it. '

They were silent, and would give him no answer. When all was calm, a man among the crowd lifted up his voice, and called out : ' Rightly so in truth, and it is in the fitness of things and justly our duty to be mournful and miserable, considering your madness and your error . For you left God your Maker, who shielded you under the wing of His compassion during the time of your danger, and who saved you from the sword of that just man, while you, an impostor, have renounced Him in the time of your greatness , and hinder the confession of Him. You have become insane, and you are gone mad through the love of demons and the worship of idols ; and like a fool , you have let your beard grow for the priesthood of idolatry. Why should a man not lament and weep for the blindness of your mind, since the worship of God , the Most High, is violated by His creatures through the madness of His rulers ? Demons are adored , and idols are professed ; those who should be ashamed have no shame, and they do not understand correction , as the Holy Book says .' The tyrant murmured , and was angry. He commanded that an active search be made for this man , and that he be detained . When he was taken, they brought him before him. He commanded them to take off the cloth which covered his head , so that it might be known who it was that had been so daring. When his head was uncovered , it was known to all the world that this was Adoksis , head of the convents of Rome. Julian was surprised and astonished at those who had overrun the place since the beginning of his reign, especially in the city which was the capital of his realm . And as he had in mind the death of this righteous man, he asked him severely and threateningly : ' Art thou really Adoksis ? For I have learned ' , said he, ' from several persons that it is you who were the cause of the destruction of the divine priests . ' Adoksis answered him : 'God forbid that we should make an end of the priests of the divine ; we are their adorers and worshippers . But I avow it quite frankly against myself that it was I who was the cause of the destruction and burning of the priests of sin and those afflicted with error. I say it before the assembly of the city and before all your troops . Do you wish anything ? ' Julian said : “ To-day my will is to celebrate the feast of the gods with joy, and to dispense honour to their great day. After one day these gods shall be witnesses for me of my vengeance on you for your insult ; and I will lay on your head your audacity and your blasphemy against the gods in such a way that , through you, I may strike terror into the entire people of the Galileans .'

Adoksis answered him : 'You have not yet grasped the trials of the Galileans and the earnestness of their endurance ; you think falsely that you are going to make them afraid by your words , and frighten them by your threats . You are much deceived , and you do not know. If the door of testimony be opened to them by your stained D hands , the Galileans can by their confession confound your madness by their heroism and their wrestling , as well as by the equipment of their endurance , so as to shame your guilt by the triumph of their victory.' The tyrant had at the time to exercise the mysteries of his paganism , and he had decided to have burnt the innocent one of God , Eusebius , in revenge for his priests ; but having carried out the sacrifices to his idols , he omitted to do so because of the insult of the blessed Adoksis on that day. He had him put in irons, and sent to prison, until he had kept the feast of the idols, and he would have a day on which to hear him. After Adoksis was sent to prison , the tyrant sent and had Eusebius brought, so that he might offer him as a sacrifice on the altar of his idols . All the people of the city, when they saw the pious one of God led as a sheep to the slaughter, lifted up their voices and wept. They cried out to Julian, and said : ' If you wish the peace of our country and the existence of our city by the feast of the gods , concede unto us and unto our city a favourable decision regarding this old man because of his precious old age. If you do this for us , we and our city shall be under obligation to your bounty all our days. We offer your Royal personage this prayer of intercession in the hope of your abundant mercy towards us. From hence it devolves upon you to show the compassion resulting from a good will. Pardon is the great prerogative of your power, especially on the great day of the gods . ' Julian was angered at these words, and he answered them with harshness , saying : ' O rebels and stiff-necked ! asking for destruction upon yourselves ; how long shall I have patience with you , and bear with you ? You have changed our mercy into extended tyranny. What means that cry of yours to-day for those who have injured themselves in their zeal ? If the gods are not appeased by the sacrifice of this evil misguided person , they will call for ruin and destruction on you and your city . Now see and know what you do . It is not only to-day that you have begun to employ the idea of tyranny , for a long time we have felt how trying you have been, and your rashness is known to us ; it will not be lost before the eyes of our Majesty what ill will you have shown towards us even before our entry into your city ; what scandals and wickednesses have been perpetrated at your wicked hands in regard to the communications which have been sent by us to your city. Hence at the commencement of our reign , we grant pardon, contrary to deserts, to malefactors and doers of evil actions worthy of death , persons who did not deserve pardon . Because our mercy has been extended to overflowing towards you , it has become a habit with you ; and as to your going about making a commotion and shouting, you have returned as rowdies to ask pardon for your crimes. As for us , we have not such habits . Know , O children of Rome, if you do not conduct yourselves in an orderly manner, and keep to yourselves and settle down in peace, you shall perish, your city shall be destroyed, and your goods shall be given over to pillage . Understand what I have announced to you in advance .' But they answered him as with one mouth , and cried and said : ' Let our city be ruined ; let us be destroyed ; let our goods be given to pillage ; but stretch not your hand. against the pious one of God . We announced to you at the start that we are all ready to die with him . ' When Julian saw that his threats were scoffed at, and that these men were not afraid of his anger, he commanded his soldiers to unsheath their sabres , and to fit their bows , to frighten those who had assembled of the city, until the will of the abominable one should be carried out on the pious saint of God . The soldiers did that which was commanded them . He was not able even in this way to silence them ; they disputed with him, and cried aloud , saying : 'We also are looking forward to be destroyed and to perish , if you stretch forth your hand against the holy man of God .' At these sounds the tyrant was disturbed , and murmured ; he forbore to call for the sword for them, for all the army was not with him, and the inhabitants of the city were stronger and in much greater number than the troops with him .

When the blessed Eusebius saw the tyrant threatening , and the inhabitants of the city worked up with zeal, he directed his words to them, and calmed them with these sweet and refreshing accents ; he soothed them , saying : 'It is enough, my children, you have shown your love as mortals towards us up to the present ; that is by reason of the love existing between ourselves . There remains for us yet the love towards Christ , who has proclaimed in his teaching, that " He who loves himself more than Me is not worthy of Me ; he who takes not his cross and cometh after Me is not worthy of Me. " Our Lord has in His preaching pointed out and called us to the way of the passion of the crucifixion . See then, my children , that it does not happen that we excuse ourselves from His call , and become strangers to His promises . And so take heed , my children , that in your zeal it does not happen that you deprive me of the summons to which I am called , and bring down upon yourselves the claim of my confession (omitted ) . Hardly have I found myself within the spiritual influence ( lit. merchandise) which I have looked for since my childhood , than the devil, in his jealousy, overspreads your zealous faces to deprive me of my interests therein , in consequence of the intercession , the prayer, and the divine love which you hold on my behalf. See, my old age begs of you, Children of my belief, to do me the favour to be at peace ; leave to be accomplished in me the will of the Lord , and not of the tyrant. We have not yet arrived at the contest ; be not afraid, for God will grant that my old age be worthy of this hour. Happy am I when there is heard in my ears the voice which says : " Give your hands and your feet to bonds , your body to torments and tortures, your back to sufferings , your sides to be torn. " The proper thing, then , for you is to be glad and delighted in the hour when these things take place in your city that , primarily as Christians , you are sent as firstfruits to God, the first of the persecuted ones .'

While, amid these high disturbances, Eusebius was not at all able to calm them and stop their outburst , the accursed and excommunicated one was full of wrath and anger against this upright shepherd . He spoke harshly in a loud voice to him, and said : "Tell me , O rash one, you who hate your own life, what is this frank avowal and this pride which you profess , so that without our permission , and on your own authority, that which comes into your head and pleases your erroneous opinions you have sown in the hearing of my children , and you have no awe or fear ? Perhaps you think, troublesome old fellow, that with cries of this sort you will save yourself from being burned on the altar. Great vengeance had to be exacted from you because of that which was done by your hands that was unlawful. You do not know, O wretch, that if their voices had reached as far as Heaven, on account of the sentence which you passed upon the divine priests , you would not have saved yourself. It is the will of the gods that as you have judged you must be judged , and as you have done you must be recompensed ; your blood be on your own head ; for , of your free will , you have drawn upon yourself the verdict without compassion. ' The blessed Eusebius laughed heartily at his words and at his re-echoing sounds, which may be aptly termed ' echoes ' coming from the tyrant . He turned to him, and said : ' Perhaps , O Tyrant devoid of reason and insane , you think that with your fire you will make me afraid . Not so . May Christ, Son of God, tear you from your kingdom quickly, and give you forth as a reproach to the generations that shall come after you ! I have no fear of your threats ; I withdraw not from your fire ; I do not beg myself off from death, but I have well prepared myself as a pure sacrifice to the Deity, and not to demons and to idols, as you think.' Julian said : ' You will not find glory this way with the children of your error, O fool that you are ! It is not because of the impure belief of your religion that this sentence is executed upon you to- day, but it is in satisfaction of your having burned the holy priests . It is for you to- day to have the lot to be burnt, as your crimes deserve ; neither before your misleading God will you have praise or an open countenance ; nor will you have thanks from the gods when burning on their altar ; on both sides you will have reproaches for your old age.'

Eusebius replied : ' I am truly grieved at your insane utterances concerning matters which, before they were carried out, you did not wish to become known, as they are for the exaltation of our people and for the glory of our God. But to crush your rash boasting before the people of the city, and before the party of your error , propriety obliges me that, publicly and without restraint , I confess before all the world that , with the strong power of God which accompanies us, we shall overcome your fire , trample underfoot your threats, and mock at your anger. We shall not be perturbed at your torments , for we have a God who has the might to help us in all these things .' Julian said : " These are vague (watery) words which you utter, O foolish old man , devoid of sense ! These are the insipid fables of your error. Now if there be any force in what you have said , give proof in a short time of their reality, when the fire of the altar roars towards you like a lioness, and the flame shall beat against your body. At that moment , if you have a miserable God , let Him come to your help, and aid you ; then your words shall be credited as true.'

The blessed Eusebius replied : 'You will be ashamed of your fire, O fool ! as you had to cry " Woe " over your letters and the burning of your afflicted ones, that you may know that we have a God who helps us. Understand then from now, O fool, that to- day your fire will not harm us, and your will to- day will not take effect upon me ; your purpose will not be accomplished , so that you may not boast yourself, and say that you have sacrificed me as a burnt-offering to your idols.' Julian answered : ' Even if there were a way in which that could happen, it would yet be employed for your destruction and for the torments of your soul, O wretched fellow ; for I had in store for you to bear vexations and cruel tortures and varying excruciating pains of all sorts , as the evil actions which have been perpetrated by you deserved . But, thanks to the gods, who have shown their mercy towards you, you have been appointed the first to be burned on their altar and quickly reach the end of your life, so that you may recoil from that which I had ordained that you should endure.'

Eusebius answered : ' It is for you , in particular, to marvel at our combat, and have concern regarding your judgement , O senseless one ! What you have agreed upon to-day is useless , as has been said to you .' Julian said : ' You are quite wrong , O man of ill fortune, in thinking so ; for there is not a force that can overcome the nature of fire ; even though you take hold of all the books of the magical arts and of the movements and calculations of astrology, the scope and science of magic cannot prevail over that, as you remark. You have no clear mind. Are you more pre-eminent in wisdom than Socrates , the Athenian , who could not save himself from the burning fire of the Athenians ? The nature of fire is a very powerful one ; it has a portion of the divine nature. It is sublime in its flame and in the splendour of its fire ; and , by means of its light, the darkness of night is turned . And if the stars, which are the gods of creation , have need to be in harmony with it , and darkness , as is the essence of its nature, has not the power to resist the smallest effulgence from it, then how can you , poor dense fat -head , have the presumption to stand up against the flame of the fire, and save yourself from its burning power ? But what will you gain and profit but simply reproaches by such confessions concerning things among us superior and stronger than you, when shortly your words will be put to the proof ? '

Eusebius answered : ' Should not men marvel and weep for you ? How dull your intellect is, and how the eye of your mind is become blind ! You have fallen away from God, your Maker, and seized upon these misleading follies ; all this madness has obsessed you, and you are like the beast that has no understanding . You have omitted to look after affairs which were pressing, such as the great war against Assyria ; you have desisted from all that . See , you are wrapped up, like crazy women, in songs and dances and in sordid amusement which have no advantage ; you rest and are idle in those works which the countries of your government are carrying out ; while you are occupied and anxious for the vain work of idolatry. The demons deceive you, and the devils mock at you ; they give you prophecies with their agitations , lying prophecies which do not come to a head. If, however, you wish to learn, listen to me, and I will tell you truths . From henceforth you will not prosper in your realm. Your time has even now gone ; your end has been hastened from your beginning. The verdict of justice has preceded you even now in the land of the Chaldeans ; for your end awaits you there, and as a man chased and in shame , outside the frontiers of your government shall your destruction be ; so much so that not even your corpse shall enter the tomb of the kings, for you have not understood your glory, and you have not known that your rule was given to you from on high but temporarily, according to the teaching we have concerning sinners . '

Julian answered him : " This is just the habit with assassins and malefactors that at the time when capital punishment is fixed, they both insult kings and blaspheme the gods ; whatever comes into their minds they say, as persons from whom henceforth the hope of life is cut off. So now, as much as you wish , let loose your tongue, and keep your shamelessness , until the fire takes hold of the wood of the altar.'

The blessed Eusebius laughed at him, and said : ' How long, thou pontiff of sin, will it be before you offer up your unclean sacrifice to your shameful gods ; for behold even now there are but four hours of the day ? ' Julian was incensed ; he proceeded to carry out the sentence to burn the saint . He asserted that Eusebius, in truth, who was the head of the cult of the Nazarenes , he who, by his high-handed and proud opinions , had lifted himself up against the gods , and raised himself against kings, and had burnt the holy priests on the altar of the gods , he is the one with regard to whom our government and the gods ordained that, as he did , shall be done unto him ; that his punishment shall return upon him ; so that, by this means , the justice of the gods shall be known to all men, and that their judgements are correct like themselves .

After the sentence of burning was pronounced upon the saint, the priests of Zeus and Apollo approached , and begged the tyrant that , in the vestments of his priesthood , and in the outfit of his service , he might be offered in sacrifice to the gods . Thereupon Julian said to them : ' How long will you fill me with your requests, and pester me with the demand of your companions ? Lo , your request is granted . Go now quickly, and in the garb and outfit that you have wished , remove from me this unfortunate man , that I may be rid of his villainy ; cunning and wicked he has been committed to me from the commencement of my reign. Truly I did not wish to dip my hand in the blood of these wretched ones , were it not for the crime which they committed . ' These priests approached , and took the blessed Eusebius ; they seized the white hairs of the dear old man, and put them in his mouth . They mocked , saying : ' If, in truth, you have a god , let him now come to your aid .' They wove a crown of flowers and put it on his head , and with words adapted to executioners they scoffed at him, saying : ' Hail to thee, High-priest of the Nazarenes ! Perhaps your old age is sore that you are not offered , as a burnt-offering to a mortal, like him whom the Jews crucified, but to Zeus and Apollo , who are gods by their nature .' They derided with several other insults , full of blasphemies , the pious one of God . He was silent, and opened not his mouth ; he was thereby looking upon the sign of his Master at the crucifixion . After they had mocked him and insulted him to their hearts ' content , they set fire to the wood of the altar, and sprinkled on top of it the oil of balm, as did the executioners of the Lord . The abominable priests surrounded the martyr of God ; they were as persons whose hands were ready to consult the gods by the sacrifice of the blessed Eusebius. They shone in their white robes about the altar ; when the fire seized the wood of the altar, it caught flame and gave forth a roar. The martyr of God confirmed himself, he made the sign of the cross on his breast , his forehead, and his body. Not being bound, he leaped up and mounted the upper step. When he put his foot on the altar , the flame drew back from before him, and took hold of the wretched priests , who numbered thirty-two . It seized on their bodies, and burnt and destroyed them in such a way that not a remnant remained of them. When the flame had taken vengeance on them for the insults and injuries done to the saint and for their blasphemies against God, it regained itself and mounted as flying to the sky ; then it broke out in flames in the sky, and gave a roar as the roaring of fire ; fear and trembling seized the heathens and the unbelievers who were assembled and come together to witness this business . All the people of the Christians rejoiced , and rendered thanks and praises to the Lord for the redemption He had shown unto His servant publicly, having saved him from being burnt by the flame.

The blessed Eusebius was on his knees on the altar , and was praying to God bitterly, that He would quickly make him worthy to taste the sorrows of His Cross by the torments and pains of his confession . When he rose up from prayer, he turned towards the tyrant, and said to him : ' How much longer, wicked and abominable one , will the madness have its grasp upon you, and your mind be carried away by the errors of demons ? Will you not understand and ponder that the idols are as nothing, and can do neither good nor evil ? For how can they do me evil, who have held them in derision , or how can they do good to those who have served them and respected them ; for they could not save them from the fire which burnt them, like Christ saved and delivered me from being burnt, as your eyes have seen ? ' Julian said : " You think then, unclean and defiled one, that it is by the power of the Nazarene for whom you work, that this has happened which has taken place to-day? It is , however, the gods who have done it , for they did not wish you to ascend as a burnt-offering upon their altar. They withheld their fire from you , as from an unclean and polluted person, that it shall not be profaned by your uncleanness . They acquiesced in the hunting of their priests , for having offered you on their altar ; and when the anger of the gods was calmed by the burning of their servants , and their wrath appeased , they bade the humid air mingle with the heat of the fire , the force of its heat being thus imbibed in the humid bosom of the air, that it might not fume with its flame, and burn and destroy the crowds that had collected to see your exploits .' The blessed Eusebius filled his hands with woes in opposition, and presented them to the tyrant, saying : 'Let this shame accompany you in your kingdom, O enemy and hater of God, that even now when you have seen clearly with your own eyes the miracle performed by God, you are not willing to confess that it is God who has done it ; because of the blindness of your heart and your defective mind, your confession of the miracle has been to attribute it to demons like yourself and to the devils which resemble you . The prophet has well said by the Spirit of God, that "the fool cannot understand this thing ". Julian waxed wroth , and said to him threateningly : ' Madman, you have thought in your mind , fool indeed , O worthy of death , that the king who has the dominion has not the full power over your death and over your life , O man of evil fortune . ' The saint mocked at him and said : ' Your crown and your purple are indeed those of kings , but your heart and mind those of beasts ; your beard and the form of your head are that of a philosopher , while your words and questions are poor and foolish . Perhaps in you is fulfilled that which is said : "The fool speaketh follies ."" Julian was very angry at the words of the blessed Eusebius , and commanded one of the executioners to have him fixed on the altar . When Plato , the executioner, approached to put him on the pile, in that very moment the angel of the Lord smote him ; he fell before the altar and died . There was great fear among all the inhabitants of the city , and the tyrant himself trembled and was in great terror. He ordered the saint to be put in irons and sent to prison, where the distinguished persons of the city were put, until the demand made against him be exacted , and they did to him as he had commanded them. When the tyrant saw that he was insulted at every turn , and that the day which he had appointed for a festival and for joy had been turned into mourning and trouble , he was afraid simply to dismiss the people of the city ; and so concealing the shame of his countenance , the tyrant bethought himself how to put the best face upon his sorrow, and summoned from within himself a high spirit before the townspeople , although he was very low-spirited and faint . He , accordingly, commanded that all the churches of the Christians should be closed , and that the king's seal be affixed to them, until such time as it shall please him to carry out the decision to uproot them.

He ordered all the bishops in the kingdom of Rome to be sent into exile . As for the pious man of God, the chief of the bishops , blessed Eusebius, the madman commanded that on the morrow in the morning his judgement shall be notified before the assembled of the city ; that he should be interrogated and then examined by various kinds of torments and forms of tortures, as to by what power and by what dominion he blasphemed gods and kings . He dipped his hands in the sacred blood of the holy priests , servants of the Divine . He forbade the remaining Christians to assemble , and make use of the mysteries of their faith . And if in spite of it they should assemble, then without questioning and without examination , they would be given over to the sword . All the people of the city were full of threats and anger against the tyrant, and called out to him, and said : ' Now that you have revealed your paganism , it behoves us also to make known our will, that we worship Christ , our God, and we confess His divinity and His humanity. And, even if we all die , and our city comes to be destroyed , we shall not change the faith which the Christian kings have left us, nor will we turn aside from the right religion which the Apostles confided to the Church . It is in vain. Hence, therefore, let your sword rest from thirsting after our blood . Your sword may reign over us, but you, apostate, will not reign over our city. Rather see our own blood and the blood of our children spilt than see them bowing down to the idols in our streets . Let our goods and our possessions be given over to plunder , but let us not see the uprooting of our churches . Listen to us , if you will . If you will not worship Christ , whom the Christian kings before you have worshipped , you shall not be called king over us , for our city does not need a stranger to reign over it ; its king is living and existent, He will never end .' Having made the king listen to these statements , they turned and went away from him in great wrath . The tyrant, however, ignored all this, because ofthe desire to know what was indicated by his divinations . Eunactor, the Egyptian , who was his diviner, forewarned him, saying : ' Have patience , as much as you possibly can , with this city, and do not be severe with it ; uncover not against it your sword, nor lift your hand upon it , because you have not over it the power from above ; the God of Heaven will succour the city. In the second place , the ancient gods , His priests , are dormant in it . His power is hidden in them , and their fighting is stronger than yours . But if you are capable of blandishment , and flattery, and subtlety of mind, then receive the acclamations of the kingdom in this city, and pass from hence ; for it has not come to you by lot. Your mission is to go to Byzantium , and reign there for an appointed time . Your concern is with the land of the Chaldeans ; your war is with the government of giants . The lot that will befall you in the war is both open and closed ; for the beginning of your warfare is conquest , while the end of your warfare is at present hidden . There is none among the children of flesh who can reveal or interpret it before its time .' The tyrant was very distressed because the end of his war was not interpreted to him ; he was in great anxiety and concerned . When the blessed Eusebius heard in prison that in the morning of the morrow he had to be ready for the contest of the confession, his mind was glad and joyful, pleased and delighted , as a man who had been invited to the Kingdom of Heaven . He beat with his hands in prison, and stamped with his feet, and said : ' To-day, indeed , is the day which the Lord hath made for my old age ; come, let us rejoice and be glad in Him ; clap your hands with me and rejoice, my groomsmen and fellow guests , for in my old age the day of my bridal has been reached , and is come ; rejoice with me, my young men , for the crown of my marriage awaits me ; and when I shall be adorned by it, to the long- standing and heavenly feast you are invited by me, my friends ; see then that no one be lacking at my repast . ' Thus did the mind of this wonderful man rejoice and exult in his triumphs , at the time when he received in prison the announcement of his confession ; for the blessed old man longed for confessing . He wished , even if it were possible , that with the announcement the morning might have arrived . The morrow seemed delayed , and the day appeared long to him. He desired that when the morrow came, and he would stand up in the contest for the confession of faith, he would give proof of his hidden combat by the secret power of his endurance. The fight of this admirable athlete and his wonderful successes were very remarkable ; having a host of forty torments on him , he gave himself up to shine in the contest . These torments were overcome and vanquished by him ; but the torment of his confession could not be conquered or overcome. Who then would not marvel at the way in which an old man of ninety- seven years , like a man in the prime of life and the vigour of his strength , conducted himself ? In this manner he came out of the conflict, as we have said above . He mocked at torments and treated dangers lightly ; he trampled death underfoot ; and remaining firm in his truth , he obtained the crown of the confession of his faith . So wonderful was the combat of this upright person, that he astonished the king and his chieftains and all the spectators of the combat by his alacrity in the fight, and by the admirable triumph of his endurance over the savage torments of all kinds which the tyrant made him undergo . Like adamant he stood the test of his sincerity ; his faith was not crushed by the forty torments with which the wicked one strove with him . In all this it was the insolent one who was taken and vanquished. He lifted his finger , and said : ' I must note clearly in our history the torments which the martyr of God has undergone . I have been greatly worried by him.' They were written down once for all , and so also the record of his confession was noted by Epanetus , his pupil and servant, who stuck to him in all this business ; he wrote down the conflict of his sufferings , the torments and sufferings which he endured , the questionings of the tyrant , the replies made in confutation by the firm spirit of this upright one, the wonderful miracles God wrought at his hands to the confusion of the tyrant, and how death did not reign over him at the command of the tyrant ; further , in what manner the angel of the Lord brought Adoksis out of prison , and transferred him to the desert of Egypt , and how Julian sought him and could not find him ; how he remained with the Egyptian fathers till Julian was dead , and how he returned to his convent ; all these things have been written by Epanetus , his servant , for he was well acquainted with the combat of his master. These lesser details , which have been left out of the writings of this eloquent man in the cause of the conflict of the blessed Eusebius , we have attached to our history, so that our memorial may be preserved for those who shall come after us.

The cursed tyrant , after he had subjected the blessed Eusebius to torments and oppressions of all sorts , when he saw that he did not come over to his will, that he did not relax his hold on the truth, and that he could not devise for him any other new torments , for the body of the saint had been torn with sufferings and tortures and strokes , the tyrant condemned him to death by the sword. But even in this matter God did not give the wicked his desire. When the executioner lifted his sword to strike him, his sword melted away, and fell before him, as wax melteth before the fire . The saint was not hurt ; the Supreme Being did not suffer death to have dominion over His holy one until he had heard the news of the destruction of the wicked tyrant. When this doomed and accursed one grasped this fact , that neither was fire hurtful to him, nor did the beast approach him ; that, in spite of the forty sufferings he underwent, death never showed any effect upon him ; and that the sabre , which was strong in its nature, was melted like water poured out before him ; when the tyrant saw all this , and understood of a certainty that the help of the saint came from Heaven , he did not dare to provoke him further, but he calmed his anger and desisted from his vengeance , dismissed him from his presence, and had him put in prison . While his body was torn with stripes, his sides with tortures, his limbs with torments , and he was like one dead , Christ did not overlook that it was for Him that he had suffered ; for on that night He visited him in prison , healed his pains and wounds in such a way that not a single scar could be seen on his whole body. He poured into him and filled him with the spirit of strength and might, released him from prison when the doors were closed , and brought him before the tyrant while the heavenly splendour was spread on his countenance ; and so remarkable was his appearance that even the tyrant, when he saw him , trembled and feared before him. He thought he saw a vision ; he did not think it was true , until he had sent to search for him at the prison-house and did not find him. The tyrant was astonished, and wondered at the miracles which had been performed at the hands of the saint. He was completely staggered, and did not know how to get out of the business , so as to dismiss quite simply the holy one of God. He hesitated for shame before his soldiers and all the people of the city, to inflict on him further tortures . He was ashamed of that which he had done ; and while the madman was agitated by these doubts , the idea struck him to grant pardon to all the prisoners of the city, so that, by reason of the pardon of these , Eusebius might discreetly be released and go forth from before him. Julian first sent to dismiss the chiefs of Rome. He addressed them in judgement, and as men blinded by error, he pardoned them , saying : ' Propriety obliges me to-day to resemble the gods in mercy, since to-day it has been shed over all the world equally, just as the mercy of the gods is spread over the good and the evil alike . In the same way our government has granted pardon in all our realm to those who have been taken in error until this day . But from to-day, if any one dares to practise the early habits of their offence , let this man know that he, by his rashness, has called down upon himself vengeance as in the past .' Julian sent to bring out all the prisoners of the city .

In this crafty manner Eusebius was released with the sixteen chiefs of the city, when they gave thanks and praised God . The blessed Eusebius openly and publicly confessed that he was a Christian , and he had not ceased in his teachings ; without fear and terror he served God brilliantly. From day to day he increased in his divine conduct until his last breath .

The blessed Eusebius remained in life until he heard the news of the death of Julian . His spirit was delighted and rejoiced at the deliverance that God had wrought for his people. His old age was consoled by the opening of the churches, by the return of their priests , and by the assembly of their children. In a ripe old age on the couch of his repose, his departure from the world took place in the year 673 according to the reckoning of the Greeks , which is the year 367 of the reign of our Lord Jesus among men. He to whom with His Father and with His Holy Spirit, be praise, glory, and worship now and for evermore, world without end . Amen.

Finished is the glorious history of King Constantine the Christian and of his sons, and the history of the blessed Eusebius , Bishop of Rome.

The letter which Abdel, chief of the convent, wrote to Apolloris (Apollinarius), confidential minister (chamberlain) to Jovian the King, to whom was entrusted the matter of the defection which took place in the realms .

My son, wise men do not refuse when one asks of them a gift , which will bring profit both to the giver and the receiver. Just as the fountain, the more it is drained , the more richly do its waters well forth, so that it may refresh many by its draughts while its fullness remains , so in imitation of this it behoves the giver to exhaust himself, and not be grudging of his gifts ; for while he is enriching those who are in need , his own fullness , in spite of his giving , remains . That , dear son , is the blessed end of a spiritual man . You are surely tired of our importunate request which , for a long time , has an interest both for its givers and its receivers . The interest which you have gained for yourself is indeed not small , namely , the conversion of many souls , turned from error by the teaching of the Holy Book, which your Highness sent to us , in order that they might be turned from their error , and applying themselves to repentance, come to the knowledge of the truth. You will know, my beloved , that we are situated in the country of the pagans ; and as the bird is allured by the bait for sport, in like manner are the pagans by the bait of instruction , kidnapped unto conversion . Receive then , my son, the burden of our prayer, and give us the history and the close of the war which took place in the kingdom, the bad end and the death of the tyrant with all that concerns it, also the glory and the greatness of Jovian, your master, as well as the contest and the contumely of perfect men of wisdom who came into collision with the shameless one, the rash persecutor, and how they won the triumphant victory . When Apolloris received the writings of Abdel, chief of the convent, he raised them to his eyes, and kissed them. He took up the pen to write to him. In the time of Julian, the wicked pagan, he who had received the government from the family of Constantine , there was a chief of the house who was named Jovian . He was a man of knowledge and sense who , by his knowledge, succeeded in becoming one of the counsellors of the tyrant. The parents of this man were Christians and , in their care for him, they had him baptized in infancy, and endowed him with right manners . They departed this world as good witnesses for Christ . At the time of the persecution by Maximian , the wicked' king , this sorrowful yet distinguished subject of admiration had taken upon himself the true faith which his parents had entrusted to him. He did not depart from their instructions , but was perfect in his divine conduct as they were ; he was thoroughly rich in good deeds . He had embraced the faith of the Christians secretly, while publicly before men professing a well-adapted counterfeit of the pagan. It was not that he feared the threats and the anger of the tyrant, nor even on account of the temporal service to which he was attached, that he deprived himself of the semblance of a Christian , but it was to overreach the tyrant by his astute borrowed vision , in the endeavour to turn, by means of his counsels , the thoughts which the fool had conceived against the church of Christ , and the designs which he had planned against the priests of God. The wicked tyrant listened to him and, relying upon his judgement as upon a man of knowledge , accepted his words piously. It is to be admired and wondered at in this man of God, how he was able by his knowledge to turn the judgement of destruction from off the churches and , by the subtleties of his wisdom, stay the sword of this tyrant from off the people of the Christians . After that Julian reigned and ruled over all the realm of the Romans , and the government was established by his hands , and he became great and very powerful, and his fear had fallen upon all the countries of his dominion , the cursed viper was ready to vomit forth the bitterness of his paganism, which he had kept hidden within him for a long time, to make known his will, and to reveal himself in a manner contrary to the will of God , also the evil intention which he

had harboured against the church of God and over all the people of the Christians . He had carried these ideas about with him for long, until they had taken hold of the customs of heathenism little by little, thus furtively did he use occasions to work it up . For this tyrant had commanded that the temples of the gods and the temples of their mysteries , which were destroyed and demolished in the days of the Christian kings before him, should be rebuilt and renewed , and that their expenses should be defrayed out of the treasures of the churches in every place and city, their vestments of service and all the ornaments of decoration should be given to the houses of the idols , that they should serve as ornaments in the temple of idolatry. The fool raised the head of paganism which had been demolished ; he raised it, and put it at the head of all the cults . He subjected them to his adoration . He humiliated the high born of the church in face of vague and feeble idolatries ; for , in his folly, he had ordered that the clergy who were exempt in the church should be put under the power of the state, that they should be subservient to his rule , and at all times stablished at the gate of the king. The tyrant commanded as regards the sisters of the church , who were modest and seemly, that their costume be removed from them, and they should marry and have children . Even as regards the saintly and pious bishops , the madman thought of making of them generals and colonels (lit. leaders of thousands and leaders of hundreds ) and from the revenues of the churches should the forces be supported which had been entrusted to them. There would be a day when their punishment would be exacted . With all these happenings the holy covenant of the church was in every place and city insulted , suppressed, and contemned ; and worse than all , false doctrines were set up in opposition to the faith of the church. The mad crowd of hangmen rejoiced and were overbearing at the hard times which had been imposed upon the church ; for , even before the edict of persecution was issued against us, the children of the Cross had for long shown intense hatred against us , and vehemently they spoke slanders against us to the tyrant. They said that the assembly of the Christians in the churches sowed lethargy in the minds of many persons , inasmuch as they were not constant in their adoration of the gods , and they excited a zeal in the other cults which imitated them , together with many other accusations which they had preferred against us in their contention with us . They started by rousing persecution against us , and without delay the order of the tyrant was hastened against us mercilessly. His orders were put down in writing. He devised against us first of all in the capital . The subject of the first letter which he had deliberated against us was as follows : 'The error of the Christians, which a little time ago had been propagated in all the places of our realm, vexed the gods in whose hands is placed the success of the world, and they loosened their hold upon our government. Enemies reigned over it ; guiltiness was rife among us. It is therefore necessary for us this day to take great precautions to cleanse our land from the impurities of those wretched and godless ones , to sweep out their false idols from off the surface of the globe ; and I shall return on their own heads the insults they have launched against the gods . By virtue of our vengeance on these persons we shall calm the anger of the gods ; and all the countries under our power shall settle down in restfulness and peace . Our government consequently commands with regard to these guilty ones, that their churches be demolished , that their leaders be thrown into the quarry , and as for the rest , our government orders that, if they bethink themselves and turn from their error , and return to the adoration of the gods, they shall be granted forgiveness for their faults , and they shall gain their life . But, should they persist in the same error of mind, and profess that they are Christians , they shall be delivered up without compassion to cruel torments and strokes , and to varied tortures of all kinds . If they turn not from their errors , they shall receive capital punishment by the sword , and their houses shall be for a prey.' This is the first letter which was circulated , addressed to us in the capital of the tyrant.When this wicked and merciless sentence went forth against our people, the counsellor Jovian was in great distress , and went to his house overcome with grief. Despairing, and in mourning, and with bowed head , he gave orders that none of his domestics or of his household should appear before him on that day. He entered his bedchamber, and closed the door upon himself, took off his vestments of office , and clothed himself with sackcloth ; he lay down in the ashes , threw himself on his face , and sprinkled ashes on his head and body. He cried and wept bitterly, exclaiming : ' O God, why hast Thou left me after my parents, and suffered me to light on evil days , to see the humiliation of Thy Church, the loss and destruction of her children , the insult and scorn offered to Thy holy covenant ? Lord, if it be Thy will, I pray Thee, my God , take away the days of Thy servant, and loosen me from life speedily, that I may not see the cursed sabre of butchery having power over the blessed flock which is charged with Thy body. What boots it to have a life of excruciation , misfortunes , and sighs , when I see Thy churches demolished , Thine altars destroyed, Thy sanctuary out of sight, Thy priests massacred , Thy clergy scattered , the people who adore the Cross beaten and cut to pieces, led like sheep to the slaughter ? Thy Church mourns and grieves at the loss of her children. Where are Thy glorious promises ? Where Thy blessed assurances towards Thy Church, Thy pledged truth , concerning which it was promised that the bars of hell shall not prevail against it ? Behold , the madman has threatened seriously to demolish its churches , and to uproot its palaces , and to lay bare its foundations , to render it a reproach, and make it fall from the height of its grandeur, so that its revilers shall rejoice , and hangmen mock at it . In place of the happiness promised it by prophecy , miseries fall upon it , wickednesses are done to it, griefs surround it , unhappinesses and sighs reach it . It has no consoler, except it be the grace of Thy compassion alone ; for the fool has in mind our destruction , to smite the Church , Thy true Spouse. I beseech Thee, O young Bridegroom, who gave His blood to His Spouse to drink : do not give to the wicked one his desire ; let not his intention reach its fulfilment ; return on him his own device , and may his wiles fall on his own head. His sword which he has drawn against Thy people, let it enter his heart in the land of the Chaldeans ; make him kneel before his persecutors ; may the power of his pride be debased ; and may he recognize in the hour of his guilt that Thy Church has a God, O good and benevolent One, whose anger is not for ever ! Calm Thyself from Thy burning wrath ; think of the unhappiness of Thy people ; do with us as Thou hast promised , even though we be not worthy, for we are called by Thy precious name . Let not the heathen and the sceptic say : " Where is their God , that He does not save them in the time of wrath ? " We are, Lord, as sick men who have not the strength to bear chastisement . We pray before Thee that the rod of chastisement be removed from us. To persons perfect and true Thy chastisement is a source of protection ; but as for us, who are hounded and infirm , we have not the strength to hold ourselves in the contest of athletes . Thy punishment is to us as an injury which seizes us in our folly. Turn not Thy face from our prayer, O Lord . We are sinners and evil-doers . May Thy bounty go before us, and grant remission to the sinners ; we have not the boldness to ask Thee, with our saddened faces and our dejected spirit ; with gratitude we ask pardon for our sins, as of a merciful father whose compassions are mingled with the punishment he inflicts . We beseech Thee, O Master good and kind , cause the force of our persecutors to cool down somewhat, and put it in the heart of the tyrant , that my subtleties and blandishments may be received by him ; and that the thoughts which I harbour may reach their fulfilment , and that by means of my feeble counsels the decree to destroy the churches may be broken , that there may be a little refreshing and consolation for Thy people , persecuted and ill-used, who are looking for Thy salvation ! '

After this intelligent man had been praying to God and supplicating for a long time , that a heavenly inspiration how to help might be roused within him , how he might appease the wrath of the tyrant, and turn the evil sentence of destruction away from the Church of God, he rose from the spot where he had been lying, and wiped off the ashes from his face, from his head , and from his body. He washed the tears from his eyes ; he divested himself of sadness as of a garment ; he softened the appearance of his face ; and clothed himself in his glorious and best official garments . When, to all appearances his tears and griefs and violent sighs had passed off, he outwardly assuming a smile and a pretended gladness , made up his mind to come before the madman , while praying to God to open the gate to his prayer , so that he might make him right welcome to the tyrant, and his good counsels for the church might be well received . When he entered he did obeisance to the tyrant king , and held himself upright before him, and said : ' In your days , my lord and king, we are content and rejoice , the heaven and the earth and all that they contain rejoice with us . All nations will give the palm to this kingdom, because it will have had a just reckoning exacted from those wicked ones who have defiled it .' The tyrant looked affectionately at this upright man , for the crazy one did not know that these words , veiled in metaphor, would recoil upon him . Julian said to him : 'You appear to-day in the eyes of our government as a lover of the gods , seeing that you are rejoiced at the reconciliation of the gods . For fifty-four years the circle of deities has been seen in our realm , for they were robbed of their worship in the days of the kings who preceded me.'

Jovian answered him : 'My lord and king, the gods will be more and more pleased with their worshippers when the wicked who have defiled it shall have been removed from the midst of your kingdom , and the remembrance of those who have robbed the divinity of its worship shall be blotted out from the earth .'

Now Julian was not troubled at the words of Jovian. He believed , in his insanity, that he was of the party of his idolatry , and that he was the associate of his error. But as for this believer and man of truth , not the least trace of paganism found place in him, but with a pure heart and with a fine soul, he took hold of God in his spirit. It was for the relief of the persecuted that he showed himself before the tyrant with a borrowed semblance of paganism , and courted his views. The madman was quite fond of him, and listened to him pleasantly . Many times he wished to appoint him his Caesar. They held between them discussions on several matters . When they entered upon the question as to the treatment of the Christians , this wise man had occasion to give some good counsels on the church of God . Again Julian asked him , and said : ' How, then , do you regard that which our government has ordered concerning the moribund people of the Christians ? ' The just one answered with a reply that quieted him , when he said : " The jurisdiction of your power has ordered everything well . But the Nazarenes have great comfort in that ordinance which your government has executed , and it acts as a great joy for them . I am also of opinion that it helps them, even though it harm us .' Julian answered him : ' How can we gauge and know what is the mainspring of their comfort, for my wish is not to be of help to them, but to be to their hurt ? We think, therefore, that death to their persons and the destruction of their churches will agitate them considerably ; it will be a sorrow very serious to them .' Jovian answered him : ' If they look after what is helpful to them, and recognize what is to their glory, your Highness has commanded well ; but they do not look upon things as your Highness does ; for to them death in the name of their God is a grand and excellent gift , indeed more than water to him who is thirsty , and bread to the hungry. They have hunger and thirst for the death of "the watch "-that which they call " Confession of the faith ". They are not children or easygoing , those who are of that idea . If you examine all the army under our rule, and all the realms comprising our kingdom , more than three parts are Christian . Why then, for the sake of useless idols , which serve for nothing which the feeble minds of the ignorant are taken by, should we ruin our armies and reduce the militia of our service to misery, and empty the countries of our realm of their inhabitants ? Our enemies would rejoice, and our haters would sing praises . But if your Highness has the good will, and if it please your royal personage, let us leave the idols to march with the times . As strong men, who watch their hour busy themselves with that which they hold , that it may not become reduced , let us turn about and engage ourselves in the affairs of our government , giving encouragement to our armies, and let us bestir ourselves in face of this war which is thrust upon us . When the gods vouchsafe unto us the victory, and we return from the sword of Assyria, then we shall do away with the cults in our dominions, and there shall remain but one single cult in the whole range of our kingdom . As to the temples of assembly belonging to the Nazarenes , which they call churches, if it please the mind of your Highness , let these churches be closed , not destroyed , for they are very fine and superb structures ; most of them are the crypts and places of worship of the gods . In the time of the early kings they were taken away, and became the houses of worship for the Nazarenes . Why then destroy a possession which was taken from the gods , because of the zeal of the Jews and a doctrine mistaken as they themselves are ; for with all the exchequer of our kingdom we cannot build (mortuary) temples and churches as handsome as these ? It is not only this, but another thing ; the Christians would like and much prefer these temples to be protected , and their churches destroyed , and in ruins , so that they may not become houses of worship for the gods , whom your Highness adores . It is a great grief to them and a bitter experience, that in the houses devoted to the services of the gods in the places where the sacraments of the saints were exercised , the cult of Zeus and Apollo should now be exercised , with other gods and goddesses promiscuously mixed together, because they have not separate temples for each one of them ; it is laughable to relate, they are worshipped- the males and the femalesin one and the same crypt ; for, until this , there has not been built for them chapels and crypts worthy of the glory of each of them in all countries. Why should we overthrow and destroy them, and then build them again at great expense, and thereby impoverish the treasury of our realm , at a time when we are in the midst of wars and combats, especially as we are not pressed to build them ? The countries of our empire are full , as with planted trees , of the chapels and temples of the Nazarenes . They are ornamental , beautiful, and worthy of the service of the gods. I am as a servant under command, who has the permission of his master to give counsel in that which he is commanded , as far as it appears to us helpful, and not precipitate . With a frankness derived from your orders , I have given the advice . Now it depends upon your high and mighty personage that you examine the business by the divine wisdom within you ; and we , without the risk of presumption , let us be dismissed and depart from your presence with every respect for your person . May the joy of your reign be for many years to come, when the wicked who defile it are carried away.'

Julian was silent , and listened to him pleasantly. When he saw that this was fitting, he started by giving his approval, and craftily said : " The gods , who have observed in you the extent of your attachment to their esteem, have made you beloved by our majesty, and they have stirred in my mind the resolve that that which has been said by you shall not be turned back fruitless , even though it be not suitable. Not one of your words shall fall to the ground ; for I know full well that they are spoken with a good will , and you desire the peace of our majestic rule . Nevertheless I wish the destruction of the Nazarenes, and I shall have no rest until I have made an end of this perverse cult from the midst of our realm .' Jovian replied to him : 'That be in its time , my lord and king .' Julian thereupon began the first edict which was promulgated against us in the capital ; it had not yet been sent into the provinces . He composed another in its place , and it was read in Rome, and was also sent into the provinces . The substance of this other letter was as follows : ' It is because of the mercy of the gods , spread over all the world, that they have not allowed me to accomplish that which I had intended to do against the wretched Nazarene folk. For I, in myself, had decided upon their penitence ; and that , even though they had returned to the adoration of the gods , they should not be admitted without torments and suffering and all sorts of deaths . I had resolved to exterminate them from all the limits of our kingdom . I was full of threats against them , and I wished for their destruction . But the mercy of the gods was abundant to overflowing on their behalf, although they are vilifiers and furious ones . It was the will of the gods that we should have patience with these wretches, that we give them time to repent, that they bethink themselves and turn from their faults , so that they may regain their lives . It is the wish of the gods that by every means no one should perish at the hands of our admirable government ; and we are gratified in acknowledging the bounty inherent in the nature of the gods , who put into our minds the thought of helping, and who poured out upon us to the full the spirit of intelligence and understanding, so that we might look at these things with the perfect eye of the straight course, realizing what is not fitting, and what possibly might subject to this risk of death those who unknowingly were forced to turn from the worship of their leaders to corrupt doctrine and grew accustomed to it. But, like a wise physician, who is well versed in the difficulties and the pains of sickness , we employ with weak minds the tranquillizing medicine of our compassion, in order that they may be healed of their infirmities . But this should not blind us to the fact that as the wheels of chariots , which take their course from the charioteer, and never detach themselves from him, and even when the driver is incompetent they obey him and wherever he turns they follow, until he be changed and another come in his place ; in like manner also the affairs of the world follow the driver, and they obey the will of their leader, even though it happens that his leadership is unsuitable . It is accordingly necessary for those who obtain the government after them to busy themselves with these affairs , and to put things straight , so that , by their patience and skill , they may take hold of them, and not let them go to destruction . So also the clever charioteer, when his chariot is damaged by the savage force of him in front, and the mounts of its wheels are loosened, he does not let it go to ruin because it is damaged, but he is anxious to repair it. He labours at it ; he remounts it ; and makes it firm , so that in every way it may take the same course which it had acquired before . So ought we to prolong our patience with these wretches , that they may come to their senses and , returning from their error , gain their lives . If, however, they remain always in their same errors , I will avenge myself on them because of their faith ; their blood shall be on their head, for they have called down upon themselves their destruction ; but I and my kingdom shall be innocent of their blood. That, then, which has been revealed to us , and has been spoken to us by the secret response of the divinity, behold, we have this day made it shine before the eyes of all men publicly, with this mandate which has been sent into all the countries, that the Christians, from this time onward , have not the liberty to hold assemblies in any manner whatsoever ; their churches shall be closed ; they shall be sealed with the signet of our kingdom, until time be given to us to cleanse our land from their impurity ; so that we may consecrate them, and make them houses of worship for our gods as they were in bygone days ; to them shall be given respite for penitence, so that , perchance, they bethink themselves , and gain their life before our reign come to an end . By our extended endurance with them , our mercies are proclaimed in all our empire, and it is praised among all the nations .' This was the substance of the second letter , which was promulgated against us in all the cities in the empire of the tyrant . By the providence of God, and by the good counsels of the lover of Christ, Jovian the believer, the force of the persecutors was wellnigh broken from the beginning . The people of God were everywhere bound, persecuted and beaten , robbed , plundered , trampled on, and insulted . The method of the persecutors was not one and the same in all countries ; for not according to the custom of the limited conditions imposed on the judges by the kings, were we judged among the persecutors . There were places in which , without the orders of the judge , they accomplished their desire on us without compassion . They made the servants of God endure sufferings and pains ; with terrible strokes they mutilated their members and , owing to this treatment, they reached the end of their lives . Thus again , in the other countries , they tied ropes to their feet and , like the carcasses of beasts, they were dragged in the streets, so that their combat reached its end . Others , like dogs , were beaten with sticks without the command of the kings , and without the permission of the judges . Their oppressors had no fear, for there was no one to demand satisfaction for their death . Again , in some countries , like dry wood their members were mutilated with axes and hatchets, and they came to their end. Others were stoned with stones ; they laid their head on the ground, and departed from this world . And the remainder died by all the defined forms of suffering with which the servants of God were finished off. There is no time now to detail the combat of each one of them . Their triumph in death was recorded and written down by learned persons, also the sufferings of their conflicts, and the praise of their endurance ; the wonderful and vigorous fight of men perfect and firm, who mocked at the torments of their persecutors , and took the crown of their victory. This guilty one , after his letters had been indited against us in all the cities of his government , determined upon going to the lands of the East to make war with the kings of Persia. Fate was pressing him to go and meet his end in the land of the Chaldeans . He kept a feast in honour of the idols , and a festival for those possessed seven days . He used divination , enchantment, and magic to inquire if he would succeed in his wars and prevail over his enemies ; and he was told by his magicians that he could not win the war unless he went and renewed the kingdom on the throne of Constantinople, and rooted out the erroneous belief of the Nazarenes , who still adhered to the destructive customs handed down to them by the kings of old ; unless he reinstated the habits of paganism which were in vogue in the days of the wicked kings . He had to cleanse the city from its defilement, to consecrate and set up in it a residence for his idols , and to prepare in it a shrine for Beelzebub, chief of the demons , with many other things which were said to him by the divination of the soothsayers. If he did all that, he would prevail over his enemies, and he would succeed in his wars . He would gain renown and victory for ever. But the fool did not know that his end was mocking him , that in a little while the wretched man would not exist , that the trap of Justice was set for him in Persia , and that the sword of the Lord was sharpened for him. The mind of this abominable wicked one, the priest of sin , was carried away after the error of demons . He was attracted to their nonsense , and led according to their will , to such a degree that he could not do the least thing without the permission of demons and enchantments ; thus publicly confessing against himself that it was not he who governed the kingdom , but demons and devils ; owing to the machinations of his idolatry, they led him according to their will . The cursed tyrant, after these words had been spoken to him by his possessed ones, determined to start upon his down grade. He quickly ordered his expedition , and summoned the nobles of Rome, the chiefs and commanders of the city, of whom the first was Volusianus with his fifteen companions . He directed them in certain particulars as between man and man. He reproached them for the burning of the priests ; he blamed them for their want of faith in idols . After he had taken them to task severely, he deceitfully changed his tone , and with questionings consoling them and saying to them : 'You are probably grieved for your error ; for I know well that you acted in ignorance, that is to say, through the fault of the wicked Eusebius, chief of the cult of the Nazarenes . I understood that he was preparing for you remorse for that which you have done. I have pardoned and overlooked your faults . I have not in the least lowered your dignity, or removed you from your leading positions . What could be overlooked , I have overlooked up till to -day ; henceforth , however, there is no more compassion , or pardon , or life . He who shall dare to transgress the orders of my rule , behold , I bear witness to you, as a man who bears witness to his equal, while ye are my servants, and I have power over you, that if you are aware that your mind partakes of the dirty lies of the crooked cult of the Christians , yet hold well to the directions of the city, I am very pleased . If you still hold to the same ideas of your error , do not put me to trouble ; confide the leadership and the direction of the city to those who accord with our royal will ; and ye , as persons who have hated our honour, and in whose eyes our majesty is despised , depart in peace to your houses , being masters of your own freedom.' This cursed tyrant said that to try them, to ascertain what was in their mind . But they, confident and firm , realized his perfidy ; they did not renounce their faith , nor did they relax in their rectitude , but publicly and powerfully confessed that they were Christians . They handed to him and gave him the book of accounts of the city, and said : "Take the book of accounts of your city .' They were questioned by the ruling power for a long time ; they, however, had decided in themselves to die for the Name of their Master. The tyrant grew vexed , and was angry with them ; he answered them harshly, and said : ' O you vile and foul haters of your own lives, what accounts do we request at your hands ? All the possessions which you have represent the royal imposts , which you have grasped and plundered . You have become rich and perverse, and have revolted against your king. Now that I have occasion , I will have satisfaction from you for the evil which you have done ; I will avenge myself on you with justice for the sacred blood of the priests of God , which you have shed without sin on their part . Then, indeed , O ye guilty of death, what hostile thing has our government done to you, that you have withdrawn from our power, after I have overlooked your faults and passed over your sins ? I have not deprived you of your influence , and I have not diminished your glory ; but you, in your rebellion, have violated my grace ; our dignity has been spurned in your sight, you have begged off from our rule. Now you will lack nothing of that which you have asked for .' He had them unrobed, and stripped of their uniforms ; he had them put in irons before all the people ; he sent them to the prisons where they had been kept before ; he took from them all their gold and silver, and all that they had possessed ; he left them naked of their belongings , until there was time to give ear to them. He appointed in their place other persons as governors of the city, and entrusted the city to their hands ; he gave them as chief, Adoctus, his trusty one, and applied himself to his expedition, spreading terror by his troops . In the month of Ab (August) , in the year 673 according to the Greek reckoning, on the first of the month, Julian left Rome with the strength of his armies and with a great number of troops . He went quickly and moved rapidly ; for the demons, misleading the fool , had promised him in their agitating ways things much too high and powerful for him . They drove him with the thought that he would have dominion from heaven to earth , over all the kingdoms of the world ; that he alone would be Lord over all the earth, that is to say, when he had destroyed and won the victory in Persia , and had annexed the crown of the house of Nimrod . Therefore the tyrant hastened ; he went by forced marches , two stations at a time. By a short route and in a short time he arrived at the country of Aloricun ; from thence he sent letters to Constantinople by the hand of Julian, his uncle . He had taken his letter of anathema concerning the name of 'Byzantium ' , withdrawing the new name by which the house of Constantine had called it. F

The contents of the letter of the madman were in this strain : Julian Licnus Julius Gissabastus , Autocrat of all the earth, sends greetings . Because the gods in their mercy have given peace to the world , and they have also put it into our mind to visit the places of our dominion , to put them right and to attach them to the firm faith in the gods, and to take away from them the erroneous customs which our former kings have bequeathed them , and to renew the first habits , just and straight , namely , those which had been fixed in the days of Diocletian and Maximian, those stable and strong kings , men just and correct, whose straightforwardness and justice have till the present time been the subject of praise in all the territories of our kingdom ; a good memorial of them being preserved , and ever spoken of, as they are in the sacred books of the gods of your distinguished and renowned city. As for the superb teaching of King Byzas , his triumphs are recorded first, and the wonders which he worked in the world , which are especially astounding, namely, that on the seven mountains , in the midst of the dense waters of the seas , he laid the foundations of your city, so perfectly and suitably done . He added to his name that of your city. Like a man who began and finished , he built and completed . And since he had no children to appoint over his realm at his death , he named in his testament heirs to his kingdom , Germanicus as king of Rome , and from that time onwards the realm of Byzas was added to the territories of the Romans until this day. By that correct name which the kings who built it gave it, I know your city, not by the borrowed name of those frauds who sought glory for themselves, and fixed their name to the city for which they had neither laboured nor built, and the foundations of which were laid when their fathers ' fathers were as yet not born in the world . To your city , then , in the first place, has our royal letter been sent, that is to say, as to the capital, not by the hand of persons of the inferior and simple sort, but by the hands of the powerful and distinguished person , Julian , my uncle , who is the father of my realm , that from him you might ascertain in what extraordinary respect you are held in our estimation , since we have learnt of your faith in the gods and your correct love for us. I have not concealed from myself this thing, what diligence and activity you showed towards the sacrifices of the gods ; nor has this escaped my notice , fearing lest your consideration for me might be extinguished by love for them, we have seen the good will which you have shown to us even when we were far away ; and like fire our love for you burnt in our thoughts. Day by day our constant wish was , when shall we see you, and rejoice and be delighted in you on the grand feast of the gods , and bestow on you favours with a liberal eye and open hand, not only for you , but also for your children and your children's children for many generations ; our leadership being handed down even to ten generations ? All this is according to the advice that has been given us by the Ruler of Creation , he who is the chief leader of demons and of devils , a mighty power which cannot be rendered by the mouth of the children of flesh . Even the gods who have established the world sometimes have had need of the creature . They were hidden in the world unknown, until he, by the turns of his wit, made their faces shine in the world . He turned all the peoples to their adoration ; he bound and subjected the world to the custom of their service . The ear of flesh could not hear the secret whispering of their divinity ; as an intermediary he put his soul for us between God and man ; by their images he interpreted their secrets and revealed their mysteries . Who then will call him wicked , whom the gods affirmed good , except the Nazarenes alone , whose rest-days they abhor, and of whose pleasures they are ashamed ? They call him wicked and name him an enemy ; they give him tens of thousands of evil and hateful names, for which insult I will avenge myself on them. I will wipe their cult from off the surface of the earth . Who ought not to love the thought of him, whose opinion the gods love and befriend ? or who ought not to name him good, who desires the joys of the creature ; who introduced dancing and song in the world to temper the sadness of mortals, and by whose F2 hands there entered into the world all sorts of cravings , so that each one shall have his wish gratified according to his will ? His riches are unloosened to all without invidious distinctions ; his eye is liberal with gifts to all according to their measure, to uproot the jealousy which reigned in the world through ill will. By the subtleties of his wisdom, he introduced into the world to come into our way Love , which is never satiated ; for by the familiarity of furtive love, the love and affection of males and females become superabundant and intemperate , so much so that absolutely no trace of hate can be found in the world . With these relaxations and enjoyments which he introduced into creation , who is there that can fill his mouth with murmurings against him, this universal worker who has no rest, who does good to us for nought , and labours among men without reward ? In very deed , he wearies not in his service. Should it happen that he labours and is successful with the rich, the work of his round is not neglected among the poor . He is the right worker who tires not to serve all men . If it be that he has an interest in the beautiful, he does not abstain from busying himself with that which is unsavoury and foul. His conscience does not turn him away even from those who are stricken with ulcers . Where , indeed , can you find so correct a man , who makes no distinction between the rich and the poor, between the beautiful and the ugly, between the healthy and the sick, and whose joys are dispersed in all the world without partiality ? Who can give to the world another servant like this who , before you ever ask it , holds himself in readiness at your door to bestow bodily rest on those whom he thinks fit ? And since he knows that many act sinfully in this matter and , with the attachment in their partnership (in wedlock) , they desire to have besides another attachment which is not their own, he is busy like a person zealous and active , that in every way he may give them relief to the body without any trouble, and that he may draw forth unexpected love in the hearts of males and females , and bring to them enjoyment that does not belong to them, and that even in this very matter, male and female may find the spirit of repose . Thus through men associating themselves with the wives of their neighbours , the same cause forces their wives , through jealousy of their husbands, to give themselves also to the association of other persons , in order to give satisfaction to their bodies, and to accomplish their desires by an intimacy which is not their own, so that, in the long run, neither partner may deceive the other . As a man goes a whoring, desiring and loving a find that is not his own, whenever it occurs to him, and it is dearer to him than all his belongings , for which others strove and he gained , so the males and the females join each other with love of stolen desire , in the same way as cooling waters act upon the thirsty ones . In this manner a strange intimacy is agreeable and enjoyable to youth.'

'What then can be said of this artificer, excelling in device, by whom each one accomplishes at will his desire ? He heals them ; and his treasure-house is full of pleasures of every variety. Before any one asks for it, he knocks at the door of the thought of him who loves the relief and pleasures of the world . ' 'With the overflowing love that we have for you , our royal personage has thought that your city, worthy of all honours , would desire a sanctuary for him, and that we should cause him to rest with you, so that, through him , you should have great glory with all the nations , and that all the kingdoms of the earth should bless you because of him .' These were the words of folly addressed by the pagan king to the children of Constantinople ; and in conclusion he further added : " The gods of heaven and earth, Zeus , Deus , and Apollo , and the goddesses of the universe , Hera , Pallas, Aphrodite , and Atana (? Athena or Minerva ) , with the multitude of gods and goddesses who are in the world, may they come to the aid of your city ! May they give strength, power, and vigour to your males ; ornament , beauty, and grace to your females ; peace and stability to your city ! For I know well that there are never lacking in the city uneasy and excitable persons who sow discord and strife therein . If there be among you such persons , who fight against our orders , and spurn our written messages, our rule has commanded for them, that they shall be torn , limb by limb , and their houses despoiled . But as for the doers of good , who rejoice at the existence of our kingdom , we shall bestow on them peace and tranquillity in increasing measure .' After the letters of the wicked king had been read before the people of the city, all humanity was terrified , and remained in great fear. There was no one who dared to reveal and make known his opinion ; even the Jews and the Aramaeans who inhabited the city were afraid to tell anything of that which happened to the Jews and Aramaeans in the city of Rome. When consternation and terror of the unjust one were cast abroad upon it , and upon the silence of the inhabitants of the city, Maximus , a man worthy of a good remembrance in Heaven, who was one of the distinguished men of the city, of the great family of the stock of kings , and who had regard for the kingdom of God, felt the zeal of God waxing hot within him, and he determined to make full confession of the faith in Christ . He upbraided the wicked one publicly, and reproached him before the people of the city, and as with piercing arrows he taunted him with words of reproach , saying : 'What is this madness that has taken hold of your tyrant king ? What are these infatuated written expressions which have been sent by him to your city ? Are these the writings of kings ? They are become mad, then, the kings who can indite letters such as these . Woe to the empire of the Romans that it has lost its kings and found such in their places ! They are dead , her true kings and honourable governors, whose writings were estimable like them selves . In their stead have risen up men of impulse and fatuous , whose writings are bombastic like themselves . Where are the mighty lions of the house of Constantine , at the voice of whose roaring the kings of the earth shook, and their hearts trembled through fear ? Lo ! to-day vile foxes dance and feed upon their pastures, threatening by their actions as though they thought themselves kings ; but they deceive themselves , for they are not kings . How can one tell you that the kingdom is taken from you ? If you understood (but you cannot understand, because of the blindness of your heart) , you are only kings in name. For to-day demons and devils conduct your government ; by your own hands they accomplish their desire . Sporting with you secretly, they mock at your confused minds , since like unreasoning beasts , you are drawn after their will , and you are gone after their error . You are partners in their infidelity, and you have become deprived of your power ; and like stupid men, whose intellect has gone wrong, you have subjected your power and leadership to the vile principalities of sin and to unclean spirits . For a long time you have become beyond control in your government, and henceforth you cannot succeed in ruling the Romans . During the time that the government has been entrusted to you for the chastisement of our people in consequence of our sins, you have defiled our kingdom by your mean conduct ; you have humiliated it through everything hateful, for you have no other consideration but that of demons and idols . Who would not mock at you, and deride your government ? For you have neglected to study the account of the wars of the first kings , from whom you could have learnt the modes of war, by what strategical methods they succeeded in their battles, and became powerful over their enemies . They left behind them in the world a reputation as conquerors . See, now you bury yourselves as empty and useless persons (as in the insipid and sterile fables of the Greeks ) , like women who with the back of their skirts wipe the sleep from their eyes . For what then are Deus and Zeus and Apollo with their other companions but persons empty, corrupt, wanton and obscene, adulterers and fornicators , who lived the worst sort of life in the world, as is taught in the narratives of Homer, the sage, of whom your wise men boast so much, but who, with all his wisdom, was not able to know God, and to deprive his righteous ones of that which was needful in matters which he was not sufficiently bold to understand , though he burned with zeal for them as in a fire . As for those who have named themselves the gods of the world , he rightly showed forth their shameless conduct ; as they were persons who vitiated the interior form by their lasciviousness and wicked connexions . He rendered their glory void, saying : ' Because they were swayed by the odious desire born in them by reason of their contaminating actions , all the hateful cravings that came into their head, they carried into effect easily and without a blush. Sometimes, indeed , they would lie with males in their impudence, not shamed to hide themselves from nature itself ; sometimes , in their superstitious rites , they showed themselves in the form of birds to loose women who were like themselves ; and lay with them during the period of their uncleanness . Their insolence grew impatient to indulge the base desire of their will (though they should have had more conscience than the women) , so that they did not even turn away from them amid the conditions of their defilement .' These are called the gods of the world by the men of to-day ! But one measure of equality and shame applies to their males and to their females . They were scandals to many while they were in life , and even after their death ; for after they and their base actions had departed, the sordid ones like them, who were attracted by their base desires, made images of them which they called gods and goddesses . The fools went astray after them in their delirium . Such are the accounts given by Homer concerning those who are to-day by you called gods, and countless other things , evil and sinful, similar in purport, which it is not pressing for us to record to the full extent of their hatefulness . For what shall we gain by this ? If your fanatical error had not compelled me, I would not have defiled my tongue with such stories. I am astonished at your counsels , O tyrant, that you are not ashamed, and do not blush at the stories of his gods . If it were possible now, and if he were here before us , I would join my two hands , and strike with them the face of this madman, who is not ashamed to name as gods those who lived their lives in the world with such foul conduct and odious actions . ' When with these words of reproach he had rebuked the uncle of the wretch before the people of the city, the wicked one grew angry, his wrath was roused, he roared like a lion ready to tear in pieces , his bile was moved, his colour changed to yellow, and he seemed like a madman in his fury. He said to the blessed Maximus in wrath : 'Tell me, O man of ill luck, by what power and authority have you released your tongue, and poured out your insults against him who holds the sovereignty of the world ? Like a man who exposes his life , you have reviled the king, and blasphemed the gods. Perhaps you do not know in your madness , that all the words which your mouth has pronounced reach the ears of the king ; and , because of the infamy of your audacity , you will bring evil on all your tribe, even on all your city, O you evil cranium ! Why do you insult the master of the world because he worships the beings who by their nature are gods ? You in your person are worthy of death, as you are not ashamed nor blush at the worship of a mere man, whom the Jews have crucified in Jerusalem, together with malefactors . You call him God, and you glory in his Cross . ' When Maximus heard the blasphemy of the wicked one against God, he could not contain himself. He put forth his hand to the sword of one of the soldiers who were with him , and drew it from its sheath . He raised his hand against the accursed one to smite him and dishonour him. The blow was not given, for he dodged him. He attempted to go after him, but his relations and friends took hold of him , and did not allow him to follow him. Thereupon he turned, and said to him : ' Listen , uncle of the defiled one ! In case you have hopes for yourself, I witness before the inhabitants of the city that , if to -morrow I see you in this city, I will send your head to the madman who has sent you.' His relations and friends led him away hurriedly from the crowds of the city, and between them blamed him secretly, and covering up his words said : ' You are perhaps not aware that you have let loose your tongue, and poured forth your insults against the king, who has power over your life and death ; and against his uncle , whom he has appointed as father to his kingdom, you have lifted your hand to kill him before the crowds of this city. If the king comes to know about it, what are you going to do ; or if he commands your death by the sword, what can we do for you to help you ? What were their relatives and connexions able to do to aid the governors of the city of Rome; and how can we help you ? We are truly disquieted about the subject, for there is not a medicine that can heal the wound which you have inflicted upon yourself. For you alone in your city have revealed and made known that you are a Christian. Are there not in this city more than twenty myriads of Christians like you, and none of them had dared to publish openly their opinion as you have done, but they leave it to its proper time. They thrust it aside like wise persons until the time passes , and a change sets in. Now listen to us, we are going to advise you for your good ; for there is no other drug that can heal your wound ; go and humble yourself before this man, and be agreeable to him ; and like a person who has repented and blames himself for what he has done, put forth a defence , and ask pardon for your folly before the king comes to know of it . We will come after you with our friends, the commandants , to confirm your words, to beg and beseech him on your behalf. Perhaps he will show us favour, and grant us concession for your fault , and give us reliable promises on oath that the king shall not know of these things .' The blessed Maximus did not give ear to what his friends said to him ; he was not uneasy nor sorry for what he had done, but courageously and with a firm mind he defended himself to his friends , and said : " These matters are my concern ; approach no one to influence him on my behalf; for from henceforward I prepare myself to become a sacrifice to God , since He , as God , was not ashamed to become a sacrifice of redemption for sinners like me. For a long time I have desired to walk in the way of His crucifixion, for He, by His Cross , took away our iniquities and sins to justify us ; and I am resolved by my sacrifice to be pledged to Him as a grateful bridegroom, inasmuch as He sacrificed His life for the salvation of the Church . I will not renounce Him before men, that He may not renounce me before His Father, when the wedding-guests shall with Him enter into the marriage-chamber . For what respite is there if I gain the whole world and lose my soul, as our Lord has said in His gospel , or what shall I give in my place, if it be not my own person in sacrifice ? Now, my dear friends, why do you trouble yourselves in this matter ? It is not the threats of the tyrant and his wrath , nor his tortures and torments that will obstruct me in the way of my confessing Christ , even if the tyrant should turn from me, and let me go free .' When his relations and friends saw that he did not submit to their words, they turned aside and left him ; and, taking as companions the chiefs of the city, they entered to pacify the wicked one ; with tears in their eyes , and persuasion on their lips , they besought him to pardon Maximus for his offence ; promising him offerings and gifts , if he would forgive his folly. He said to them : 'You have heard with your own ears the insults to the king and the blasphemies against the gods . You have seen with your eyes that he lifted his hand to kill me ; and you are not angry with him , and ready , as overseers of the city, to punish him . Had you been just to yourselves and to the city, you would have sent his head to the king whom he has insulted, and you would have thrust away from you the evil ; destruction would have ceased from your city. Now know and see what you do ; for you have heard what happened to the chiefs of Rome.' When they heard from him these words , they were much afraid and held their peace . They did not dare to answer him further . He turned away and parted in great anger, and informed the tyrant of all these things . The king was in a rage and angry with his uncle ; and boiling with anger , sent him away from before him, giving orders that he should not appear in his presence that day, for he was full of wrath against him. After some days , when his anger had subsided, he sent to summon him before him, and said to him : 'I gave you the power of the sword , and left in your hands the passing of judgement upon those who opposed our commands. How have you carried out our will as expressed in writing , and accomplished our royal will , that your sword has not taken vengeance upon those who dared to be against our wishes , but owing to your laxity our letters have been belied , and the crown of our kingdom insulted ; the gods blasphemed ; and this, most painful of all , that had the coup which Maximus conceived concerning you struck home, you would already by this time have had too much of life, our rule would have borne the blame, while you yourself would not have cared owing to your laxity, to give a reason for this business of yours , even on demand . This astonishes me most, that if you were not at all uneasy at our pain, and that the blaspheming of the gods caused you no annoyance, you were not in the least uncomfortable in yourself that the rebel was making a laughing -stock of you before all the inhabitants of the city. Through your slackness you were afraid to pass our sentence of justice upon him, by depriving him of his possessions , and deciding as to his own person . Fear and trembling would have been upon those who presumed as he did ; and you would now have been quit of the shedding of much blood. As, however, you have not acted so, it is in vain that you are repentant, casting the blame forsooth upon us ; in our great commiseration several of our intentions have been frustrated , instead of the blame being attached to you , that you in yourself were not sufficient, through weakness of mind , to exact punishment on your own account. Now you are blamed in the generosity of our grace, for it is difficult to tolerate your folly.' When the tyrant saw that trouble and pain had seized upon his relative , that his heart was filled with sorrow, so much so that he could not contain himself on account of his guilt, and seeing that he became weak and ill through pain, the tyrant himself was grieved , and he encouraged him, consoling him thus : ' From this time forward, do not bother about this matter ; have no concern as to that which we have spoken to you , for no man shall know what has happened in this city (I hate the crowd), until the price has been paid by them in justice, even as their actions deserve. Why should our soldiers mock at us, and scoff at our leaders ? On this account , as I know full well that Jovian , our general, is anxious that our realm should suffer no loss of prestige, it seems right to us to reveal and make known unto him our intentions , so that he could attend to what is necessary in the business , since he is a man of knowledge and understands business matters .' He bade farewell to his uncle, who departed from him mourning, and with bowed head. And it came to pass after some few days that Jovian entered to do homage and bow down to the king, as he was accustomed . The tyrant revealed to him , when the two were together, all that had happened at Constantinople . He cautioned him that no one should know of these things , ' until I turn (the tables) upon the inhabitants thereof. ' Jovian was in no hurry to appease him, but he gave in to the will of the tyrant . He employed an accommodating manner, and used bland expressions , saying : ' It is because I have found mercy in the eyes of your royal personage that I have been entrusted with your secret affairs .' Julian answered : ' It is not in vain or for no purpose , but as a good servant who has consideration for the belongings of his master, that they may not grow less .' Taking a hint from the manner of speech of the tyrant, the confidential and true one understood that he was opening the door to prayer and persuasion . Julian said to him : 'How do the things appear to you , O friend of the gods ? ' Jovian thought within himself, and kept silence ; he did not hasten even then to use persuasion . The tyrant said to him : ' I conjure you by the success of the gods , not to hide your ideas and be ashamed on our account to say what you think can aid us, and give us a restful reign . ' Jovian answered him : ' Your Divinity knoweth, O my lord and king, that once or twice we have humbly placed our petition before your powerful and mighty kingship , praying that your realm may suffer no diminution, that your rich cities may not be void of their grandeur, nor be shorn of their inhabitants , because of senseless persons bereft of understanding, who hate their own lives ; for, if we follow their madness, we shall plunge into an abyss the countries of our government , and we shall carry off a bad and blameworthy reputation among all the kingdoms of the earth. But let not your Highness be deceived in this matter, for such things have been done in Rome not so long ago. But for the brilliant counsels of Aplatus the sage , Rome might to-day have been in ruins , emptied of its inhabitants , and your kingdom would not have been possible among them. Now, my lord the king , since your servant has found grace before Your Power, and we have been commanded by your Highness to give counsels on all the interests that concern your realm, we commend the persuasive accents of our prayers to your mercy and consideration as to kings prepared to busy themselves with the task of upholding their government , to have patience with their kingdom, and to take pains with their city, until their rule shall have become strong and powerful . When the gods shall have given you rest in all your borders , and you have done with your battles , if there are in your city ten or twenty who deserve punishment, they will be handed over to the judges of the country, and they will be judged according to the law, as the necessary rules prescribe ; by means of interrogations and tortures they will confess their crimes , and acknowledge their stupidity before the confused peoples of their city, and they will receive capital punishment for their errors , while your justice will be praised . It was not in vain, nor fruitless that your puissance threatened them . ' The words of Jovian were very agreeable to the tyrant ; he was very much esteemed by him. The fool had in mind the blessed Maximus ; thinking that he might not recover himself and turn from his error, by renouncing the cult of the Nazarenes , and that he might not respond to his paganism and worship idols , so that he may have pardon and his nonsense passed over. If he persisted in his silly opinions, he should be torn to pieces , limb by limb, and his possessions given to pillage, according to the decree which his royal personage had ordained . When Jovian learnt what the fool thought of doing to the wrestler for Christ, he was in great distress ; and went out from before the tyrant sick at heart, and pained at these things . He sent in secret and privately to tell the blessed Maximus all that had passed . The elect of God did not grieve, nor was his mind disturbed by what he had learnt, but his spirit rejoiced and was delighted , and he said in the gladness of his heart : ' Blessed be the day when these things come near to me ; for it will be to me the greatest day of all days. Much as a bridegroom longeth for the arrival of the day of his marriage and for his betrothed, even more so doth my mind long for the contest of my confession , happy in that hour when I shall be worthy to render, by my endurance , the proof of my faith . ' When the messenger of Jovian returned and told him these things , he was astonished , and marvelled at the firm feeling of this man of God, a man who had been brought up in ease and in pleasures , who, of his own accord and without compulsion , had called for the contest of the confession. He blessed him, and praised his faith ; and repeating, he sent a second time to him, and advised him as follows : ' It is because I know, brother, that you are a man who has been reared in ease and pleasure, never having suffered cruel trials , and you have no experience of the painful combat of the confession , that I say now, my brother, examine yourself and understand this matter, as to whether you are strong enough to endure the sufferings of the confession ; and be careful while you have still some little respite . Superintend your affairs as best you can, before the contest flashes upon you ; save yourself and all that you possess before the commandment of the unjust is sprung upon you . It is necessary for us to choose one of two alternatives , either to step out heroically and fight with the bodily sufferings in order to snatch the crown of the hour , or we must keep our belief to ourselves, changing our attitude for a time, and protect our persons from the force of the persecutor, for it will not last long, as the Lord has revealed unto those in whom He delights . You know, brother, that not everybody is able to undergo the torments of the confession. It is a wonderful gift ; they are rare who are worthy of it . My brother, I have informed you of these things beforehand that you may have the opportunity to deal wisely in your affair ; for the cursed tyrant will have no rest on your account, either to make you renounce your faith and embrace his paganism , or else to give you over to be slaughtered , and your property to plunder. Now, my brother, by putting the two sides before your eyes , it will be for you to handle this business wisely.' When the blessed Maximus realized what affliction this true man was undergoing for his sake, he sent words of encouragement to console him, saying : ' You must not, my brother, have any care about this affair, for it is not from to-day that I look forward to that profit that awaits me ; for my eyes are worn out from looking for it unto this very day. Now that the time has come, and offers to give it to me, shall I cry off like a low-life, and become a byword to men of action who have gained it ? God forbid that I , your brother, should have a sad face at the time when the crowns are given to the athletes, and hear at that moment the voice which upbraids me, and says : ' O low and idle one, where is the interest of the money which I gave to you ?' God forbid that the Bridegroom chide me before His guests of honour when I knock at His wedding, and He sends me away empty from the door ; that His invited guests mock not at me in the hour when they shine and rejoice with their crowns , and blame me, saying : 'Where is then your crown, O degraded groomsman, who has lost his crown through his slothfulness ? ' O that the Son deny me not before His Father, because I did not confess Him before the faithless , who spurned and deprived themselves of their Confession of faith. Heaven protect your brother, lest he hear these echoes of despair at that terrible hour in which there is no mercy for the guilty! But, with cheerful countenance , when I gain my victory through bodily suffering, and I wear on my head the crown of my Confession of Faith, let me go with the Bridegroom to His wedding, I wearing festive garb ; that I may rejoice and find delight in that spiritual feast whose enjoyments do not pass away, and whose guests do not depart . You, my brother in Christ, if your love for me is unstinted , be that your prayer for me , and beseech the Lord that speedily there may be opened to me the door of the Confession of Faith .' When Jovian received the communication of the blessed Maximus, he put it to his eyes, and kissed it . He wept and was sad in himself, and said : ' Woe unto me that I have wasted my days and come to the end of them, and have not during that time gained any interest for myself! Woe is me that, with a sorrowful countenance , I shall render account of the talents that have been entrusted to me! Woe is me that I have no confidence in my faith ! I am like a woman that turneth aside and is not straight, to whom I am furtively attached in my secret thoughts . What shall I do when I am judged as regards my faith for being selfish about it , inasmuch as I did not supply the multitude with it, who might in time have profited thereby ? I was silly in my liberty, and poverty has supervened upon me. I am afraid that instead of having been a source of help to my faith I am become to myself the cause of affliction, as I fall from the high grade of the Confession of Faith to-day when Time duly awards the crown to the just. Now, I pray you , O Word of the Father, who came not suffering to the pains of the crucifixion in order to take away our sufferings , if it please Thy Divine Will , make me worthy to taste the griefs of Thy crucifixion by means of the pains and tortures of my confession of faith . Let me not be disquieted in myself that I fall short in my belief, for even my secrets are revealed to Thee Divine . Not that I shrink from the sufferings of the confession to publicly make the verity of my faith to shine ; but zeal for the Church compelled me to take on myself the appearance G of the pagans according to the counsels of my feeble powers , so that there might be some little breathing- space for our anointed people , which has taken on thy Body and adores Thy Cross, and the sentence of destruction against our churches be annulled . And now, my Lord , not my will be done, but may Thy Divine Will be accomplished ! ' Occupied with these thoughts , this true man was carried away by a sleep unusual for him ; and in an allegorical dream the Faith, to which he was attached , appeared to him in the form of a modest woman . Her appearance was humble and innocent ; she held in her hands two crowns , most wonderful to look at, and magnificent in their beauty. They flashed with colours , so that the eye could scarcely bear to look upon their rays of splendour . She was cheerful of countenance towards him and said to him , smiling : Do you understand what is meant by these ? ' He answered , and said to her : ' I believe, my lady, they represent the triumphs and victories of the true . ' She said to him : 'You see well. In a little time you will have one of them ; but why are you distressed , and why does the thought preoccupy your mind , that you have not been called to make open confession of the faith ; for if the end has not yet reached its measured limit , your combat will perhaps still precede that of your companions . I am well aware of the sincerity of your mind, as you have grown up under my wings. From the womb of your mother your parents entrusted you to me. Now, therefore, lest your mind despair about it and be worried that you have not tasted the sufferings of a public confession, understand, your confession has forsooth been secretly made in the form of a hidden man ; and people are able to complete the fact by specifying the place of your torments and tortures, your constant feelings , your anxious sighs for the Church of Christ, your beautiful actions, your perfect conduct, and your good counsels . Your secret combat is adorned with all these spiritual beauties . Until this, my friend, you have been ill at ease . But do remove sorrow from you , lest you be terrified into a long combat, for hitherto you have been required for the people of God . ' Jovian wondered at the vision . He wished to know who it was that had appeared to him . She said to him , smiling : ' Considering all the time I have been with you, do you still wish to learn who I am ? Hence then, you require that I enlighten you as a child , that I am the Faith in verity, which you have taken into yourself in your manhood , into your very inner self. Persevere in me ; do not relax ; for soon the success of your combat will be manifest . ' When Jovian woke from his sleep , and reflected on his vision, he left off pining, and stopped sorrowing ; and turned his attention to the affairs of the king which were put before him. In those days this true man was not much troubled in respect of the churches of God and the Christian people. A certain diviner named Galas , whom at that time the devil brought from Egypt to awake the sword and persecution against the people of the Christians , and destruction on the churches of God , said to the tyrant : " The gods have sent a message to you by my hands . How long will your sword rest from off the Nazarene people ; for the temples of their assemblies are more than the temples of your gods ? As long as your sword ceases from them, you cannot prevail in your wars ; and while their churches are abundant , you cannot prosper in your realm. That is the will of the gods . Here are the proofs that I am not imposing on you. If I have lied to you, may the gods judge me, and may my eyes not see the vengeance that shall be wrought upon the Galileans ! ' When Jovian learnt these things , he determined to kill Galas . He called upon God to help him, and watched an opportunity. One day when he was all alone at nighttime and he was on his bed, a great image was fixed in his tent, which he always adored, and to which he offered libations. Jovian looked this way and that, and when he was sure that there was no one present, took courage and came upon him in his tent ; he put a cord around him , strangled him in his sleep , and hung him up on the statue of Apollo , which was set up in his tent . He went out , and closed the door upon him. When it was morning, Jovian

entered to salute and to do homage to the tyrant as on all days, when Julian brought the news of Galas to the notice of his trusty and true one . Jovian answered him : ' Exactly as is the will of the gods and agreeable to your Highness , your servant is ready to do homage and obeisance .' The tyrant sent to bring him (Galas) from his tent . On the messenger being sent to seek him in his tent , lo and behold, Galas was strangled, and hung upon the statue of Apollo. He returned quickly, and informed his master what had happened . Julian was astonished ; he cried out and said : ' O gods , your judgement is just. As he deserved , he has been recompensed by you . In truth , the gods strangled this fellow. It is because he had the audacity to lie concerning them, and deceived them. Verily he does not deserve that his body be given to burial, but that the dogs devour it . ' The tyrant ordered that the body of the impure one be given to the dogs ; and they did to him as it had been commanded them . This rumour spread in the camp that the gods had strangled Galas because he thought to destroy the houses of the assemblies of the Nazarenes , which were made as a sanctuary for the gods. These things were done and wrought by the hands of Jovian , son of Orninus (Aronina) , blessed fruit of the goodly tree, both of whom worked for God truly and with a perfect heart all their days , and they will justly receive the payment of a reward for their labours from the Lord of Justice , to whom be praise and blessing for ever and ever. Amen . We will pause here from all that Julian did in his madness and, in brief, commemorate in writing those firm ones who obtained a name and fame in the time of the rebel. Not wishing to vitiate the triumphs of these admirable men, we shall not let them share in the history of this unclean and vile personage. For what opportunity should we have for this at all , if it were not that , in detailing the conquests of those perfect men which are included in our history, we be compelled to dwell on such information concerning him, which proclaims his shame and manifests his reproach and, at the same time, increases the praise of the faith of persons of truth ? Let us then leave to him his prostituted paganism ; for one could scarcely. have grasped the enormity of his misconduct , if we had not wished to publish them in writing. A man who defiled the earth , and made it unclean in his days by the hateful counsels of his priests and his soldiers . For sometimes he would enter into solitary tombs, and in these tombs with incantations he would speak with demons . Sometimes he would cut out the heart of little live children, and take them for the purpose of working his enchantments with them, divining and using magical arts. At times he had children snatched from the womb of pregnant women, and with them he exercised the abominable mysteries of his polluted methods. And so with other odious and detestable actions , which we are not obliged to set down at present, and mix up with other matters by way of giving an account of him. It is not our desire to chronicle his hateful actions, but to profit by his aberration and gain the beautiful flowers that grow in the net of his paganism, just as it is on account of the desirable rose that the wretched thorns are borne , and a man feels bound to wear one in spite of the fact that his clothes are most offensive . In the same way we also , on account of the triumph of the man of firm character which the times of the evil- doer have borne, are constrained to write the history of the latter. Like unto a mirror it reveals his blemishes , it reflects his actions, and proclaims his guilt. He will not be blamed or found fault with who gathers desirable flowers from among the thorns which attach to the hateful and crooked one, nor will the sage who gathers helpful intelligence from the accounts of the perverse . Let us , therefore, bring together and join the series of our words , and out of our expressions let us weave the crowns of praise for the blessed Maximus , concerning whom our feeble words cannot describe his divine actions as they really are ; a man to whom were odious the glory of the world, its power, its riches and its magnificence, its cities , houses , male and female servants , possessions and concerns, with all that he had gained . He wished forthwith to be quit of all things, to attach himself to the Possessor of all. Now this elect of God , when he became aware that the tyrant. threatened to kill him, dismissed his servants and domestics, and also the workmen among his peasants . In a few days he distributed all he had among the poor and needy. For the rest, he questioned Ambarsis , his friend , who was also awaiting the kingdom of God ; he commanded him, and said : ' As regards that little that remains to me of much that was, my brother, if you wish, come and be my partner in this spiritual merchandise which is about to come to me ; so that you also may gain life for yourself. Come and let me entrust to you what remains to me. Distribute it to the orphans and widows , and to those who are in need .' He gave him what remained to him ; he rejected and cast off the weight of this world and its weariness ; and all he did was to prepare himself to enter by the strait gate of the Confession of Faith. When he heard that the tyrant had arrived some time since , he personally had no regrets in respect of a fine combat ; his only fear was lest something might happen to him owing to his human nature , or in consequence of his intimate companions ; for he knew that they had fully made up their minds to rouse all the people of the city and all the senate to use all the persuasions that could be urged, and that they had begged of the tyrant on his behalf, when he arrived . It was of this that the blessed one was most afraid , lest by their persuasions on his behalf, the combat of the upright one might come to nothing, the Confession of Faith would be superfluous , and the world would not have the impression of his pattern. To prevent this, he came before the men of his city, having shortened the correct course to arrive at that which he had desired and longed after. He arrived and received the reward, making the sign of the Cross on his breast and on his forehead. Thus without being compelled by the commands of the tyrant , and of his own accord, he approached the city in which the camp of the tyrant was situated . For there was no fear whatsoever in the mind of the man of firmness for the threats and wrath of the wicked one. Before he appeared before him, the madman had heard of him, that he had come of his own accord, and that no one scented it ; this greatly excited the wrath of the tyrant against him, and his anger burnt within ; for he had insulted him and vilified his sovereignty, insomuch as he had come of his own accord , and had not been summoned . The blessed Maximus , having understood this, was convinced that, on the morrow, the madman was ready to engage in worship to his idols . He also was ready ; that at this juncture he might finish his course, and obtain the crown of his Confession . Yet the blessed man was pained ; and lamented the error of the mad king . He prayed God and conjured Him that He might lead him to repentance, or else soon take away his power and remove him from the kingdom . It was on the morrow, at morning -tide , all the people assembled outside the gate of the city, where was seen the house of worship of the image of Aphrodite , in whose honour the tyrant was preparing to offer worship on that day. Great crowds of men and women had come there. They came to the feast which the madman had prepared to the idol of a corrupt woman and a lover of adultery . The blessed Maximus changed his garments ; he put on military dress , so that he might not be recognized , and sent away from the presence of the king at the very hour in which he had decided to receive the sentence of his Confession of Faith . For this reason the blessed Maximus had changed his garments ; and he donned military costume that he might appear at this hour before the tyrant as one of his soldiers , until he would complete his desire , and obtain his request . As soon as the tyrant moved to reach the house of the idols , the whole population was stirred . They thrilled to give out before him in the voice of song all the compositions set up in all kinds of music . The madman was inspired, and his mind was enchanted by his pagan feast ; and when he saw dense crowds of free women in a state of frenzy, who indulged in dance and song before the statue of the loose woman, the fool having arrived at the house of idols , took the crown from his head, and this mad king threw himself, robed in his purple, upon his face before the dumb image of the mad woman and, as to a god, he prayed unto her for a long time . When he rose from his adoration, he put his crown on his head , and returned to join the crowds, and to present them with gifts . All eyes were directed towards him, and were athirst to hear his words . When he just motioned to speak to them, zeal was roused in the blessed Maximus , he put his two hands together and inflicted a blow upon the face of the madman. His crown fell from his head . He hurried and said to him : ' In this manner you shall soon fall from your kingdom , because you have thought fit to change the worship of God for the image of a loose woman , who killed her friends .' Scarcely had he finished his words , when the runners, the rear-guard of the king, pierced him with the lances that were in their hands, without any orders from the wretch himself. He was still breathing when a voice was heard from Heaven, saying: ' You have run your course well, and you have finished your fight ; you have gained the victory for yourself . Sleep in peace, groomsman of my crucifixion, until the voice of the Resurrection call you , and bring consolation for your murder.' He died at this voice. The tyrant was stupefied and astounded at the voice which he had heard . He began to say to his soldiers : 'Notice well the superstitious procedure of these deluded persons that, even after their death , their enchantments continue to speak, as though it was their God who was thought to be speaking to them. For my part , I cannot reconcile myself to this ; that even if it be as they assert, what was the good of this voice to this miserable creature , whom it could not save from death ? If the power of their God can help them, even to the extent of rescuing out of my hands the corpse of His confessor, which I am disposed to put in the fire to make an end of it , so that there may not be the least remnant of a bone to the children of his faith-' Having pronounced these words , there was a great commotion in the place . The sky became troubled and angry, the firmament was clothed in dense clouds, there was great darkness with tempests and fierce clashings . They blew with an enormous force ; mighty thunderings and dreadful lightnings smote the air. Great hailstones in the expanded bosom of the sky beat against one another ; and , before they fell to the earth, their voice made itself heard in the air , so that , in great bewilderment, the king and his officers out of fear left the corpse, took to flight, and went to the city. Each person took refuge as best he could . As to those who had to give up running away, the fray reached them , and they were killed by the hailstones, and so also the wild beasts and the cattle and all the things that were left under the heavens. Thus they died through the hailstones . The atmosphere was so threatening and savage that those who were in the porches of the city had to cover their faces with the corner of their mantles , out of fear of the thunder and the force of the lightning. Amidst all this fear and commotion , Jovian, the general , worthy of a good remembrance , delivered himself to death to get the body of the saint . He took the iron in his hands to dig, so as to bury the body of the holy witness of God. He was tearing away, and passing between the hailstones and the coals of fire which were mingled together. They did not harm him. When he arrived at the place where the martyr of Christ was crowned, he threw himself on the body of the firm believer, wept bitterly, and said : ' O my brother , O my brother, you have left your brother to meet evil days .' He embraced his corpse, and kissed the place of his wounds . When he had somewhat appeased his grief with the tears flowing from his eyes , he lowered his shoulders and carried the corpse. He walked about to seek a place where he could bury it, and he found one hidden away in the incline of a rock. He put the corpse aside until he had dug a hole for it . When he lifted the iron to dig , he came across a place in the rock which formed an obstruction . vexed the distinguished man . He threw the iron from his hand, lifted the eye of his heart to God and prayed , saying : ' Christ , hope of Christians , in Thy Name has this one taken on himself, by being slaughtered , the pains of Thy crucifixion ; hide his precious body from before the threats and attacks of the tyrant. Let no true believer be deprived of the blessings wrought by the bones of thy holy witness to the mighty power Thou hast . Thou, who didst rend the rocks during Thy crucifixion, show here also the admirable force of Thy divinity, and command this stone to open, and to receive from me the cherished body of thy veritable elect, which it may shelter within itself but for a time , until in due course Thy covert approval permit it to be withdrawn , and turned over to those who would promise to bury it in a manner as it deserved to be buried .' At the prayers of the believer, the rock opened, and received the corpse within it , sheltering it and closing in upon it. Jovian returned to the city, his mind cheerful and joyous, confessing and glorifying God, who had thought him worthy to bury the body of the man of truth , and did not reject his work. When he entered the gate of the city, there was calm, and the commotion had ceased . The noises were still, and the lightnings had ceased , the mists had rolled away, and the air was bright and exhilarating. Astonishment seized upon the multitude at the change in the atmosphere , seeing that it was so black during the immolation of the blessed Maximus. Even the cursed tyrant understood the condition of affairs , realizing that it was on account of the corpse of the martyr of God that these things happened . He gave up the idea of reclaiming the body ; and did not continue to seek for it further. Many things happened in the time of Julian the wicked , which are not written down and noted . These few things out of many we have noted as a memorial , so that from them you may learn sufficiently what persecution was meted out to our people in the time of the wicked one. Even if it be said that the sword of the tyrant was not drawn against us openly, yet the very report of his paganism roused against us persecution in all the countries under his power. Was there a city or country in which their hands were not dipped in the innocent blood of the servants of God ? Many Christians died at the hands of the pagans in the cities without the order of the tyrant or the permission of the judges , who by their own power judged them harshly according to their will , owing to the indifference of the tyrant, who would not inflict capital punishment for their deaths upon the judges of the places . These scandals were enacted not only in the cities , but also in the villages and the hamlets, even though it be not written down . Who can exhaust the limits of the description of all that occurred in the time of the wicked one directed against the servants of God ? Many of them were leisurely led to death by the hands of pagans ; neither was the place they came from known , nor even their names written down , nor their triumphs recorded , as they were judged without the judges . Had they been judged according to law before judges , both their country would have been known , as also their names and their contests would have been entered in the reports of their trials . The reason given why their confession of faith was not written down , nor even entered in the archives , is because it was said there were not many martyrs in the time of Julian the wicked . If these had been judged , as we have said , before the tribunal of justice , who could exhaust the number of the many martyrs who testified in his days ? The persecution was the corrupt persecution of the foul one , without examination by the judges , without a word in reply to the interrogation , not put down in the pleaders ' reports , nor the sentences which were carried out . But everywhere and in all the cities , whatever seemed good to the pagans and came into their minds , they did to the servants of God , that is to say , owing to the negligence of the tyrant .

That cursed and excommunicated one, after the triumph of the blessed Maximus, took it into his head to go to Constantinople. In advance , he sent letters of appeasement and reconciliation, for he wished to receive in their city praises worthy of the kingdom . For as yet he was not numbered among the kings of the Romans , inasmuch as the Senate of Rome had not adjudged to him the acclamations of the kingdom because of his paganism . He was king by his own authority in governing, but he was not put down and described as such among the Roman kings , until the time when he had received the acclamations of the kingdom in the Senate of Constantinople . In this wise did the tyrant trouble the inhabitants of Constantinople with his letters, and calm their thoughts from a distance , so as to make them come to his will . When he was ready to arrive in their city, all the Senate went out to receive him with honours . He also received them with joy, and paid them honour in the presence of his soldiers . And as though unto relatives , he melted in speech with them, promising them great things . When he entered Constantinople, he threw presents to the crowds of the city, and again sowed in their ears the echoes of ease and reconciliation . With his disturbing cunning he gained from them the acclamations of royalty, and sat on the throne of Constantinople, and was counted among the kings of the Romans for one year and eight months . But he did evil in the sight of the Lord , and walked in the ways of Maximian the wicked , not turning from them either to the right or to the left . Had the Lord not shortened his time and the measure of the days of his life , scarcely a man would have been left of the Lord's people who had not renounced and denied their faith. But the Lord of hosts had pity on the humiliation of the Church, and removed him early from his kingdom ; his destruction taking place in the lands of his enemies . I would now like to stop in the history of the impure one, after having culled in association with his infamy the becoming flowers suitable for the crown of the Church . The righteous conduct and fine actions of Jovian, his general, do not allow me to defraud him of an account of him, and rob him of his praises , especially as it is not possible for me to give enough of his history, coming out forcibly in the account of the polluted one , dealing not only with him, but with the other upright and perfect persons who lived in his time, and mocked at the tyrant's paganism , contemned his power, and spurned his torments. They gave him woe by their patient endurance ; they gained , through his paganism , the kingdom of Heaven which passeth not away, and the crowns that are not lost. And this was the case, not only in one city or in one country. The men of piety gained through it life for themselves , like vast pastures which are planted , and are full of desirable blossoms and beautiful flowers . The whole course of the history of the impure one was full of and dotted with the conquests of righteous persons and the praises of those perfect ones , as also with the astonishing combat of those mighty in their faith. In every country through which the madman passed, he had woe from the servants of God. What shall we say about those who witnessed in Antioch of Syria, of those who got name and fame in the country of the Christians , or of the firm faith of the people of Edessa, or of the constancy and of the athletism of those of Nisibis , or of the painful combat of those who were martyrs in the country of the Samaritans , persons religious and esteemed , who from every country assembled and wisely came to reach the Holy Land of the crucifixion of their Lord ? For in the place where their Master had been crucified , there were these all ready to taste of the sufferings of His crucifixion by the blood of their neck. When they passed through the country of the Samaritans in the honoured garb of their religion, all the persons of the villages and hamlets assembled against them with sticks , lances, and sling-stones , and set up a persecution against them . When the servants of God saw that the combat was about to hasten upon them, they did not become enraged against their persecutors , but they gave themselves up , and died for the name of their Lord , neither their names nor their origins being known . What can our words say on their behalf but this one thing, that certain persons confessed, of whom not even their corpses could be found ; for their assassins had been cunning against them , and it has not been revealed to the children of our confession where the precious bodies of the pious men had been engulfed ; the persecution had been malicious - the persecution which was meted out in the times of Julian the wicked-as the sentence of death did not proceed openly from the tyrant, nor did he exact punishment from those who dared to give judgement without orders . They tormented and made the servants of God suffer with divers tortures of all kinds , these coming to the end of their lives through the neglect of the tyrant to punish for the innocent blood which was shed for no fault . He raised persecution against us in all the countries , and gave the opportunity to the pagans to show us their hatred and accomplish their desire upon us. When Justice saw the sufferings and the degradation of our people, the mockery and the defamation of the holy covenant, it hastened to take the impure one from life, and gave salvation to the Church by his death . When the fool thought that the kingdom was firmly established in his hands , and that hitherto he had succeeded according to his will, the Lord roused within him the stupid thought, and stirred him to make war on the kings of Persia , so that, in the hands of pagans like himself, justice might expose him to shame, and that in a kingdom not his own his fall might take place . He called Jovian , his general , a man who had obtained goodwill and favour in the eyes of the tyrant. The two came to a secret understanding with each other regarding the war on Persia . The tyrant promised Jovian that he would make him chief all the days of his life . He made him great and powerful before all the chiefs and governors . He made him , after himself, ruler and governor in the whole realm of his kingdom, and presented through his hands gifts to all the Roman soldiers . He sent him before him with a great army, that he might go down and place himself upon the frontiers to take boats for the passage of the Tigris , the river which separates the frontiers . Jovian did as was commanded him. He placed himself on the frontiers in the month of Adar in the year 674 according to the date of the Greeks, on the 7th of the month. The land of Nimrod was terrified, and trembled before him. And the Lord was with Jovian, and he cast his fear and terror upon the kings of Persia, and they were sore afraid of him. He also loved God with all his heart , he walked in His ways, and kept His commandments , and he inclined neither to the right nor to the left. And God rewarded him with grace reserved for His good servants . He caused him to return in peace from the land of the Chaldeans with all his armies . At his hands He wrought salvation for all the suffering people of the Romans , and saved from prison those who were bound in the land of the Arameans through the sinful wickedness of the godless Julian . And this was not sufficient for the polluted one, that he raised against us persecution in all the countries of his realm , but the fool thought to raise persecution anew in the country of Persia against the people of the Christians ; for hardly had the sword of Shabur (Sapor) rested somewhat from the servants of God through the activity of the letter of Constantine, Christian king and lover of Christ (May his spirit rest in peace ! ) ; than this impious one, enemy of God and friend of demons , thought out how he might undo the restfulness which Constantine had given to the churches in the country of Persia . Julian, in his madness , wrote and sent to Sapor this message : "The most exciting thing of all that has provoked me to attack and fight you , and to stir up war between the kingdoms, is because your sword is at rest , and has ceased to shed the blood of the Nazarenes, enemies of my kingdom .' When Sapor read the letters of the accursed , he despised him , and mocked at him. He did not wish to submit himself to treat with him even on the subject of his letter ; so when he learnt that Jovian was stationed on the frontier, he sent to him Arimhar, the great Mopta . He sent through him the following : 'It is because I have learnt of your wisdom, your clearness of mind and your understanding, which attain to those things which are necessary, that we have been willing to humble the power of our greatness and calm the nature of our strength, to exhibit to you our pleasant feelings , and by letter to satisfy you , and point out to you what is suitable on both sides. Had your master been just and taken a true course, then even this matter would not have gone wrong with us ; propriety would have justified him in receiving the letters of our kingship as Caesar. But since for some time he has already been too much for the government, and has been wasting his power from Above, even though it happen that it is hidden from him, decency compelled us to write to you, as to a man to whom the government of the Romans has been destined from Above. And though you are as yet little in your own eyes, seeing that you are not versed in future happenings, in our estimation you have long been a great man ; as it was clear to us that you had never lied by the oracles of magic in such matters as they are relied upon, for the knowledge of this science is not of earth, that man should doubt its revelations . From on High is this teaching, with its sacrifices and offerings, and in mercy it was given to the house of Nimrod . When with its revelation he received the crown from Heaven, as regards that which is now the exalted wisdom which the God of Heaven deemed the just due of our realm , by its means those things that are to happen in the future are known to us before they arise ; what was done at your hands in our land has been revealed to us , and the things that happened to you in our country were made clear to us. When as yet the conflict had not been an accomplished fact , and the war between the kings determined upon , we received the rules and the schemes of your warfare by means of the course of the stars of the sphere . We dare not cry out , or harden ourselves, at those things which are promised from Above, until they be accomplished to the full in due time . The lot of our country is fallen before the Lord of War ; and the lot has fallen upon your land , that it shall become powerful over our land for ten weeks of days . And when the seven days of your victory shall be fulfilled , your country shall be subjected to tribute, and you shall be made subservient to our country. The ten weeks of years , a day for the year, we have sighed away until the days shall have been fulfilled , which is the fate decided for our country. We do not wish to fight, or even to ask that war be made against you ; but if you have before your eyes good intentions , then adopt a bountiful attitude towards our land in the hour of your victory, and have kind consideration with the inhabitants of our country. And when the time of your success shall be ended , and there remain to you condemnation , and the power of your pride shall be brought low in a land which is not yours, you will have the face to ask pardon, and consideration will be justified in your case, for it is right and proper for those who deal truthfully with one another, that what a man sows he shall reap, and what a man has lent shall be returned . With the measure with which one measures , it shall be meted out to him. See, I have informed you of all this before it takes place, so that when it comes to pass , you can employ such measures as can be of help to you.' When Arimhar Mopta came to the camp of Jovian, he gave him the letters of Sapor. He read them , and saw that they were full of peace ; he received him with great respect , gave him a distinguished tent for lodging, and a domestic for his service, and paid the expenses of his table and of those who were with him. Jovian looked with prudence upon the affair. He understood that it was not necessary to deal with the letters which he had received without the command of Caesar. Jovian thought that with words he might dismiss Arimhar from him ; and if he were further able, by means of questionings and confusing astuteness , he would stealthily gain his heart, and learn the ideas in his mind, the secrets of their kingdom, and the designs which the kings of Persia had conceived regarding the powers . He sent in secret to call Arimhar to him, and was most desirous of receiving him in a friendly manner. They conversed for a long time with each other most confidentially. Jovian sowed words of peace and friendship in the ears of Mopta , saying : ' I desire that it should be made clear to you what overflowing love and perfect consideration I have for you . From the hour in which I received H you, I have wished that, as far as possible, you should never be out of my sight , for my heart is very much carried away by the attachment of your love ; no one can possibly have enough of the attachment of him whom he loves. True love is never satisfied . What, then , should we do to ensure that our mutual love be pursued and reanimated , and that we be bound by constant and continual view of each other ? ' 'But the power above us forces us to occupy ourselves studiously with the affairs which are ordained after us , since through our indifference to these matters we might perchance incur personal loss and damage . It appears to be necessary, and befitting a distinguished person, to have ever fixed before his eyes the power which is above him, so that he pay attention to the business that has been imposed upon him , and then speedily carry out the affair for him who has sent him, that he may have the opportunity of handling the business wisely ; the more when the war is pressing , and the fight rages . Let , therefore , your love remain with us as a pledge , and let there enter into your heart the remembrance of our friendship also ; let your eyes be upon our people for good , and give a helping hand to our success , and you will obtain for yourself a glorious name in the realm of the Romans. When you do this , you will be named the son of our kingdom.' These were the words with many others like them that Jovian addressed to Mopta who had been sent to him. Arimhar, who was a shrewd man, perceived the cunning of Jovian, and knew that he wished to overreach him by his words. He did not trouble about his perplexing ruses , he turned aside from discussing them, and attended to the subject of the letters that he had brought to him. He was urged to say: ' If you desire it, then pay attention to the letters of the king of kings even as to an equal ; but if that which has been submitted to you is displeasing to you , send him back his letters ; for , lo, he has been honoured and esteemed by you in return for your having obtained grace and favour in his eyes.' Jovian was not angry at his words, nor did he answer him rudely, but gently and affably he answered him , saying: ' Let it not be, my brother, that you have such an idea of me . I would neither rob a Caesar of that which is his due , nor violate that to which he is rightly entitled . You are a wise man, examine what is necessary, and judge the truth . I have received the letters of your master, and I understand what is his will. To write a reply to him with regard to that which he has written me without the commandment of Caesar, is not seemly. It behoves us to know ourselves, that we are the subjects and not the rulers of their will. The rules and regulations of our government do not bid us act upon our own authority, neither to be inflamed with wrath to avenge, nor to give promises for pardon ; but, as much as we are able , we shall give our help that the will of your master be done ; we shall try to importune Caesar, and to give good counsels for the inhabitants of your country, so that the sword of the Romans shall not have power over them. It is enough for them that their property has been taken as a spoil. Nevertheless, I inform you , my friend , that your master has evil intentions against our realm . Many a time has he ravaged the frontiers of our realm without quarrel and without war, and shed much blood in our country. What I have repeated to you now, suffice it that its remembrance be before your eyes . If our sword cease from the inhabitants of your land by any device of yours , it is to you our thanks are due ; our mutual love has done that .' Arimhar Mopta was astonished at the excellent speech of Jovian, and he marvelled greatly at the wisdom of his patience . ' How is it ' , he thought , ' that he is not angry at the hard words which I have made him hear ? ' He praised and glorified his spirit, and said : ' Blessed , indeed , is the empire of the Romans ! What a general she has ! Joy upon joy will be given her the day she is adorned by your name, and shall be aggrandized by you . I also shall rejoice in that hour, and say to you : ' Take in victory the crown of your sovereignty.' Jovian laughed , and said : ' I would share in this fact , that I have been a source of advantage to myself, and at the same time I have been instrumental in being of service H2 to him by bringing about peace between these two strong governments . ' Jovian, for this utterance , gained the favour and love of Arimhar , and he loved him as himself. He confided in him ; he revealed to him all the secrets of the kingdom of Persia, that Sapor had sent presents to distant lands to invite and equip foreign troops to help in the war. He urged Jovian to declare war soon , in order that the war should be prepared before the campaign of the Assyrians shall be in full force , and be too much for them . He stirred him up , and said : ' I have revealed to you the truth as it is, that Sapor, having sent and invited them , has sought the aid in the war of a multitude of barbarous armies from distant and remote lands . They have not yet made a move to leave their country, but now while you have the opportunity, time has given you the power for conquest . Pay full attention to your affairs , strengthen yourself to get the upper hand in the land of Nimrod , and take the spoil of our land , but assuring and giving life to the souls of its inhabitants . As for me , I will give you a promise on oath . As much as I can , I will give aid secretly to bring about the success of the Romans . If, furthermore , the intention which you harbour be accomplished, I shall make through you the conquest which the generations after us shall admire . ' Jovian was in agreement with Mopta . The two entered into a covenant by oaths that, as much as they were able , they would bring to pass each other's intentions . Jovian gave a great banquet in honour of Arimhar and those who were with him. They ate and drank together, and amused themselves . After one day, when Mopta made up his mind to go to his country, Jovian gave him presents and offerings with a bountiful hand . They embraced and kissed each other, and he sent him in peace to his country. Jovian wrote, and informed Julian in effect what had been written to him by Sapor, and what had been said to him by Mopta, as though wishing to outwardly incite him to war, but in reality to withdraw him a little from his senseless hankering after the cult of idol-worship, which had such an attraction for him . With dark expressions to terrify him, he wrote to him : 'As the end cannot be delayed or hindered by the evil announcement that had been made to him, namely, that he shall go down and pay the price of his wickedness in the land of the Chaldeans, &c .' When the tyrant read the letters sent to him by his general, and understood from them what care and activity Sapor was displaying to assemble a great army to help him in the war, Julian got into a great ferment . He left all other concerns, and began to apply himself and be anxious for his war. He sent for Aatis , his neighbour and relative, and confided to him the management of the city. He, himself, was ready with a great army to go to the countries of the East, and sent letters to Antioch of Syria , to Arsac who held the place of Jovian, to prepare provisions and all things necessary and requisite for the forces that were with him. When the chief priests living at Tiberias learnt that Julian was moving to come to Syria , they rejoiced greatly. and were in high spirits . They thought out among themselves in what way they might prove agreeable to the impudent one, and they took counsel one with the other, and gave gold to clever artificers . They smelted for the tyrant a crown which was suitable for his pagan worship . The seven idols to which he rendered most adoration were engraven on the crown which they had melted down for the fool . They took the writ of confession from the members of their people, and offerings from the best of the land. They came up, and received the fool as they did in Tarsus of Cilicia, clad in white garments , and playing music (the pipe). They rendered him the due services of confession as to God . The accursed one , however, did not pay attention to all this adulation ; but when he learnt that they were circumcisers , he turned his face from them in rage . He sent them from his presence until he had investigated whether they were in agreement with his pagan worship ; for he well knew that it was to one God that they falsely rendered service . They departed from him in great distress , with sorrowful faces , and bowed heads. The Jews who inhabited the same city received them and gave them lodging. They argued with them severely , saying : ' What need was there for your doing this ? Persecution or renunciation is already roused against all our people . The disputation regarding the worship of idols had once ceased hence from us ; you have awakened it by your hands over all our nation . Now he has given up caring for the Nazarenes , and he concerns himself with the circumcisers . What shall we say to you , O leaders of Israel ? If it happens that this pagan forces you to adore idols , and all the multitude of Jacob follow you, you will be the cause of scandal to all the house of Israel. Now know and see what you are doing .' The chief priests answered them : ' We possess zeal for the Temple which lies in ruins , for our city which is waste, and for our people which is dispersed and scattered . Necessity compelled us to do this thing to help the whole body. If it happens that he does you harm, you have not the right to judge us, because we know not what are the secrets , nor are the things of the future revealed to us. Now cease from this course, pray to God to open a door to our petitions, so that our object may come to a head . Should it happen to us that we have to carry out the will of the king at his request, this condition of things did not begin with us . The like has already been in the time of our ancestors , out of fear of the heathen kings who arose in Israel . When our fathers worshipped the true God, they also sacrificed to strange gods , and offered libations with their supplications. Even the renowned Solomon , a sea of wisdom, who dedicated the House to the name of the Lord, to whom the Lord appeared twice, when the zeal of his wives won him over, and he was captivated by the love of their desire , served his God truly, and also did the will of his wives ; at their demand he sacrificed , and put incense on the altar of their gods . Why cite the many proofs from the Scriptures ? Even our father Jacob, head of the tribes of Israel, burnt under the terebinth the strange gods that were found in the camp of his children . And if these who were the ancestors and chiefs of the tribes were not blamed for it, nor were considered as sinning, all the more justification for us feeble ones , who are called upon and forced to sacrifice ! What does it matter, for Adonai sees what is in the hearts ? It is because of zeal for the Temple in ruins that this has come about . Let us leave to time, my children , what is its own ; let us do the will of the king, and let us listen to his commands ; for perhaps at our prayer he may build and renew our Temple which is in ruins , and he will repeople the wastes and ruins of our city.' With these vague and empty words , the wretched priests stilled off from them the cry of the children of their people. It was in connexion with these words that Julian wished to try the circumcised ones in the matter of the food of the Gentiles, to see if they would agree to his pagan views. He summoned Eucarpis, his chamberlain, and said to him : 'Go and prepare for the Hebrews a dinner where they inhabit, and put before them all the food which their law forbids them, that they may eat and drink before you.' This man did according to the word of his master , and prepared the dinner for the Hebrews. He prepared and put before them the foods, concerning which the Lord commanded them by the hand of Moses , that they should not eat of them, nor make the least use of them. These vile priests treated lightly the commandments of the Law and its ceremonies ; they ate and drank. They did not oppose the will of the impure one. When Julian learnt that the circumcisers had indulged in the food of the Gentiles, and transgressed against the tradition of their elders , he went further, and requested them to take part in the service of demons and the worship of idols . He sent for Eucarpis the second time. He said to him: ' Go, then, and examine the views of these foul fellows ; see if they will fulfil our wish, and sacrifice to the gods which our royal personage worships . Bring us quickly the answer.' Eucarpis did as he was commanded , and went a second time to the chief priests of the Jews . He spoke to them accommodating words , saying : ' Trust me, O Jews , friends ofour government, you have indeed found grace and mercy in the eyes of the king, in that you have agreed to our will , and have partaken of the foods . There is but one thing that you lack, by the discharge of which you will become the cherished members of our kingdom . ' The chiefs of the priests said to him : ' All that your fearful rule shall command us we will do , only let us find mercy in the eyes of your government .' Eucarpis said : ' Our one word to you , O Jews ! is this : If you will worship the gods which our kingdom adores , all that you ask for you shall receive , and all that you claim shall be granted ; you will be called the children of our kingdom, and you shall share all the good things which we have . ' The chief priests said to him : ' Listen to the truth from your servants. While we were yet in our land, we were informed as to the will of your puissance. Had we not made up our minds to be obedient to your will, we should not have had the audacity to show ourselves before the exalted rule of your power. Now, we beg of you , the confidant of the governing power, to bring our request before the king, that he may rejoice in us, that the presents which we feeble ones offer may be received in mercy, and that the crown, which our abject assembly has thought fit for the royal personage , may by your grace be considered worthy of the head of Your Divinity.' Eucarpis brought the words of their request before the king. He rejoiced greatly at their insensate words . He was thinking within himself to make them pagans before the crowds of the city ; and publicly and before all the people they were to sacrifice to idols , and to offer incense and perfumes on their altars . Julian commanded that on the morrow a suitable throne be erected for him in the midst of the city, beside the altar which had been built for his idols . The madman mounted , and sat upon the platform , and all the city was assembled there together, even those fraternities of neighbouring places. Not a few people were assembled there . The tyrant commanded to come before him the priests of the Jews in the vestments of their priesthood , with their censers carried in their hands , the same with regard to the rest of the Levites of their people. The tyrant ordered that each one should appear before him in the regulation form of his service, so that all the world might then see that it is the priesthood of the Hebrews that thought it right to offer sacrifices and offerings to the priesthood of idol-worship . The ministers of wickedness did what was commanded them ; in the garb of their priesthood and in the ministering regulation forms , they made the circumcised come to the king's service . They, in fear and trembling , fell on their faces , and prostrated themselves before him. That accursed one , however, out of the haughtiness of his pride and the height of his disdain, left them a long time prostrate on their faces . Then he commanded them to rise, and when they had risen, he spoke to them with harshness , as though to throw his fear and trembling on all their cult . He lifted up his voice , and said to them threateningly : "You, O rebels , tell me what is this false doctrine which you deliver to the world, that your books preach but one God , while a host of gods are robbed by you of their worship ? What is your confidence that thus the fear of my power is not set before your eyes ? Now I am going to lay it on your head and, with your discipline, you will learn what is the power of my kingdom . ' Those priests of sin were in great fear. They could not summon courage to reply to the questions , but they put their faces to the ground , and kept silence in their fear. Julian said : ' You have not the courage to reply in the least to our questions put to you, O rebels and men of evil lives ; even in this very thing you show your conduct .' The chief priests answered him : 'We pray your mighty sovereignty and the exalted crown of Your Divinity , possessed of the power of the world, to prolong to us a little longer the force of your word, so that we may recover ourselves with your permission , regaining strength to reply .' Julian said : ' It is permitted to you to have respite in answering what we have asked of you.' The chief priests answered : ' O , our master and king, we have books and writings in which one God has been written and preached about , and the customs which our fathers have handed down to us, we have kept . If anything new should light upon us in consequence of your researches , owing to the divine wisdom within you , we might be displeased about it, but joyfully and without hesitation , we shall do your sovereign will ; for we are not Nazarenes to oppose the will of Your Divinity. From time to time the crown has been conferred by us upon your royal Highness .' Julian said : 'It is very difficult for me to believe that there is truth in your lying words ; for if you had been serving our government, as you say, you would have acted according to our government, as your ancestors did in their days with regard to the actions of their kings ; as on all the high mountains and under all the thick trees they sacrificed and placed incense to the gods . To-day you have said before me : 'The rules that our fathers have handed down to us we keep .' How do you imitate their actions , and keep their customs ? If, in reality , you held to the habits of their conduct, you would have offered your sons and your daughters as sacrifices to the gods , as your parents did in Horeb. Now it is clear that your penitence is not of the heart, but assumed and a fraud.' The chief priests said to him : 'Let not the king say these words unto his servants , for more than fresh water to the soul of him that thirsteth, has our people been thirsting for the revelation of your kingdom ; and as the dawn of the morning, which rolls out from the misty clouds of darkness , joy has risen on us this day on which we have received the announcement of your leadership . This has removed distress from our hearts, and our souls leap for joy and are delighted . We have no greater joy than this. The heaven and the earth and all that they contain are our witnesses. Your Divinity can learn the truth of these things from the document of the confession prepared by our people, wretched and persecuted , and presented with the crown of Your high and exalted Divinity .' With these plausible words composed of crafty expressions , these deceitful children of the crucifixion succeeded in redeeming the severity of the words of the tyrant . He entered into their flattering address , and was pleased with their offerings ; he received from them the writs of their confession and the counterfeit crown which they had had manufactured for him. The wicked one exchanged words with them, and spoke with them pleasantly as to men of his own family, saying : ' By the crown which you have offered publicly, we have learnt your secret views , how you are drawn by love and attachment to the gods ; for I am struck with the superb chasing of the sacred figures of the hidden gods on the crown that you have taken the trouble to offer me. We owe you thanks for your forethought, for you have been active and taken practical steps to please our will in matters which our royal personage has thought out. It is not in vain or for nought that you have done that , for I have decided to do you good. In order that through us all the nations shall call you blessed , and that you shall celebrate more and more your true faith in the gods , in the sight of these crowds who have come to witness your procedure, take this incense and these perfumes from my hands, and offer them on the altar of the gods . Your sacrifices and offerings which were offered by your hands have been accepted ; the words which you have spoken with regard to us will prevail .' The feeble priests of the Jews approached with those who were with them, received perfumes and incense from the hands of the defiled one , and burnt them on the altars of the demons . Their hands offered pagan sacrifices to false idols . When they had finished presenting sacrifices and offerings , they approached and adored the madman, and requested of him that the writ of their confession should be read in the ears of all the people who were assembled to see them. The tyrant commanded that their will be done. The purport of their letter of confession was this : "To the adorable name dear to the gods , and precious to men, praised in the universe , immortal nature , defender of the Faith, providence that has no end, high, beautiful , powerful, praised , mighty, most high God personified , Julian, king for ever ! Our city is waste , our Temple fallen, our people dispersed and scattered with the priests of our people ; adoration and confession we have offered to the elevated power of your exalted divinity. We acknowledge in our written documents that with fear and trembling we have dared to write this feeble confession , which is not worthy to reach the elevated height of your grandeur . Who among the children of men is worthy of confessing your grace , O Sustainer of the world ? You shine like the sun in the universe, for you have taken upon yourself the weight of the griefs and the pains of oppression from which it suffered and sickened in the days of the kings before you ; it has become healed and strong through you, and it rejoices and leaps for joy. Who among the kings has given peace to the world like you ? Thanks to the God of Heaven and earth, that He gave to the world the repose of your reign and the peace of your administration . All mouths do not suffice to give thanks for your mercy, for it has spread compassion on all equally and without invidious distinction . And more than all, your graciousness has manifested itself mightily over our people in public, for after more than nine hundred years the Kingdom of David has shone forth in you , and at your hands the headship of the Israelites has been confirmed. You are the king of Jacob, and the leader of Israel. Our people has been resting upon the hope of your branches , and looking for your salvation , according to the revelation from heaven which came to our ancestors at the beginning. Behold , at your hands has our redemption this day shone over us , and our heart has become strong ; our horn is lifted up ; our mouths have opened over our enemies , and our heel has trodden on the necks of the proud, who have always protected themselves under the will of their sovereign. Behold, to-day, jealous of the justice which is yours , their horn has been lowered , and their spirit cast down . They lay snares like foxes in secret places . As for us, we, in your established reign, have open faces , our voices are high, and we enjoy favour and mercy in the eyes of all peoples , their benediction bedecking us . The gods of heaven and earth give life and health to your chieftainship, that the years of your reign may be prolonged at the head of our people, that by our writings we may become worthy of the worship of Your Divinity face to face , adoring you in person, and successfully receiving the countenance of Your Royal Highness ! ' After this letter was read in the ears of all the people , the chief priests and those who were with them, to the number of two hundred men , approached and threw themselves before the tyrant, and said to him : 'We beseech the power of your benevolence, now that we have accomplished your royal will, and we have offered sacrifices and burnt-offerings of reconciliation to the gods that die not , that your benign eyes may be over our city which was despoiled of its children, over our Temple which was laid in ruins, and over our people which is dispersed and scattered among all the nations. '

That accursed and execrable viper, with expert craftiness, threw out to them feelers (questionings ) , saying : ' Even if this were not a matter of your piety, from this time forward how dare we neglect and cease from the duty of protecting you, although you do not ask it of us ? Our eyes are upon you at all times for good ; but because matters are pressing , and follow closely upon one another , beseech and ask the gods to give us help in the war which we have on hand, that we may be powerful, and gain the victory over all our enemies , and that we may return to our realm in peace and victory. All that you have asked of us , our will shall grant you ten times over .' The chief priests said to him and those who were with them : 'Now, lord king, permit us to open the foundations of our Temple , until Your Divinity return with victory.' Julian permitted them to lay bare what remained of their Temple , that there may be accomplished concerning it that which our Lord had said : ' Stone shall not remain upon stone in it,' and that further prophecy which says : ' Open, open until the foundations thereof.' What shall we say concerning the wrongdoing of this wretched one , for as soon as he had well finished with these questionings regarding his pagan will, he dismissed them from before him ? They returned to their country in shame, and hid their faces in disgrace. As regards those things that happened and were executed among the Jews when they put forth their hand to lay bare the foundations of their Temple, I shall do well to insert in our history what has been noted by another writer, and I shall write them as they occurred in their sequence . The cursed tyrant, having dismissed the circumcised , made up his mind to go to Syria . He was in a ferment , and excited to go and begin his war in the land of the Chaldeans . When Antioch heard the news of his arrival , she rejoiced and was glad ; she was delighted and entranced with joy. Her streets were adorned with brilliant cloths of all colours , for long had the people of Antioch looked forward for that which was wrought by the hands of Julian . The folly of his idols had secretly seized upon the rabid ones ever since the days of Constantine , the Christian . They were afraid to disclose themselves because of the faith of the Christian king . But when they had the opportunity , their madness asserted itself, their paganism rose within them . In all the streets and squares of Antioch they arranged altars for the idols ; even in passing through the city , two great altars were placed one on one side and one on the other on the two sides of the gate by which Julian had determined to enter the city ; and there were present also the priests of the idol Dione . These also prepared incense of the first quality, mixed with other rich perfumes. He himself selected the names of the demons which they should scatter over his royal garments and purple robes , when he would enter the gates of their city . There would have been no necessity for me to touch upon the madness and folly of the people of Antioch , if it were not that the history of the righteous is mixed up with the actions of those unruly ones ; the explanation of the folly of the one class being that they do harm to themselves , while the upright are a source of profit to themselves . That we should not rob the just of their triumph by reason of the doings of the corrupt, we have been compelled out of propriety to write of one as well as of the other, so that when the conquest of the righteous be read, the shame of the corrupt be proclaimed . Thus we put in the order of our words the history of the madman , that in all the renowned and distinguished cities through which this loathsome fellow shall pass , he may receive blame and condemnation in contrast to the success of the upright . When he arrived at Antioch of Syria , all the people of the town ran wild and went mad ; men and women, children with old men, young men and young women, and all the dregs which the city contained . They started their shameful dance, men with women, for the city had gone mad ; wickedness had seized upon them secretly ; the vile met those who were vile like themselves , so that the males had lost their senses, and ran riot with the females . They were so mixed up that they were not far from committing shameful acts in front of the corrupt one . When his eyes had had their fill of looking at this foul behaviour, he moved his hand to them as though to quiet them somewhat. When they were calmer, he spoke to them , and said : ' Now I have learnt the reality of things , and I truthfully believe that you are the children of the divine secret mystery, the dear children of our kingdom, inasmuch as you promised us your help and encouragement when far off, and asserted the adoration of the gods . Now, also , when we are near and face to face, your thoughtfulness has shown us that you have seen to it that your dear wives and modest daughters have come to welcome our arrival . As for you, it is in our royal heart to do you kindness , and to render services to you, and even to your children and children's children for many generations to come . ' The madman did not know that his end was mocking him, that in four months the fool would not be , and his promises would be null and void , and his memory would be blotted out. Julian said to them further : 'I much admire the faith of your city, that it did not take its origin among the lowborn alone as in the other cities ; but faith in the gods was soon among all the children of your city, among the men and the women, the aged and the children , and extended beyond all our expectations . When I saw this , I gave thanks and uttered praise, and I loved you in my mind , and blessed your city in being so much attached by love to the gods. Rightly and justly did those of the house of Diocletian call it in their books " the residence of the gods ", as it exists through them, is supported by them , and united to them. I have also read of the conquests of these mighty kings , and have found in their works that your city received much kindness from them, since you applied yourselves to the adoration of the gods. We also, in imitation of these , are grateful to your city in many things. When the gods give us a little rest, and we be free from the war which is cast upon us, I shall remember your city ; I shall never forget it ; my eyes will continually be over it for good . It will receive kindness and encouragement. The royal throne shall never depart from it . I will build and fortify its walls. I will renew and strengthen its towers . I will embellish it and adorn it . I will make it like a beauteous bride , so that all the cities of our realm may become jealous of it . I will shower gifts upon its inhabitants for many years. I will rejoice in her, and she will delight in me all our days . '

When these senseless words were heard from the tyrant , the crowds of the city lifted up their voices in praise of him, and blaspheming expressions , strange to his name, were sent to him by the crowd. There was one of the chiefs with him , called Elpidis ( while in his employment he was named otherwise) ; he was a Christian, but concealed his identity on account of his service . When he witnessed the folly and madness of the Antiocheans, uttering words of blasphemy as though they were praising a god , he was sorely troubled and stirred ; he furtively confirmed himself with the sign of the Cross , and was sad . This did not escape the notice of the tyrant ; it distressed him, and he was very displeased, and because he did not wish sorrow to be mingled with the joy of the city, he overlooked it , and did not call him to account at that moment ; but he laid it up in his heart. When he approached the gate of the city, the Jews and the pagans began to cry out to him, saying : ' Our city has been a widow until to -day ; and the Nazarenes have become strong upon it, and have robbed it . Fifty years her eyes are consumed in looking for your salvation, O king of our city ! Bring out the pillage from the treasury of the church ; for our city has been impoverished , while the church has grown rich, the treasures of the church having gone to the treasury . Let the treasures of the church be examined by the hands of Theodorita its flattering treasurer, Theodorita the priest, who was placed over the treasures of the church, soon to be closed , Theodorita, who slighted your power and set foot in the church, let him be delivered up to the law-court .' Julian summoned his uncle and placed in his hands the treasures of the Church of Antioch, so that he might take account of them from Theodorita, the priest , who had been appointed chief of his house at that time. The priests , stained in sin, were assembled in the city within the gate. They were ready to receive the madman with branches of trees and crowns of flowers , and that when he entered the gate of the city they might burn on their altars incense and perfume. The high priest of the Lord of the gods was standing on the great step of the altar. He held in his hand a vessel of gold filled with the defiled oil of the demons . When Julian entered by the gate of the city, this priest sprinkled the oil on the purple robe of the king and on his horse. Of the oil that was sprinkled some went on to the border of the garment of Elpidius , the minister. He was very angry and annoyed with this priest, and looked at him with a threatening eye. In the ardour of his faith he alighted from his horse, trampled upon his stomach, and put an end to his life ; he fell in front of the horse of Julian , and died. The tyrant murmured and roared like a lion ready to devour, and shouting said : ' O you cheat, you have revealed your fraud, and shown, as regards yourself, that you are a Christian . It is for me now to bring you to reason .' Elpidius answered him: ' O madman , from what time did I ever throw in my lot with your nonsense , or consent to your paganism ? Or, on which occasion did my soul take hold of your defilement , and befoul itself with your pollution ? Or, when have I agreed with your wicked will, your madness that has seized upon you ? When , tell me , from the time that I went with you to the temple of idols , have I adored demons like you have done ? My soul is innocent of your wickedness , and my feelings proof against your impurity. The vessel of my inner self is quit of the disturbed dregs of your paganism . I am not spurned by my soul, nor by my mind. Nothing whatsoever has attracted me of the dross of your infidelity, but I have kept my faith within me chaste and pure . I watched it and guarded it , that it might not be harmed or stained by anything. For I am not faithless like you, who have renounced the faith of the church in which you were reared . You have fallen from your covenant , and cast yourself upon the falsity of demons. From this time you cannot be victorious in your wars ; the victory is taken from you, and the sword of the Lord is against you in the war with Assyria , since you have turned from the fear of Him , and you have belied His covenant . Justice will give you no rest until it has exacted punishment for that which you have done to the servants of God . Make up your mind as much as you like for victory, it will be wrested from you because of your guilt . And what if the demons deceived you, and gave you hopes of victory, understand, O fool , demons do not keep faith with men. They play you tricks in the astuteness of their stratagems. When they have tossed you about and , raising you , put you on the summit of glory, they will turn you topsyturvy and bring you down with a crash. They will stand opposite, and laugh at your downfall .'

Julian was astounded at the words of Elpidius ; he became like a madman, and wanted to kill him. When he saw that the mind of this man was of good cheer and joyous , and that his face showed delight at the contest for his faith, he passed it over, and did not kill him ; but he had him put in irons, and thrown into the prison-house until the day would come to give him a hearing . The tyrant, having passed some days in Antioch , received letters from Jovian which caused him alarm. He sent for Arsaces, who held the place of Jovian , charged him as regards all that was needed and serviceable for him and the armies with him when he was settled upon the frontiers . He commanded him further concerning Elpidius , that if he repented of his madness, and turned from his error , and came to himself, he should be granted pardon , and his capital offence allowed to rest ; if, however, he persisted in his erroneous views , his desire was not to be granted him . ' As for this stupid race of Christians , death by the sword, which is terrifying to all the world , ordered as it is to be used for the guilty, to them it is like a gift of life . Why, then, fulfil his desire if he persists in his opinions, as we have said ? Let the sentence of exile be passed on him for ever ! ' And so for the other Christians who were taken in the same city, before the day on which the tyrant had ordered such punishment for them , when he was very much upset about his campaign. He gave gifts to the inhabitants of the city ; he bore the burden of his armies' expenses for service . He urged them on in his expedition , as he had made up his mind to go to Edessa . He sent foremen before him to prepare for him before his arrival, for he had determined to pass some days in Edessa, in order to dismiss the commanders and leaders who were there , as they had been denounced as persons tyrannical and rebellious . They profess publicly that they are Christians , and are not afraid of the terrifying power of the government . Their accuser was named Humnas the Jew who, at that time , had been appointed Chief of the Synagogue of the Jews who inhabited Edessa . This was their accusation , that these stretched forth their hands against the persons who agreed with the paganism of the wicked, and that they drove them away and put them out of their city. Ceaselessly, they slandered them vigorously before him, saying : ' If you do not send these persons away from Edessa , all the multitude of the city will go after them, and they will be strangers to the cult of the gods . They will not allow the people of the city to go after the will of your government .'

Julian, from that day onward , threatened the chiefs of Edessa. • He wished to sentence them to death . It is really a matter of admiration and wonderment, this faith of the people of Edessa , for they one and all delivered their persons over unto death , so that the unclean one might not step, with their consent, inside the gate of their city. When the ambassadors of the wretch arrived , the people of Edessa did not permit them to enter the city, for in view of this affair, they had stationed guards against them outside the walls of the city that these might not steal a march on them . When the chiefs of the city learnt of the arrival of the messengers of the impure one , they went to meet them at the entrances of the city, all the people of the city accompanying them. Aristota, chief of the city, asked them and said : ' O men, what do you wish, why are you come ? Who has sent you ? You appear to be strangers to our city, for I see the " fringes " of paganism upon the borders of your garments ! ' One of them named Callimachus stamped his foot, and motioned with his head , and said : ' I am much distressed for the fall of this city. As you show this bad inclination , it will not be long before its destruction takes place . As to what you ask, Julian, who holds the power of the world as king for ever, has sent us to his city to announce his arrival with solemn joy and great gladness , that all your people may go out to meet him and welcome him. Now, see what reply you can give to this, that we may be able to write and inform the king of your wish.' Aristota said to them : ' You are much deceived and have gone wrong, O men , for you are come to Edessa , into a Christian city which is foreign to the folly of your paganism . What do you want here ? What , indeed , of joy has appeared to you therein that you wish to announce to the joy of your master , for its walls are decked in sackcloth , and your eyes see it . Its streets and its porches are draped in black like a house of sorrowing . There is great mourning in Edessa and a bitter grief , that such a one in place of such is sitting on the throne of the Roman world ; in the place of Constantine the Christian there is Julian the infidel, the wicked in the place of the just, pagan instead of Christian , the madman in the place of the stable and wise. And what shall we say concerning your aberration, inasmuch as you have neglected to go to Haran, the mother of paganism , the paganism which is fitting to the paganism of the tyrant , stamped as she is with his stupefaction, and looking forward to his arrival. She longs for his appearance . As for a prince, a son of her misleading idol-worship, she has adorned her streets, and beautified the temples of her graven images . From day to day she looks for him and waits for him ; so that when he comes to accomplish her desire , he may do the will of her paganism ; lift her head which was abased ; and raise the horn which was cast down in the time of the kings before him, -that city stupefied , and mother of the fallen . Go and announce to her the arrival of your master . There is rejoicing at his announcement , and delight at his arrival, and self- glorification at his paganism. Depart from our unhappy city which laments the paganism of the foolish king ; she is afflicted at his error, and wears black as for a dead man . Who would not call him dead who is dead in life ; who has deprived the living God of his glory, and given it to dead idols and unclean spirits ? Who would not insult him, and mock at his paganism ? Go then, and say to the fool who has sent you : 'What is the meaning of your visit to Edessa, the city of Christians , which does not accord with your paganism , nor does she boast of your error ? She does not open her gates before you, and she gains all. She does not even know you as king ; for the king of Edessa is Christ, and He dwells within her fortresses , and a stranger has no power over her. If Edessa did not open her gates to the powerful kings of Assyria when these stupid ones returned to it three times , and were unable to prevail over it,-to you , vile stranger and servant of idols, shall Edessa open to you her gates, and shall she receive you, O fool? Heaven forbid that the blessed streets be trodden by your unclean feet , they having trodden on the threshold of the pagan temples ! But, as much as you wish, draw against us your sword, and stretch against us your bow ; your war will not tire us out ; for we have some one standing at our head who will fight for us.' Callimachus and those who were with him were astonished at the words of Aristota , and felt they were made small at his clamour. Callimachus answered the upright man , and said threateningly : 'Tell me then, O wretch, mad dog who barks at his master, have these words been spoken to us of your own accord (lit. on your own face ) , or on behalf of all the people of your city ? We must know this, in what strain to write and inform the king of your evil will . ' Then all the inhabitants of the city rose and cried out, saying : ' All that has been spoken by the righteous ones of our city has been said by the mouth of us all . There is not one among us who is a stranger to these words except the Jews, enemies of Christ , whom we are soon going to efface from our city. Our city is Christ's . Constantine , when he died , confided it to Him . Here is the testamentary writing in the treasury of our church . It was Constantine, the Christian , who was the cause of this letter being sent to the Edessenians . One of the distinguished persons of Edessa was Maanu, who at this time stood at the king's gate . When he saw the bishops of the places , and they rightly requested of him that he should bless their country and their cities , he also threw in his prayer with the king on behalf of Edessa , and besought him, saying : "My lord the king, remember your Christian town . Make it worthy of the benediction of your mouth in this moment of your departure . My lord , Your Divinity knows well. that the faith which your parents have bequeathed to it is taken hold of as an anchor in the life of the inhabitants of our town. And this has not escaped the notice of your Highness, namely, that if our sins call down upon us the circumstance, that the pagan and wicked Julian reign over our realm after your death, many sufferings will have to be endured by our city on behalf of its faith . On this account , we beg of you with confidence this day to give your royal and just blessing to your Christian city, that it may rise before us like a buckler of salvation , and save it from all things that harm . " The wise king , though the pains of death were tormenting him, did not neglect the prayer of the believer, but answered him pleasantly, and said : "My son, it is to the advantage of your city, what you have asked . In whatever way your blessed will be advanced by our feeble blessing, once uttered by the holy mouth and the pure lips of the father, your city will have received the divine benediction which shall never end . " That wise man did not cease from praying , but more and more he persisted in his prayer, and without constraint asked the king, and said : " If your royalty will accomplish in our case that which our Lord has spoken in His sermon , that he who has, unto him shall be given and increased , then increase upon us, O my lord King, blessing upon our other blessing, that we may be perfected in our faith , that Edessa may have the blessing of its master as a rampart, and the blessings of your royalty as a second wall ; that, with the spiritual arms which you have caused it to obtain, it may make war with the erring and overcome them, that paganism may receive woe through the verity of the Faith ." When Constantine saw the faith and the constancy of Maanu , he filled his mouth with benedictions and blessed Edessa, and he put his blessings in writing, and sent them to the Edessenians . The Edessenians held this letter in great regard, until it was taken from them by the machinations of heretical device .' When this letter was read in the ears of the envoys of Julian the king, the Edessenians raised their voices in praise of the Christian kings who were dead, and whose souls were at rest , and praised their faith , saying : ' Truly, O Christian kings , did the sovereignty of the house of Constantine befit you, for in the zeal of your faith you have torn up the roots of sin, and have removed the growth of paganism ; you have converted all the nations to the adoration of Christ . The crown and leadership are your adornment, builders of churches and sustainers of orthodoxy, in all the corners of the world ! You died in peace on the bed of your life, and have left us in the hands of the famished wolf who is thirsting for our blood . O ye who died in Christ, pray for our town, even though ye be dead ; you who are living in God ; your dead are loved by Him, and precious in His sight . O Constantine, the believer, pray for the churches whose doors are broken in, and whose towers are waste ! O sustainer of Christianity, cause the fear of thee to come with thy prayer in worship, for see now the mists of paganism in all places are spread over it . O just shepherd , help your people by your prayer; the destructive wolf has bared his teeth against it to rend it ! Heaven forbid that the Just Shepherd who died for it withdraw His hand from it , and leave it in the hands of wolves ; may He rather speedily work salvation for it , that His sword may avenge itself on His persecutors ! '

These and many other similar expressions having been uttered by the crowds of Edessa , Callimachus wrote a report of them , and sent them to Julian while he was in Antioch of Syria. When Julian read these communications which were sent to him, he murmured and appeared crazy ; for quite a time he was stupefied . He refrained from demanding satisfaction from them until the end of the war with Assyria, when he would be free from his conflicts . He wrote and sent to Callimachus as follows : ' Pass by this city and uproot it not ; have no words with it until I have the time to do with it that which I have in mind . As for the proud and haughty city, which knoweth not its kings , nor subjects itself to its governors, and has no other God to acknowledge but the God of the Nazarenes , what is the medicine to be applied to a wound so despairing , if it be not destruction prior to its being renewed ? There is no other way ; I must destroy it, and then turn and build it up again ; for it is not in the existence of the gods that it flourishes, but it boasts in the cross of the Nazarene. For a long time she has proudly boasted in Him, and relies on Him to save it from my hands, while I , for a long time, have taught it and counselled it , saying : "What is the help to be gained from its God, and what, on the other hand, is the discipline of my gods ?" But, until its time has passed , leave this foolish city, go and prepare for us Haran , the agreeable city of the gods, which longs to see us , and rejoices at our arrival, and takes delight in our festivals .'

He wrote also to the Edessenians that which it is unnecessary for me to put down in this book, as they were but indignities and threats , and a repetition of wickedness and blasphemy. But what was it that necessitated my repeating the wickedness and the blasphemy ofthe abominable fellow, who , of his own accord, turned into the country of his enemies ? The answer to that is, that what the Edessenians wrote to him, propriety compelled me to insert as a memorial in our history for the consolation of the believer and for the encouragement of the sincere, in praise of her blessed children who persisted and kept firm in their uprightness , and had no fear of the wrath and power of the king ; but they were much amazed at his error, and were saddened at his madness . When the letters were read in the Circus before their eyes, and they heard his blasphemy and his insult to God, they also insulted him as much as they could by their treatment of his letter, and they mocked at his paganism. They immersed the letters of the fool in the filth of the closets of their city in the presence of Didorita who had brought them, and had no fear of the threats of the tyrant, nor were they terrified at his menaces , but as men firm in their faith, they relied upon the help of their God . They sent him in reply a Roland for an Oliver (lit. the equals of his own letters ), and a double dose of contempt by sending by the hands of Didorita this message : 'Our whole city is much astonished at you , that you have become so mad and lost your senses . The eye of your intellect has become blind . You do not understand that you have nothing in common with us ; that we do not agree with your paganism, nor are we so abject as to go after your error ; nor do we associate ourselves with the polluted sacrifices of the altars of your idols , because you do not know God. So we also do not know that you are king. What then do you want in our city ? We are astounded and staggered at your tyranny, as the king of our city dwells within its walls , He to whose crown all the crowns of the universe are subservient. You strange son of the tempest, you step out to enter into His city ! Heaven forfend that in blessed Edessa , mother of believers , a stranger should supersede her own king of Truth . She grew great and powerful through Him ; and His blessing has become for her a wall which cannot be surmounted . After the success and the glory which He has caused to reside within her, should she renounce Him for the fool ? If she had not known Him, would she have believed in Him , and acknowledged His humility ? Would she have offered Him prayer and supplication by the mouth of her children , so that He dwelt in her and inhabited her, to be king over her for ever, if she had not seen Him and taken on her His sovereignty, and received the weight of His kingdom in glory a long time ago ? How excellent is our city to-day. She sees Him continually with the clear eye of faith , and takes Him unto herself, and clothes herself with Him in her baptism , loving His holy body , and kissing Him with her lips , and extolling Him with her hands ! She wraps Him round her eyes ; she is marked with His name and with His image ; she adores His humiliation, and confesses His sufferings , for He saved her by His death, and set her at liberty by His being murdered. He promised her victory, when He blessed her and put her above all the conflicts and wars of her enemies . With all these benefits which He has bestowed upon her, shall she renounce Him , do you think, O man, dead in life ? If you think so , you are much deceived that the Edessenians will listen to your paganism, or that they will clothe themselves in white and go out to rejoice you, or that Edessa will open her gates to you in longing for you, or that she will decorate her streets and porches in your honour. Do not seek this from Edessa. The day of your arrival is not for her a day of rejoicing. It is a day of pain and grief for her. Her walls are clothed in sackcloth , lamenting your folly ; the streets are draped in black, for she has prepared mourning for you in your lifetime , while for us you have for long been dead . The day on which mourning for you shall depart from her, and the days of weeping for you be over, on which in exchange for the black which she has been wearing for you she shall don white, she will clap her hands and rejoice over you ; she will stamp with her foot and lift up her voice , saying : " Yes , yes , our eye has seen it ; you will mock at your pagan enchantments , and then, O madman, you will say, Where is your glory ? The high one is fallen, and the lofty thrown down ; the proud , covered with haughtiness , has been reduced to nothingness , is effaced , and is no longer ! " And not only our city shall rejoice at you in these things, but heaven and earth and all that they contain will mock at your paganism at that hour, and cry " Vae ! " at your vaunting, that you died in your sins . If you determine to hear face to face that which has been written to you by us , come to our city ; but, as a man who comes for his honour, turn aside and pass from us, now that you have thrown off and cast behind you all your insults . ' This was a sample of the written message which the Edessenians sent to Julian by the hands of Didorita , his envoy, when he was in the city Barua . When he read the letters which were sent , he was greatly incensed against Didorita ; he threw him into prison, and thought to make him undergo innumerable tortures . Because he threw in his lot with the wishes of the Edessenians, and consented to become the bearer of their letter, he wished to appease his anger and to satisfy his wrath upon those who were willing to bring him such writings . When the tyrant saw that he was going to be mocked , he determined to lay Edessa in ruins before the war. He fumed and said : ' May the gods do so to me and more also, if I pass Edessa without destroying it , for they have seen fit to spurn our sovereign power. When the gods have given me rest, and I am free from my combats , I will rebuild it , and renew it , and I will place in it a people who know the will of the gods , and who agree with the will of my kingdom .'

There was in the city of Haleb a man named Euclinus who , in his place , was distinguished before the king. He was in great favour with the tyrant, because he presented Julian with many gifts and offerings not a few when he was at Antioch . When he returned to his own city, he redoubled his offerings ; and the table of the king was piled with his gifts during the days that Julian spent in the city of Haleb. This man of whom we speak was a Christian , but was afraid to make himself known as such on account of the edict of the king. When he heard of the calamity that had been decided from before the king against Edessa , he was saddened in himself, and sorely distressed for the city. He sought an occasion to petition the king on its behalf. When the day arrived on which Julian wished to leave Ḥaleb, he sent for Euclinus , and said to him : ' Since you have found mercy and favour in the eyes of our sovereignty in that you have paid me respect, for the present, until such time when we have the opportunity to repay you kindness for kindness , whatsoever your soul desires, and whatsoever conforms to your will , ask it of us , and it shall be given to you, for I have made up my mind to return service for service .' When Euclinus heard this from the foolish one , he fell on his face, and prostrating himself, said : ' Because your servant has truly found grace in the eyes of your sovereignty, and Your Divinity has inclined itself to ask this of your servant, I say, my lord king, what can there be from a servant that is dear to his lord ? All that thy servant hath is yours ; and of that which is yours you have received but what is yours. Now, since your servant has received the grace to be worthy of serving Your Divinity, and I myself am astonished at the rank I have reached through your mercy, that face to face I may speak to Your Divinity-' Julian broke in : 'I swear by the fate of the gods , and by the life of my reign, that all that your soul desires I will do for you ; all that you shall ask of me I will carry out . ' It was then that this prudent man seized the opportunity for his prayer, and so with fear and trembling, he petitioned the tyrant on behalf of Edessa , in the following words : " Trembling, I beseech your might, lest your anger be roused at my request, I who am small and stupid; my request is too great for me .' Julian said to him : 'What is your request , tell me ? ' Euclinus said to him : 'My request and my prayer is this-the peace of your kingdom and the repose of your realm, mercy to the guilty, and pardon to the foolish , and time for repentance to Edessa ; for, my lord , abundant mercy is fitting for Your Highness . ' The accursed tyrant was much incensed ; he was indignant at the request of Euclinus ; but as he loved him, he did not wish to harm him ; he only intended to frighten him by his words, and said ; ' This one thing astonishes me most, that your requests are not prudent, and you know not what you are asking. It is not fitting that we should be enraged at this ; for your request will in no way advance you. Only you have desired that I should not avenge myself on those who have spoken ill of me. Your request, in fact, justifies insult to my sovereign power.' When Euclinus heard this from the tyrant , he was in great fear. He fell on his face to the earth , and kept silence. The colour of his face was changed through fright. He was like a man dead. When the tyrant saw that Euclinus was trembling with fear, he was very sorry for him. He calmed him , and spoke to him kindly, and said : ' I know well that men, decent and wise , are troubled when the sword, or some agitation, or misfortune lights upon one of the cities which are in the realm of their kings . Their mind is very much exercised by these. But it is surely right that he who is sorry for the downfall or for the destruction of a country or a city, should seek the cause of its downfall . Accordingly, had you known what written message the Edessenians have sent me, you would be more urged than ourselves to take vengeance for the insult offered to us , and the slanders uttered against our kingdom . Then again, you are a man who , not having acquiesced in the excesses of their impudence, could well pray for their pardon. You have not troubled about this point . Now, if they repent and turn from their mad idea of revolution , they will have gained their lives by the force of the claim made in your prayer on their behalf. If they still remain in their revolutionary ideas, they will gain by their rebellion desolation for their city and destruction for themselves .' When Euclinus heard this from the tyrant, he fell down and prostrating himself, said : ' Now that my lord has encouraged his servant, and my soul has returned unto me, and I am become strong , I crave of your terrible power permission to answer for my prayer. It is not that I am afflicted at the destruction of the miserable city, but because of your sovereignty that it be not insulted . It is a great shame for you and a great sorrow to your government , that after having placed the troops on the frontier, and a call has been made for the sword against Assyria with a report of their down grade, that we should make them return again from the East to the West without their having experienced the counsels of war ; the Assyrians would mock at us , and heap upon us babbling words ; they would say that before Persia had received its full strength, the Romans began to turn their backs on the East . And yet another thing, my lord the king, we shall be accounted cowards in the eyes of the Persians , if we Romans began to subdue the city which is part and parcel of the possessions of our kingdom . Common sense will be discounted by the fact that we left our lord in the lurch in the war in which we were engaged, and troubled ourselves about a miserable city which the camp-followers of our kingdom could take vengeance upon whenever your command had given them permission . Now, my lord the king , leave these wretches to their miserable lives until your Highness return victorious from the war with Persia. If they turn, and their repentance is pleasing in the eyes of Your Divinity, well and good ; but if not , their blood will be upon their own heads . You and your kingdom will be free from their blood." Julian said : ' All this would be accounted superfluous to me, had I not in mind that I have sworn to your request ; for I do not wish for their repentance , as I was demanding their destruction . Well then, I leave the matter for a time , so that I may now do as you say.' Euclinus prostrated himself, and went out from the After all this Julian turned his face presence of the king . towards Ḥaran , hiding in his heart his hatred of the Edessenians. He awaited the opportunity because of his promise on oath. He removed from Ḥaleb , he and the forces that were with him . He moved on and went rapidly. He did not hesitate in his marches, nor did he tarry in any of the stations to pass the night and restore himself until he reached Haran. When the Jews who inhabited Edessa heard that Julian had crossed the Euphrates on his way to the East, they left their city by stealth, two and two or three and three together. They were afraid to go out together openly before all the people of the city , for the Christians had been very threatening towards them , and sought opportunity against them. When they assembled at the meeting-place , the Chief of the Synagogue of the Jews and those who accompanied him to go to meet the madman , they numbered about seven hundred persons . They dressed in their best, clothing themselves in white ; they took pipes to play before him when he would receive them . They went and welcomed him far off from their city. When he saw them, he was sure from the strains of their music that they were of the circumcised . He asked them from what country they were. When he learnt that they were from Edessa , he snorted and blasphemed, and rebuked them in anger. He sent them from his presence, saying: ' If you were not rebels like the children of the ruined city, you would not have dwelt in a city which has no god, and have been strangers to the cults of the gods , as they are. It is clear now that you are associates of their error, and your customs are allied to theirs . Is it not as I say ? Where is the goodwill that you have shown us even in one thing? Is it that you could not build a little altar in the house in which to worship Zeus , the great god , from whom flows help to humankind ? Or is it perhaps that we have not the power to render you some service in return , if your love were true to us ? This is just what is said , that you are children sharing the opinion of those rebels who hate their own lives, and in whose case it will not be long before their memorial will be effaced , and their names and cult erased from the surface of the earth . ' The Chief of the Synagogue of the Jews and those who were with him kept silent and were quiet, until they were allowed to answer for their demand . When they were allowed to speak, the Chief of the Synagogue began to address the tyrant : ' We pray your puissant power, let us not be considered in the eyes of Your Divinity like those of erroneous belief who have no god ; we do not worship like them the Nazarene whom their fathers crucified . We have done nothing towards your government hostile or worthy of death . We have incurred the hatred of our city because we have accepted the will of your government. May the gods make known to Your Majesty what an oppressive and lowly life we suffer at the hands of these violaters of the will of Your Divinity ! We are insulted and outraged . Our Synagogues are seized , and our homes are plundered ; the houses of our assemblies are destroyed . Our heads are bruised . There is no one up to the present that judges our cause, and demands satisfaction for us . If we do not build an altar to the gods, it is because they seek occasions against us how to deprive and drain us of our goods ; and they enrich themselves with our possessions , as often as it comes to their ears that our people are about to build an altar in their temerity. Like dragons they draw their breath against us, wishing to swallow us up alive. We, therefore, pray the mighty power of your justice, that our people may not be considered before the eyes of your government as rebels ; for revolution has never been seen among our people , neither among us , nor among our ancestors . We subject ourselves to our kings , and listen to our governors . And though our Law allowed us to worship one God only, yet our ancestors served a multitude of gods ; they behaved according to the will of their kings and their governors ; and we also in the same manner agree with the will of Your Divinity. We will serve the gods which your sovereign power shall authorize for us ; let but the idea which your Highness has of us because of the Edessenians be nullified , and let Your Divinity credit us that we have never been associated with the wickedness of the Edessenians , those with whom our sins have caused us to dwell. If Zion, city of Truth, had not been foolish , Edessa would not have been called our city , as our brothers also are not considered entitled in the world to have a residence of their own, but they are still foreigners ; for our city was one in rectitude , but envy destroyed it, and jealousy laid it waste . When the gods shall be favourable to you, and you conquer in your wars , and you overpower your enemies , remember Zion laid waste , her Temple fallen, and her children scattered ; and raise then the head of her who is humiliated . As for the high one that is fallen, and she that had received grace who has been cast down, let her spirit grow through you, so that your years may be prolonged on account of her affliction, and your power rule over the world .'’ Julian said to them : ' I encouraged and consoled your brothers who came to me to Tarsus of Cilicia , and petitioned me for the land of your ancestors and also for the Temple of their worship ; and they have received promises which tempered their sorrowings, and comforted their minds . The same thing be granted unto you, as you request of me. We renew the same promises to strengthen and to exhort you to obedience , namely, that if it be the will of the gods to give us victory in the war with Assyria, when we return in peace unto our realm, I shall build and fortify your city. It will be called after the name of our realm , and I shall renew the house of your worship which is in ruins . I shall increase its latter glory, so that it may be more than the former glory which it had in the days of Solomon, who built it and adorned it .' When the deceitful ones heard this, they immediately threw themselves before him , worshipped him, and said : "Thanks be to the gods who have given us mercy before your sovereign rule . May long life be granted you in view of our persecution ! ' Julian said to them : ' To-day you have shown that you have good feeling towards us . We have gathered it from the fruits of your lips, with what consummate love , with-

out guile, you are affected towards our gods who do good to those who serve them. We will also act with you in compassion and mercy, for we are certain that you were not associated with the rebellion and the error of those worthy of destruction, those on whom I am ready to avenge myself for all the wickednesses and the evil business which have been wrought by them until this day.' The Chief of the Synagogue addressed him in the name of those who were with him: ' My lord the king, is it not for some time that we have learnt of your justice , of the wickednesses which have been wrought in this city in rebellion against its kings , and to what extent the audacity of its inhabitants has become powerful against the gods and against your rule ? Certainly and surely it is true of us that we are not in accord with their wickedness . Bearing marks of insult and outrage , robbed and plundered as we are, and our heads bruised , do not these suffice as witnesses before your throne , that they are never at peace with us ? May the gods disclose to your compassion what a lowly, oppressive , and down-trodden life we support with them ! If we had not gone out by a method of trickery from the city, two by two, three by three together, we would not have dared in a party to go out openly to welcome and to do obeisance to Your Divinity, as the crowds in our city would have torn us to pieces as dogs . The gods know what will result from this condition of things , for it is a city rash and cruel, which has no fear of the gods , nor shame for kings .' They made strong complaints against their city to the tyrant, and they fired him with zeal ; they incited him as regards the destruction and ruin of their citadel, promising that they could deliver up the southern gate of their city. But he did not pay attention to their words, and dismissed them with these remarks : ' Go now, this is not the time for vengeance upon them. Be tranquil , until we have the opportunity to come and visit your city, as its affairs demand .' In this manner he dismissed them from before him, for the madman was very excited to proceed on his way . He took the road which led to Haran. He turned from Edessa and did not go to it ; but looking at it from opposite, he shook his head , rebuked it, and taking a deep breath, said : ' O city, may your fate soon wipe you out ! May you be a heap upon your inhabitants, for instead of ascribing, as you should have done , majesty to the gods, you have impudently robbed them of their adoration, having rendered the worship due to them to a man crucified ! You have become mad through the fervour of His love . From this time I will destroy you . The Cross , which you have professed , cannot save you.' The mad and abominable pig did not know that the sword of the Cross , which he was blaspheming , was sharpened for him in view of the day of his immolation and sacrifice .

How Haran received its mad king it is superfluous to insert in our history. Those who know cannot be deceived as to the elation and the mad babble, the vague praises , the empty glory, with which the fools acclaimed him , deceived like themselves . We will, therefore , desist from telling what unjustifiable thing happened at Ḥaran , and rightly praise the faith of the Edessenians ; for they kept their feet in rectitude , threw contumely upon the fool, and staggered him. But when they learnt of the sortie of the Jews, and by what methods they had left their city, they were sorely troubled . They strove with the chiefs of their city severely, disputing with them , and saying : ' The Jews that live in our city are allowed there as a thorn to our stronghold . If it happens that we are at war, they will be traitors. Come , let us deal wisely with them before the war supervenes upon us. ' The commanders and the governors of the city knew that the tyrant was near them, and staying in the place ; but as he was very threatening towards them, only waiting for the excuse to proceed against them, they were afraid to put forth their hand against those who went out to welcome the impure one, and so they calmed the people with these words : ' My brothers, this is not the time to avenge ourselves on the crucifiers ; but it is the time to work as much as necessary , and to pray to God that He K2 may cause the evil days to pass from off His people, that He may humble the high- born of the crucifiers , which is become powerful , and that He may bring down their proud spirit. Now, my brothers , you know that the tyrant is staying in our country, and seeks an occasion to destroy us . Let us be long- suffering for a time, and as wise men let us bring off our war.' There were at Edessa some Romans, nearly a thousand eight hundred persons, who were distinguished before the king. They had worked in the legion of the tyrant. Being decent folk and Christians, their soul was disgusted at the paganism of the impure one. They were longing for an occasion to come to their faith , in order that they might be saved by it, and that they might detach themselves from being under the hands of the wicked one . When they heard of Edessa, and the story was confirmed by several persons, that in all the cities of the East, she alone stood firm in her rectitude , that she resisted and kept to her faith with one soul and one spirit, all complete without fear, but publicly and openly professed Christ and worshipped Him, and that even if she were to be ruined she would not give her hand to paganism ; when they thus found the occasion which they desired , they revolted from under the hand of the tyrant . They came and dwelt at Edessa ; they heartened all the city, and encouraged its inhabitants, saying that they would not hold out their hands to paganism. They promised that they would put themselves on the walls of the city, and be in the forefront of the war for them. They gave their promise and took oaths , that they would not betray one another, these believers . When they saw that the governors of the city were afraid to lay their hands on the enemies of the Cross because the tyrant was near at hand , they were one and all seized with zeal for God . Before the Jews had entered the fortress , these clothed themselves in their equipment, and placed themselves within the gate of the city and outside its walls. They inflicted a great defeat, so that he who saved himself from the sword outside , was entrapped by the sword that was within the city. In this manner the sword of these persons exterminated all the Jews who went to welcome the tyrant . They then returned and lifted their hands towards the Lord, together with their women and children, and gave their goods and fortunes for a prey ; while those of their Jewish comrades who had not gone to meet the tyrant, they expelled from Edessa and made them scarce . They cleansed the city of Judaism and of paganism . They did not leave in Edessa a single soul that did not worship the Cross. When the report of this affair reached the ears of the tyrant, he was astounded and clothed in anger, and burning with rage . He sent to the Edessenians , saying : 'For the present I have, in my mercy, given you time for repentance , while you, by your proud bearing , have frittered away the time for your repentance . Until there be time to take vengeance on you for your evil-doings and for the base actions which you have committed , surrender to me the officers who have revolted against me, lest forces surround your city, and when you ask for succour, no one will help you . ' The Edessenians sent to him, saying : ' Henceforth you have no officers in our fortress . If you will investigate , not one soul who bears the stamp of your paganism will be found in it. Whatever few officers you have had here , if Your Highness has any interest in them, send carts to carry away their corpses , that the dogs of our country may not be satiated with them. Know, O madman, that if you let loose upon our city the forces of all the kings in the world , we shall not agree to your error , nor shall we associate ourselves with your wickedness ; for we one and all belong to Christ, and in truth and reality we work for Him. He will place Himself at our head and fight for us, and we are confident that He will give us victory. From this time forward we have no care or concern for your war.' When the doomed accursed one heard the words which the Edessenians had sent to him , he was agitated with the idea of laying the fortress in ruins before the war with Assyria was in swing . Raising his voice, he exclaimed : 'How many times , indeed , have I wished to heal the cruel wound of this miserable city by the soothing medicine of my tenderness , and she would not be healed ! Her wound has become graver by her medicines . Now I will bind up her wound, and will put upon her a severe medicine , which will suit her plague well to cleanse it from corruption, and to bring it to health . ' He wrote letters and sent them to Jovian, his general . When he read the letters of the wretch, and realized what the fool had in mind to do to the Christian city , he groaned within himself, this prudent man, and was in great distress for Edessa . He was overwhelmed with pain, and took hold of his garments , and tore them . He sent for Apornatis, chief of his house , and gave him instructions, saying : ' Because orders have come from the king concerning some secret business which is between us, and I had determined to carry it out a long time since , peradventure no one will miss me to-day.' He took the wretched fellow's letters , and went outside the camp . He came to the place where they were assembled for prayer, the Archbishop Valgash and all the assembly of the church of Nisibis ; for they had had a little respite owing to the claim made on their behalf by the discreet man, and through his influence they had fixed up a cross and an altar in a vaulted cavern which was in that place , and in this they exercised the Sacraments of the Holy Church all the time that Jovian was at Nisibis . When he came to the place where they were gathered , Valgash, the Bishop , and those who were with him were surprised at his appearance , for they descried that he was sorrowful and pained . Sadness was stamped on his face. Valgash desired to ascertain the cause of his sadness . But Jovian, with tears springing forth , read the papers before their eyes . Julian had written to him in this manner : ' Since the end of the Edessenians is laughing at them , and has brought them to rebellion , without repentance for their evil -doings , let them have the opportunity of that fate which we have considered for them . Now this is our will ; that as in the case of rebellious persons , who in their temerity deprive themselves of the penitence of their souls , and in their ill will cut off the hope of their life , to such from this day forward there is no repentance ; but as their actions deserve , they shall receive capital punishment for their wickedness . Therefore , as a just and worthy man, one appointed to serve our will, hasten for our safety , and let not your sword delay the vengeance to be enacted for our insult, lest the clamours of our royal state pursue you . Now, having said this, you dare not appear in our sight unless the news of the destruction and ruin of Edessa has reached me . See , I have made known to you our will ! ' When these words of the tyrant were read before Valgash, the Bishop of Nisibis , and before all the believers of his churches, they all raised their voices and wept ; they were clothed in pain . They were in great fear for their brethren in Christ as , by the zeal of their faith, the wrath of the tyrant was inflamed against them. They decreed a fast for the hard trial of Edessa , and engaged in constant prayer and supplication for their brethren, children of the blessed Edessa . Jovian, as a prudent man, opened the letters of the unjust one before the altar of the Lord, like Ezekiel . He put on sackcloth and ashes , and threw himself down before the altar of the Lord. Because of his grief he asked for death for himself, and said : ' I pray Thee, Lord , gather in the days of Thy servant , and release him quickly from life ; for I am become too weak by reason of misfortunes and sighs , which seize upon me at every hour out of zeal for Thy Church and for Thy Christian people , which takes your blood and your body. How can the soul of Thy servant stand such pains ? I am miserable and weak . I have not the strength to fight against error, if Thy mercies do not come to my aid ; and mine will be the guilt ; but I pray Thy abundant mercies , do with Thy servant one of the two , either take my life from me and dismiss me , that I may rest with my fathers , or else take off from us the heavy yoke of the wicked which has placed us under the lordship of paganism , and enfeebles us . He has no rest for us, but he has another idea with us ; this madman has ranged his wars against us . At all times he fights against our faith. If Thy power will be with ours , we have hope to overcome ; for what is our power, and what can we feeble ones do without Thy support , Lord ? Nothing. But we rely upon the promises of Thy benediction . The convent of Edessa exposed itself against the tyrant , and was not afraid ; for the promise which Thou didst make unto it was firm and sure ; namely , that never shall the enemy have dominion over it . O True One, that dost not lie , preserve peace with the blessed Edessa , as Thou hast promised . Wither up from her the force of the wicked . Extinguish from off her the force of his anger, so that he may not harm her. Scatter the dew of Thy compassion over the fortress which has kept Thy faith ; and protect under the wing of Thy mercies its inhabitants that take hold on Thy Cross . Lord, remember this city for her perfect faith. Before knowing Thee , she believed in Thee ; before seeing Thee in the body, she confessed Thy humiliation . She mocked at and forsook the worship of graven images ; yea, and fitly rendered her adoration to Thy lowly Cross . Who will not glorify the faith of Edessa ? Even to -day, when the tempests are raised against her she has not relaxed from the truth , nor fallen away from her belief ; but in the hope of Thy promises , as though with stones , she stoned the tyrant with insults , as though with darts she wounded him with words of reproach . Who can help suffering with this Christian city, for see, the tyrant is threatening to destroy it ? No , Lord , I pray Thee, do not grant the wicked one his desire ; let not his design be brought to a head . O Lord , turn his evil design from the citadel that worships Thee ; that the saved may give Thee thanks , those saved by the aid of Thy benediction. I pray Thee , O Hope and Expectation of my soul, hear the prayer of Thy sinful servant , and receive the supplication of the guilty one which I have cried unto Thee in the grief of my heart and the suffering of my soul . I have not been ashamed on account of my guilt to stand at Thy door ; Thy consoling echo , which encourages sinners to stand at Thy gate, has given me a hand, it has drawn me and led me to Thy door ; in my sufferings, Lord , my iniquities have escaped me ; and in the sickness of my soul, even when I was a sinner and guilty, Thou didst come before my eyes, and with deceitful countenance I knocked at Thy door of compassion. I pray Thee, O Good One, whose hand is abundant to give , do not send me away empty from Thy door, but as the reward of my tears grant peace to Thy Church, repose to Thy children, and salvation to the citadel of the Christians that hath taken refuge in Thee . And as for me, O Lord, who have suffered at the humiliation of Thy Church, deign that I may look upon its exaltation . When my eyes shall see the salvation of Thy Church , then bid me join the dead, that I may sleep in peace with the bones of my ancestors .'

Having finished his prayer, Jovian rose up, and threw off the dust which he had cast upon himself, saluted the altar, and consoled with his words the venerable assembly of the church of Nisibis ; he lowered his head for the benediction of the Bishop Valgash . He returned to the camp, steeped in thought and sorrow for Edessa , and concerned and anxious regarding the letter which had been sent to him . He did not know what to do . To do the will of the tyrant touching the destruction of the Christian fortress was most sorrowful for him ; and so it was to be against the will of the guilty one . Annoyance upon annoyance stole upon him on his account and on their behalf. While this man of truth was occupied with these concerns , sadness came and filled his heart. His mind was charged with the weight of woe, and he threatened to become ill through grief. God saw the exhaustion and the sufferings of this discreet man . He wished to console him for his grief. And as in those days there was no false vision , He lulled him to rest, and he slept. In the slumber of his bed, a dream lighted upon him , and consoled him . It appeared to him in a parable : one of those forty blessed ones who were martyred in the ice in the time of Maximinian the wicked , whose name was Marcur. This saint , before he came to martyrdom, had a zeal for the right thing, and had threatened the pagans considerably. He was full of wrath and anger against them. Jovian , in his allegorical dream, had seen the saint enter into his presence in the equipment of his service . He was holding in his hand a bow and three arrows , and seemed pleased to meet him, and smiled . He asked him, as some one who did not know : 'Why this sadness of heart, my brother, and this sorrow in your mind, for I see that you are sad and very desolate ? ' Jovian answered him in the dream, and said to him : ' Is there no necessity, my brother, for my being sad, and for my bewailing the abasement of our people , seeing the laughter and mockery at our assemblies , our churches closed, their altars destroyed , their priests persecuted, and the crown of our glory now fallen ? In all this which has happened to us , you ask as some one who does not know, you, the only one who remained on the territory of the Romans , who had not acquiesced in these things . ' The blessed Marcur said to him in the vision : 'Well said ; you are right to be disquieted for the church, your mother in truth , and your faith is the more blessed in this . But from this time take off your mourning, loosen from off you your sadness , your prayer to the elder Julian has in this moment passed before God . He has sent me to reveal and to explain to you the true meaning of the business . For twelve weeks of days from our time there will be a lull in the abasement of your people , so that the perfect ones may be probed, and the debts of the wicked paid off, the more so that vengeance may be exacted by the people from the Assyrians , who fix their victory according to the stars of the Constellation . After these twelve weeks of days , salvation will shine over the Church through the hands of those to who it has been given by the Lord . The time of the wicked one is long overdue, his measure is full , the cup of his iniquities is overflowing. These are the twelve weeks which have been determined by the Most High, and have been given that he may live in the world ; and after these weeks , with one of these three arrows in my hands, I am commanded to sacrifice this foul pig who , by his filthy paganism , thought to obscure the sacrament of our services . With these two arrows which remain in my hand , I will avenge myself on the two chiefs of the wretch, Bagrus and Euganinus , who used to urge him on to destroy the churches, and persecute the Christians . With the death of the wicked ones peace shall reign in the church ; and no one will stir up disturbance against it for a long time . And you, Jovian, who have sought of the Lord your death, in its time it shall be granted to you according to the will of the Lord, when the time is passed, and you reach the measure of your days . On the bed of repose shall your departure take place, and in peace you shall be gathered unto your fathers . As to Edessa, have no concern about it. The faith of the citadel has passed before God ; she has received the victory which is assured ; for the plan of the wicked one was justly futile , so that he did not war against the blessed fortress of God. All on the left side, who have the ear of the tyrant, are ever and as with one voice prophesying to him- his soldiers , diviners and charmers- not to attack the city to which victory has been awarded from above , lest he meet with misfortune together with his officers . By the hands of those in error the truth mocks at him, and turns his evil intention from off the fortress . That you may believe in the words which have been spoken to you in the dream, you will at the dawn of the morning receive the written message of the wicked one, telling that the sentence upon Edessa has passed over. Now that I have promised you all this , my brother, rest quiet. I am sent also to the elder Julian , to whom I have to announce this.' When Jovian awoke from his sleep, he was somewhat comforted because of the vision which he had seen . He arose from his mattress-bed , and threw himself before God in prayer until the dawn of the morning . Having finished his morning prayer, he received at that very hour the letter of the wicked one , which cancelled his first letters , since the Lord had willed it that he should not take vengeance on the guilty ' until our war is ended . We were anxious to write to your Excellence that the forces should not move from the frontier until such time as our warfare shall be put in order, and our camps join together .' When Jovian read the written message of the wicked one, he rejoiced greatly ; he confessed and praised God , that He had caused that to come to pass which had been told him in his dream . He sent to inform Valgash, the Bishop, and those who were with him, on the change of idea on the part of the tyrant , that it had been done by the Lord. When the illustrious priest and those who were with him learnt this news, the marvels which the Lord had done , they selected free-will offerings , and held a service , and offered sacrifice for the salvation of the Christian fortress . There were many things which occurred in our time in the days of Julian the impious , if we were but able to narrate them in our history ; it seems impossible to include them all in our story. Even though our words sufficed for an account of such magnitude , our words would scarcely reach at anything like completeness. These few details out of many which we have written down for the discreet lovers of knowledge indicate, that from the smaller things men can learn the greater , what a mighty war fell to the lot of the Church in the days of Julian , the wicked . This evil one , after he had become rabid and gone mad through the worship of demons in the city of agonized ones , when his soul had had enough of the unclean sacrifices which he offered to the idols , he called for the priests of sin, and entrusted to their hands all the treasures of the church of Haran , and the vessels of its holy service , that they should be employed for the use of idol-worship . He ordained that the gifts and the provisions of the church should go to defray the expenses of the idols . The sacred books he burnt in fire , and the chaste assembly of the Church of Ḥaran he restored to his paganism . As for the honourable ones among them who resisted and remained constant to the truth, and publicly revealed their faith , after he had tormented them and made them suffer, and they nevertheless did not assent to his paganism, he had them thrown into the ditch of divination ; and many other things the madman did in the city of pagans which made God angry. Having accomplished there all his evil designs , he wished to leave it. Others again were in trouble on account of his departure from them , as at that time they could bring to light their paganism. They accompanied him like a dead person. When he was leaving their city, they cried after him , and said : ' O Light and Sun of our city , why have your hours with us come to a close ? They run towards the setting. Stay longer in our midst with your light, lest the shadows of Christianity incline over us, and the black night of the faith of the Nazarene seize upon us, as aforetime . Hardly have our gods granted us our requests, having invited you and made you come to the fortress ; why then like a bird of passage do you hasten to be off ? Either remain with us that we may have enough of your company , or lead us whither you are going. After fiftyfour years our rejoicing has been revived by you ; but you have not remained in our city one whole day. See now, the strength of our joy is in train to go with you. While we should look to you and hope for you , O splendour and glory of our fortress , and you are still within the gates of our city, our eyes await your return. Now that you are departing, may the gods of our city go with you ! May the great god Sin accompany you in your wars, and bring you back to us speedily with victory ! ' The fool turned towards them, and delivered himself freely, saying : ' Because I see that you are attached to us with the ties of friendship, your will is as our will suspended . We hope, with the aid of the gods who are with us, that we may very soon return to you with success . What we owe this day to your city, we shall recompense doubly with pleasure to your city more than to all the other cities of our realm . It devolves upon us to confer benefits .' He threw gifts according to the power of a king. He started on the road of his march. In going out of the gate of the city, he lowered his head on horseback to bow to the image of Sin, which was sculptured over the gate of the fortress ; the crown fell from his head , and he was in great straits . He inquired of the wise men who were with him, and the party who shared in his erroneous belief : ' What does this divine which by chance happened to us to-day at the beginning of our road on the march ? ' These , in their craftiness, thrust off from themselves the demand of the tyrant, and sent him to the priests , saying : ' They are ever in the mystery of the divinity ; they know the hidden things of the gods , and they are in the knowledge of their secrets . They are credited with the revelation and the meaning of that which Your Highness has demanded of us .' The base and vile one sent to seek for the priests , unfortunate ones of Haran , and he demanded at their hands , saying : 'What does that divine which affects us to-day at the gates of your city ? Is it not foolery , this

sign which is not in the regulations ? ' The priests answered him : ' O our lord the king, why allow your heart to be afflicted and your mind disquieted because of this ? That has happened to many kings before you , and they had no misfortune in their wars . Now also , do not be alarmed in your warlike undertakings , nor let your hands be relaxed from your conflict . The gods have determined the victory for you ; but , my lord and king, cleanse the camp of the Nazarenes. You have many Galileans with you, who are habited in the uniform of your officers publicly, but they serve the God of the Christians. Expel these from among you , so that they may not be an obstacle to you in your wars, and you be lost through their sins .' At that moment the herald came down upon the camp of the tyrant, and said : ' All that are of the Nazarenes , let them depart from our war, lest the sword overtake them. There returned from the army that was with Julian nearly twenty-two thousand men that were warriors . They made in a crowd for Edessa , and they were received therein with joy. When Julian learnt that they had gone to the city which had insulted him , he was very much upset. He repented that he had not massacred them ; and he mounted his horse, in wrath, to carry him thither. His horse stopped, and would not go . He pressed it very much to move on ; but it would not stir from the spot. Julian was enraged . He took hold of the bridle of his horse to make the obstinate thing move on . His horse put its mouth to his purple robe and tore it from end to end. It trembled under him, and fell down dead . Fear and terror seized all the soldiers, and their spirits were saddened on account of the war. The accursed one blasphemed, and said : ' Save yourself from me, Nazarene, save yourself from me , as our war of to-day is not fixed against you . Give me time to finish my war, then fight with me as much as you can. ' The impure one was enraged in himself. Madness had taken possession of him. He did not know what to do. He thought of killing all the magicians and the men of superstitious rites who were with him, because they could not, by their craft , reveal the meaning of the allegory which was expressed to him metaphorically, and he also thought of destroying the false priests by the sword, because they lied before him and spoke fables . When the order had been read for some time to go forth , Aplatus the sage took courage and passed before the tyrant, for he had great favour with him. He threw himself on his face at his feet , and implored him thus : ' I pray the fearful power of Your Divinity, that your anger be not excited against your servants . I will cast my prayer before thee, as follows : If you, my lord the king, who hold the books of the sciences of the universe, you appointed chief of the priests of all the world , and accredited with the keys of the treasures belonging to divine revelations , if the significance of that which was shown unto thee has been hidden from thee, what about us , poor simple ones , who possess some little out of much of the books of wisdom, is it justifiable that we die for this affair ? Heaven forbid that you in your compassion would do that ; but may your Highness command that we may be absolved from that sentence . We have heard it said that there is in the temple of Athena a young goddess , a virgin upon whom the spirit of prophecy rests . Let us send to ask her, perhaps the meaning will be revealed to her of that which has happened .' The accursed one did according to the word of Aplatus . He sent to fetch Dinosa from the house of the idols . The young woman was very beautiful and of goodly stature . When Julian saw her, he was surprised at her beauty , and astonished at her appearance ; he had thoughts about her. But she felt it within her, and he was detested in her eyes . He asked her through the help of Aplatus : ' What was this enchantment that was done to us in your country ? ' She fooled him by not answering him, but kept herself calm and quiet before him. Julian said to her through the medium of Aplatus : ' Do not think, O young woman, that it is for your beauty that you are called here ; it is because I have learnt that you possess the spirit of prophecy. It is our wish to learn from you what will be the end of our war.' Dinosa answered him : ' Let your eyes be directed to your war, as a king prepared to bear concern respecting it . The king who closes his eyes is slack, and frigid shame is portrayed upon him during his war, especially if it happen that he does not receive obedience . Then, O king, why do you examine by means of divination ? If you wish to resort to such superstition , you will not cross the frontier to the East , and you will not make war. Mighty kings , when they determine to enter upon a conflict, do not rely upon enchantments ; for if they did, they would be of no use for fighting . Those are of use in war, and war is their due, who are warlike kings , clothed in might, and who hourly face death , in order to wrest the conquest from their enemies, and to enlarge the frontiers of their realm. A tranquil habitation and a peaceful lodging is meet for timid kings who observe superstitions, and shrink from war. See, I have enlightened your eyes on both matters.' Julian said to her : ' O young woman, I have not asked you concerning this . I only wished to learn one thing from you, namely, if it is possible to say how our war will end and the result of our conflict . ' Dinosa said to him : " This is the result of your war : peace between the frontiers , reconciliation between the kingdoms ; for by you shall enmity and hatred among the powers be removed . The East and the West will be happy, and rejoice that they are at peace through you . Even though to-day they be gloomy on your arrival , yet on your departure they will be glad and shout for joy. The West will clap the hand with her sister, the East . That is the end of your war and the termination of your campaign . ' Julian was watching to learn the force of her answers and the signification of her pronouncement, but she kept silence after that ; she made no further answer to him. She returned to the house of idols , and he went on his way, downcast and preoccupied concerning that which Dinosa had said to him . When he had gone the distance of one day from Ḥaran , there came some Jews of those who lived in Nisibis, and slandered the Bishop Valgash and those who were with him , and also Jovian the general , saying : "The Christians have great favour in our fortress. They hold assemblies publicly. From a distance of three miles their co-religionists assemble near them, and they hold their misleading secret service . Many times have we approached the victorious and praiseworthy Jovian, your general , with reference to them; but our complaint against them was not received . ' They accused them of many things . The tyrant, however, did not receive their complaint against Jovian, but he was angry with them , and sent them from before him. He nevertheless wondered if that which was said to him against Jovian were true . He bided the time to obtain information as to their truth . Jovian had no suspicion whatever of that of which he was accused ; but when he learnt that Julian had left Haran, he sent and called in secret for Valgash , the Bishop , and said to him : "Thou knowest , O father, that the tyrant threatens our doctrine , and tale-bearers are numerous . If it be pleasing in thy eyes, send out words to the flock, and order them not to hold assemblies for the present, until the tyrant quits the fortress , so that no hurt may come to thy flock by reason of the assembly.' Valgash, the Bishop , said to him : ' Does your Eminence think that we are not suffering great anxiety on your account , fearing lest you may receive the reproach of the tyrant because of our assembly ? We shed tears of pain before God at all hours that your influence may not decline , and your power not be annulled ; for , as a pillar , you bear the weight of our persecution, and like a shield of salvation you take your stand in front of the Church of Christ in all countries .' Jovian said to him : ' Do not have any concern about me

in this matter. The tyrant cannot do me wrong. Should he even do me harm , I shall not be sorry ; it is all that I desire ; you, however, take heed to yourselves that you do not perish miserably. I have disclosed my inner self that I am anxious on your account ; for I have no solicitude concerning myself in this matter. ' Valgash, the Bishop , said to him : ' God has placed you at the head of His churches ; as for us, we shall not relax ; and if we are pressed , and die, it is no great thing in our eyes, for who can repay Christ for having died for us ? If it were possible , we should die many times for Him because He died for us , and thus make Him some return in exchange for His death ; however little, we should , according to our powers , associate ourselves with the sufferings of His crucifixion by our confession ; we should all be prepared to do this, and our assembly continuously, day by day, is directed thus , that our public assembly may be our best evidence of our faith . Oppression will not kill us ; all our flock have the same desire, all the fold which Christ has confided to our hands . If you examine , you will not find in it a single leper, nor one sick, nor one who is slack in faith ; for we, one and all , with one soul, one mind, and one belief, have set our minds upon tasting of the sufferings of the Cross of the Son of God by our Confession of Faith ; and we desire it and long for it . Therefore take not this trouble of ours upon you, so that you may not be involved in our dangers ; but receive the presentation of our prayer, and permit us to assemble as is our wont , that we may not be hindered in the service of God ; that which is conformable to the will of the Lord , and pleasant in His sight that we do , and would do .'

When Jovian saw the faith of Valgash and of those who were with him, he was astonished , and marvelled greatly at the firmness of their convictions . His feelings of pity boiled over, and his tears flowed ; he consoled them, and said : ' My children, since you are determined to die for the name of Christ , may He rise before you, and shield your souls beneath the wing of His compassion . ' He permitted them to assemble according to their custom , and he himself prepared to go to meet the tyrant with the multitude of his camps . He sent his heralds to all the frontiers of the Romans ; and assembled to himself all the forces which had come down to the frontiers . He went out , and received the madman with great pomp . He noticed that the tyrant's countenance was not towards him as aforetime ; anger was impressed upon his features . Jovian knew that they had slandered him . But even this did not prevent the believer from sending in secret to inform the Bishop Valgash and those who were with him that they should save themselves in face of what was passing, before the conflict caught them. These perfect Christians , when they learnt these things from Cresurus, the valet of Jovian, were not troubled, nor confused , nor did they change their places , but they remained tranquil and stayed with one another in unanimity, with one soul and one mind, taking the weight of service upon themselves . They worshipped God with all their might by song and praise ; and contrary to their custom , the voice of their service was heard clear and open, so that it might be the pretext leading to their Confession of Faith. When the tyrant entered into their city, the enemies of truth, the pagans and the Jews , bitterly slandered Valgash and those who were with him. They made a commotion , and said : ' Let now our words be trusted by you , my lord the king . See , on several mountains the sound of their service is heard, through the favour which your general has bestowed upon them. To what a point has their temerity reached when, face to face and publicly, they insult your sovereign power, by going out of their way to send forth the voice of their service , in order to show thereby that they are not placed under the jurisdiction of your rule.' Julian overlooked all this because of the many kinsmen ofJovian, the general, about a hundred men, and these had a force of something like seven thousand souls , who were distinguished and renowned . They were not under the jurisdiction of the tyrant . On that account the tyrant

suffered in himself and did not wish to harm Jovian, so that through him he might have no confusion in the war on the frontier. When the contention of the pagans and the Jews got too strong for him , and they said : ' Either purge this cult from our city, or permit us all to become Christians , ' the tyrant, to quell the noise of their tumult , gave his ring to his minister Panopolus , and said to him : ' Go quickly to the place where they are assembled , these deceived ones . If you find it to be as has been said about them , bind them in the caverns in which they are assembled, and shut them up by placing boulders on the entrances to the caverns and put upon them a seal with the signet of my ring. ' The man did as he was commanded by the king. Jovian was clothed in grief ; he mourned bitterly, and wept sadly, saying : ' Unhappy one, that I have become guilty of the innocent blood of the servants of God. I have been the cause , because I permitted them to hold assemblies .' He became very weak. The cursed tyrant , after he had gone to his chambers , came to himself. He considered in his mind that it would not be profitable to molest the farmer-soldiers that they should bear with him the weight of his war, in pursuance of the will of troublesome disturbers of the peace ; especially he thought of Jovian his general, that his hands might not be slackened from his war. He thought within himself by his methods of guile to smooth over the affair ; sent and had Jovian called , and said to him : ' Tell me then, son of Aronina , what are these reports which I hear concerning you in the streets of Nisibis ? What is this audacity that has overtaken you, that you have assumed the command of my kingdom , and have permitted the Nazarenes to hold assemblies ? I did not order it ; and this surprises me all the more . With what power, or with what authority, have you done so ? You do not tremble , nor have you any fear at the power of my rule. Perhaps it is because of your relatives who are with you , that you have acted in presumption , and have done this thing without consulting us. Now I am going to humble your conceit, and to cause the power of your pride to be lowered, in order that you, feeble creature, may know that you are under command, and that by the grace of our mercies you have been accredited with power. From now I will take away from you what is mine , and I will leave to you what is yours . It is because of your relations that we feel justified in letting you live .'

Jovian said : ' I have never boasted of the power with which I have been entrusted by Your Majesty, my lord the king ; my heart has never proudly exalted itself by reason of the leadership which you have confided into my hands ; nor have I in my life made it appear that I was chief. Your soldiers are my witnesses. I have conducted myself as one of them with them. Not having in a grasping way put myself higher than my comrades who are my inferiors , how was it possible for me to lift myself above you? Why should Your Majesty accept these lies against me ? I have never transgressed your commands ; you have never found any deceit in me . I have never done anything hostile , even though the Jews inflamed you against me. I owe you one thing, and the outcome must come from you .' Julian said to him : ' And what is this that you owe me ? I ought to know it.' Jovian said : 'You have long been thirsting for my life -blood . Shed it , my lord the king, and satisfy yourself.' Julian was angry, and said : ' O you worthy of death, abusing the grace of our sovereignty ! I, who have brought you from a low state to greatness , and named you chief in command after me over all my armies, I am thirsting for your blood, O unlucky fellow ! ' The tyrant ordered them to remove his official attire , and clothe him in lay costume ; and he deprived him of his power. Jovian went from his presence without concern or anxiety in his heart, except for Valgash and those who were with him. He passed all the night in prayer for their safety. God, who at all times accompanies His worshippers to help them, immediately sent consolation to the wise man ; and in consequence of his trial he increased his victory. A little while after Jovian had been dismissed from service, the tyrant received the letters which had been sent him by Arimhar, the great Mopta of Sapor, addressed to Jovian his general, concerning the conquest of the kingdom of the Romans ; and this because of the love and friendship which existed between the two. When he had left him for the frontiers , a marvellous vision appeared to Arimhar. In the tent of Jovian , while they were discussing secrets between them, he saw a right hand holding a crown over the head of Jovian, and he knew that the kingdom and government of the Romans would belong to him. He did not reveal to him the vision , but asked him with oaths what God he worshipped . When he learnt that he was a Christian, the veil of error rolled off from the heart of Arimhar ; and true penitence began to rise within him. When he returned to his country, he was taught in full the way of the Lord by the hands of Jacob, priest and chief of the convent, who dwelt in the town of Betlafet. He received from him secretly the sign of baptism ; he was made a partner in the divine sacraments of Christ . When Jovian learnt of the conversion and the penitence of this Mopta , he did not delay in writing to him a letter of consolation, which strengthened his mind, and confirmed his faith ; and with this letter he sent him another, one in which he urged him on to the conquest of the Romans , and in which he used this significant argument : ' My brother, the advent of the Son of God, in whom you have recently come to believe , revealed himself in the country of the Romans ; and from it He received the human nature in addition to His secret one . This has been inserted in the description of this kingdom ; and in the traditions of its generation it has been written. He paid the tribute that it might be known to prudent ones like yourself that, from this kingdom was the birth of the humanity of the Son of God, as that of a kingdom which reposes in the God in whom you believe . As much as you are able, my brother, help and bestir yourself for His victory, and pray for the peace of our kingdom more than for the kingdom in which you are, as she asks you to be her son and heir by adoption, when God, by your hands, shall give her the victory. You will be heralded as the son of our government , and you will be chief in it all your days .' After he wrote to him in detail, he wrote at the end of his letter : ' If, my brother, you have truly put on Christ, and you believe in Him with all your soul , examine your faith in the light of the guiltiness of Sapor, the enemy of our faith , and demand the death of this butcher of injustice, whose sword for thirty years has been drawn over us . It is even not yet satisfied with our blood . Yes , my brother, receive the charge for the love of Christ in whom you believe, and set snares of death for him who has mocked at our profession , worried our assembly, and dishonoured our sacrament. He annulled our service and burned our churches , and insulted the honourable name by which we were called . My brother, strike the head of this destructive wolf, who mutilated and cast down the innocent flock of Christ. I know well , my brother, that your wisdom can work that, and it will be easy for your mind, so that by the dispatch of this defiled one, you may reconcile and make peace between the two powerful governments . This is no small sacrifice that you will offer to God when you have done that, and the remembrance of the benefit will not pass from your thoughts . My brother, be firm in your spirit and immovable in your faith ; and the consolation of peace will be unto the churches in your days . ' When Arimhar read the letters of Jovian, he prepared and sent a reply to him. The bearer was taken by the sentinels of the Romans, and brought as a spy before Julian. When he was examined and questioned , and forced to reveal the truth, he avowed without fear, that he had been sent to Jovian with the letters of his master, 'that we might give a helping hand to secure the conquest of the Romans ' . When the madman learn what was the truth, he received Aspabor, the delegate of Arimhar, with the great solemnity due to him, recommended that he should be guarded with all dignity, until he would put Jovian at his ease , reinstate him in his post , and turn over to him his power . He replied to the letters which had come to him. This is the tenor of the writing sent by Arimhar : ' I received your letters , O my brother. My heart was enlarged and my mind rejoiced . The greeting in your letters has been to me like a precious gift ; for when I examined the series of your letters , I was much struck in admiration of the fidelity which you have for your king. I consider the kingdom of the Romans blessed in having you as their general ; and I have indeed marvelled exceedingly at the diligence with which you work for the success of the Romans . From hints contained in your letters I have gathered what is your desire . I hasten, brother, to write to you in kindness and as a lover of truth, of that which you have communicated to me in your letters. Do not be worried , and let not your mind be troubled, for our words are uttered in good faith to you. Before the campaign with Persia shall be settled , your kingdom will gain the reputation for triumph in your war, not through your power or your military strength, but owing to our inferiority and our strategic methods . Employ some trick with Sapor, the enemy of your government, that he may be delivered into your hands without war and without conflict, without noise or sound of trumpets which incite to the fight , without arrow-shooting bows, or sharpened sabres that gleam in the ranks , without mixed legions which destroy and are destroyed , and thus the war of the kingdoms will come to its end. The jealousy between countries will be removed , and the kingdoms will dwell in peace. You , my brother, as much as you are able , urge Caesar to declare hostilities long before the great war with Assyria exhausts itself and settles down. Do not , therefore , collect forces about you to reduce us to subjection , for there is no reason for us to make war with you. But rest assured , that after a little while you will not be able to stand a trial of arms , for the military resources of our realm are more powerful than yours ; but as far as you can, before our war comes to an end, snatch success and render your name triumphant, but preserve a strong spirit, and may your thoughts ever remember us for a blessing at all times !' When Julian read the letters of Arimhar, he gathered from them that Jovian had been staunch in the position which had been confided to him, seeing the activity and concern he had displayed to gain the victory for the tyrant . He regretted exceedingly that he had dismissed him from his service, and stripped him of his power. He was full of menace and wrath against the Jews who had slandered Jovian. He sent to take six of their principal men, those who had slandered Jovian , and crucified them on pieces of wood in front of his residence in the camp . He wrote tablets, and placed them above their crosses , with the words : ' He who dares to slander the cults which are in the realm of our government shall die in this manner.' And the remaining Jews who inhabited Nisibis he drove out and sent from their stronghold , giving their goods as a prey ; he pulled down their houses of assembly, and burnt their Synagogues . On that day he granted pardon to all the cults . They brought out Valgash , the Bishop , and those who were with him from the caverns where they were shut in, and threatened them not to hold like assemblies . They then bade them return to the same caverns where they were gathered ; and these they demolished until this day. Jovian, knowing that he was being traced by the tyrant, had hidden himself when disgrace overtook him , and no one had any suspicion of it except Saragdanus , chief of his tribe. Now when Julian sought him and could not find him , and they explored the camps of the armies and he was not there , he sent a demand to the children of his own tribe to find him wherever he was, and at his request to bring him forward. They defended themselves , and said : ' We do not know where he is .' Julian said to them : ' Had you been true and straight , and had you been faithful to us , it was your duty to have judged him for his transgression and, as his relations , to have approached me to pardon him. It was not for me to seek him at your hands , while you were not willing to do it. Now also , when I reclaim him from you, you ought to have concern for him . Bring him here that I may invest him with his authority.' Saragdanus said to him : ' What hostile or wicked thing has Jovian done in your kingdom that you have dismissed him from his post , and deprived him of his authority ? Or how could we call him to judgement, a man in whom no fault could be found in all his leadership , or how can a man be your general, whom you have degraded before your troops , and humiliated before the least in your kingdom ? Know then, my lord the king, your kingdom is the sufferer by it .' Julian said to him : ' I surely have power as king to make great and to make small ; or is it that I have not the ability to give him a power greater than his former power, and to render him more potent than he was , so that he will cast fear and trembling over all the armies of my realm ? Now understand, all you his kinsmen, that unless he comes to -day and appears before me, I shall refuse to believe that you have been faithful unto me in the past .' Saragdanus promised to bring him and present him before him according to command . Julian was much rejoiced , and promised gifts to all the children of his family. He charged Saragdanus to bring Jovian quickly, so that he appear before him. Saragdanus did as he was commanded ; he brought Jovian, who appeared before the king . He received him with friendliness , and spoke to him pleasantly , encouraging and consoling him with these words : ' See, your will has been done. Your enemies were taken, and your slanderers have been crucified . Yea , despite the Jews , I have brought out even these abominable Nazarenes from their prisonhouse ; and, on their account, deemed it right to grant pardon to all forms of worship . ' Jovian said to him : ' Your mercy has ordered all things well ; but, my lord the king , why is Your Majesty angry with me for having neglected to take vengeance on the assembly of the Nazarenes ? Your Majesty can inform himself from Pabrina , officer of your government , with what willingness I omitted to take vengeance on these wretched ones . It is he whom I sent to them, to ascertain if the calumnies of the Jews against them were true. He found that what had been told about them was true. He found that they were assembled ; and I also learnt that with great anxiety , with tears and prayers , they implored their God for your success and for the return of your Majesty. My soul judged that which your Majesty has ordained , that it would be helpful to let the cults pray to their gods for the peace and the existence of your realm rather than to worry them, so that they thunder against us to their gods, and are a clear stumbling-block in our wars with the enemy. Your Divinity knows , my lord the king, that we proposed to enter a land that was not ours , and that we might be enclosed there as in a prison . Grant liberty then to those imprisoned , that the land of Nimrod be not too clever for us ; for pity is acceptable to the gods. Now, my lord king, if it pleases you, merciful one, let us send commands to the countries , that the prisoners , those bound of all the cults , be released ; that no one press them, or do them wrong, until your Majesty returns to your realm with victory and in peace ; for the divine wisdom which is in you will not go wrong, seeing that there are found in every country rebels and disturbers of the peace , seditious persons whose methods are to cause occasions for plundering and seizing the possessions of their neighbours , and especially to - day, when your Highness is not in the country .' Julian said to him : ' Because your fidelity to me has been manifested to me, and your anxiety for our success is revealed in the letters of Arimhar Mopta , I do not wish further to refuse your counsel, or to turn away your advice empty.' The tyrant commanded that all the prisoners who were bound , of all the cults , should be set at liberty. He fixed the penalty of death for all those who should oppress them or do them harm in any manner whatsoever, until he returned from his wars. His command was sent in writing to all the countries of his realm. Thus there was some little respite for the people of the Christians , owing to the claim of this clever man . Jovian found kindness and mercy in the eyes of the tyrant ; he loved him as himself, honoured him and raised him in the sight of his chiefs and of all the Roman soldiers ; made him master and ruler next to himself over all the affairs of his kingdom . He further made him general and governor of all his forces. Jovian became great and powerful in the kingdom of the tyrant ; his name rose higher and higher ; without him no one dared to ask a gift of the king, or to make a request of him . Now it happened that when Julian had made up his mind to cross into the land of the Chaldeans , he sent for Jovian, and said to him : ' From henceforth do not take to heart my having once worried you, for I intend to make great amends by kindnesses in its place. You know the gods , as you have been charged to be with our government in the country which is not ours ; may these gods be with me, as I am resolved to do you good ! ' The two of them made a covenant together on oath at the frontiers . Jovian was faithful to the king, who left the battle in his hands . They named the day on which they would enter the land of the Persians , when they would write a letter to Sapor, and send him this message : ' Be quick, and be on your guard , and do that which is necessary for you ; prepare for the fight, lest our war crash suddenly upon you, and you blame us, and say : "I have been dealt with by stealth ! " See, I have informed you first ; guard your country as much as you are able, and occupy yourself with the war. As for me, I have for a long time past been appointed to avenge myself on your country, and to obtain satisfaction from it without delay for the losses inflicted by you on our country.' When Sapor read the letters of the madman , he derided him , and mocked at his armies, saying : ' The Romans are rough, and their speech excitable . When they are afraid, they raise their voices and turn their backs on the fight , O Sun-god, god of the East ; they are suited for feasting, but weak for fighting .'

He prepared a reply to the letters of Julian , and sent to him saying : ' Is this not you, O slack Rome, to be mighty in words , but poor in war ? If pride has seized upon you to attack the kingdom of the giants, be assured that your end mocks at you, that your end will be in the land which is not yours. You do not know your lot , O feeble one ! Wherefore do you become proud ? If the baseness of your journey were revealed to you , in your wrath your mouth would be full of cursing ; but this is hidden from you. You have never clearly understood the things that are necessary. See, I witness to you in my letter that, if you wish to stir up war between the powers , according to the rules and regulations of the kings fixed before you , observe what is done in war . Fix the day for the fight . When the sides stand opposed , one facing the other, with row against row, and the conflict starts between the ranks, then the side which gains the mastery over the other has the say and the right to enlarge his frontiers . The king who wins receives praise for his clemency, and being victorious and successful, is entitled to grant pardon to the guilty in his grace . This is the rule and regulation of war between kings. If you have become overbearing, and wish to exercise the force of your pride, and like a robber you hasten to grab our land , know, tyrant, that you have to render account for its spoliation. I have confidence in the Sun, my powerful god , that if you pass the frontiers towards the East, you will never again see the face of the West. Lo, I tell it you in advance .' When Julian received the letters of Sapor and read them , he dishonoured them, and mocked at those who had brought them. He sent for Jovian his general, and invited him to enter the land of the Persians . He bade him urgently to rush on the forces. The tyrant wished to know what was the strength of the armies that were with him. Jovian counted all the armies of the Romans on the river Tigris, which separates the frontiers . The number of the Roman armies ready to pass over into the land of the Persians with Caesar was three hundred and ninetyfive thousand warriors , expert in war, a hundred and forty thousand horsemen , holders of lance and bows , a hundred and fifty thousand infantry, bearers of shields that repel the fight , and twenty thousand artisans of every sort, skilled men versed in all the business of war, eightyfive thousand loving war from a desire to kill , mounted on mists and borne by the winds, fighting with death , and not turning back from war. That was the count of the armies that were to go down with Julian, when he wished to pass into the country of the Persians ; and in addition to these the persons who mixed with them when they came down, the people of the villages who cast with the sling, who dwelt in the passage of the Tigris , who are not in the count nor placed in the number, who of their own free will sacrificed themselves to go with them to pillage the land . Jovian assembled all the armies of the Romans on the river Tigris , which separates the frontiers, in the month of Iyar (May) in the year 674 according to the Greeks , on the first of the month . All the armies of the Romans passed the Tigris to go into the East , and passed on to the Persian territory. They found the land tranquil and dwelling in peace , for they had had no time to show themselves before the enemy. The Arab crowds who were on the Roman territory fled into the land and closed upon them, until the Romans came up and took possession of the land according to their will. They ruined , pillaged , and led into captivity according to their desire . They forced the rebel fortress and mighty high towers , the strong places of the sloping plain, and the towns with their citadels . They seized the high mountains and the sheltered tracts on the slopes . They laid bare the caverns of the earth and the secret places of the strongholds . They brought out the hidden treasures of the Persians ; they took all their families and possessions ; and the Romans made a rich haul in the land of Nimrod . They were not able to collect all their booty, which was exceedingly great, because they took to themselves all the prey, besides the gold and silver contained in the treasures of the king, according to the right which the first kings had fixed ; so great was the quantity of gold and silver , that when they brought the spoil of the land before the king , they were unable to weigh it all , nor were they able to count it. There was not left a fortress , town, village, or hamlet, which had not fallen into the hands of the Romans , from the river Tigris which is on the frontiers unto the frontiers of the Aramaeans . The vexatious penalties , which the wicked king had placed upon the children of the righteous king, were paid by the hands of a wicked king , as the Holy Book has said : "The wicked take vengeance on the wicked , and the Lord on them both .' When the eyes of the Romans were satiated with the pillage of the land , they turned their hands to leading into captivity the women and children , and to killing the men. Now this act was displeasing in the sight of Jovian, and he brought before the king the prayer of the inhabitants of the land . He prayed on their behalf, and said : ' I beseech thee, powerful conqueror, my lord and king, that the tender mercies of thy grace may devolve upon the lowliness and pillage of the land, that the sword and captivity be stopped as regards the inhabitants of the land. What shall we gain by it, if we draw the sword upon the new servants , who are this day bound by the yoke of the servitude of our rule ? Besides , it is not heroic to lay waste these lands which have been added to our kingdom . The land which we have conquered is ours , according to the rules , and customs, and laws laid down by the early kings . It is not advantageous that our sword be stretched over the land of which we have taken possession by the blood of our persons ; and as for the forces that are with us, they have nothing to do with the land . The war once finished , each one of them should return to his country ; while for us , when the war is over, the land and its productions will be for our use for many a day after this .' These words pleased the tyrant ; and he gave the order that the sword and exile should cease from off the inhabitants of the land ; that the Romans should have the spoil alone, and should return home . The word of the king was effective with the generals , with the chiefs of the thousands and of the hundreds ; each one gave up the souls which he had taken captive ; and the sword ceased from off the inhabitants of that land. There were only left of its inhabitants such as were stripped of their fortunes and possessions , and of their supply of grain . When Julian saw that the productions of the land had been cut off, and the country had been emptied of its possessions , there having been no mercy shown, he thought to re- people the land ; for the advice of Jovian was pleasing in the eyes of the king, and he brought people and populated it . He gave the spoils of the land to the villages , and farms, and hamlets , to support the lives of the inhabitants of the place ; large and small cattle and like animals he left in the land for the purpose of cultivating it . He made a covenant with them on oath that he would do them no further wrong ; and promised them release to their country for four years , so that they could cultivate the soil and support themselves on its productions, and the inhabitants of the land might be willing to remain there . The king and his general were at one with them to populate the land of the Chaldeans after they had laid it in ruins . When Sapor learnt what sorrows his land had suffered from the Romans , he groaned within him ; and sadness took hold of him, and he resembled a madman ; but this was not concealed from him, that it was through the instrumentality of Jovian that the sword and captivity were arrested from his country ; and that as the effects of his commiseration the inhabitants of the country obtained mercy. He acknowledged his gratitude to Jovian before his nobles and leaders ; and Jovian, indeed , found favour and loving-kindness in their eyes . The king, the nobles , and chiefs wrote warily that they should take the land of the Aramaeans into consideration , for as yet the Romans had not obtained the mastery over it . They took counsel one with another, and all came to the same opinion and to the conclusion that , with the troops of runners and armed men which had been got ready for the war with Persia , and are always found loyal to kings who, by paying their expenses , keep them bound to service , Sapor might go and show himself in the land of the Aramaeans, take up his position before the war , and seize the passages of the country until the army in preparation for the war be strong, lest Romans render themselves powerful, and descend and take possession of the cities of his realm . His chiefs encouraged Sapor, and said to him : ' Let not the heart of the king of kings sink at what has happened . How many times has that happened to us in war ? Herein lies damnation to the Romans . They are caught in a noose in the land of Nimrod . Entered as into a prison, they are caught in a land which is not theirs , so that no remnant of them shall escape . ' Sapor said to them: 'I have never been weak in my wars ; you , my nobles and chiefs , are my witnesses. Surely it has not escaped your memory what chases I had in the land of the Romans in the days of the family of Constantine ? Though they were mighty kings and warriors , I overpowered them three times . I laid their frontiers in ruins, and they had not the power to save their land from my hands . If kings , who were the children of kings, did not have the strength to resist the exalted arms of my power, would this low-life of a man, this mad dog who barks at his master, have dared to tread upon our territory, if he had not done it by stealth ? And since I have perfect confidence in the Sun and the Fire, gods of the East, that he will not defeat me, nor escape from my hands when he steps upon the frontiers of the East , I swear concerning him that he will not live to see the West again. You , my nobles and chiefs , have thought me like this low and feeble fellow, inasmuch as you have given me this gratuitous consolation for that which the Romans stole and snatched from our land . I recall this to you mind.' The chiefs trembled and were excited ; they were in great fear. Sapor summoned the armies of his fightingmen, and appeared in the land of the Aramaeans with seventy thousand runners and fifty thousand armed men . He seized the passes of the country. He built and fortified the cities of his kingdom . It was told Julian that Sapor had appeared with his armies in the land of the Aramaeans . He also called for his soldiers to come upon him in the land of the Aramaeans, in the country in which he had confidence and in the cities of his realm, to make war with him, and he laughed and mocked at him. When Sapor was told what Julian had in mind to do, he sent scouts to the camp of the Romans in the dress of M beggars, to explore and find out how many hundreds of thousands there were with Caesar . The emissaries returned, and brought him despairing news -' Be quick, escape with your life , and withdraw your forces from before the sword of the Romans , that the fight may not surround us on all sides, and we be unable to save ourselves that we be not pursued ; for there is with Caesar a great army of expert persons and warriors . It is not only that Caesar has his own soldiers with him , but all nations are mingled in his camp, persons tyrannous and savage, clothed in wrath and wrapped in anger . What peace is , they know not . However much we may collect our forces , we cannot face them in the chances of war . There are more than five hundred thousand besides those who cast with the sling , that have accompanied them " from different countries . When Sapor heard this from his scouts, he was seized with fear, distressed , and overcome ; what to do , he knew not . He was afraid to remain in the land , for there were not with him enough soldiers to chance a battle ; so he left a small portion of his army at Salak and at Ctesiphon , cities of his realm , removed the camp of his soldiers from the country of the Aramaeans , and marched off, a distance of five days. When Julian learnt that Sapor was afraid of him, and that he had afforded an opportunity, he gave a rousing command to the army of the Romans , and encouraged them to pursue him . Jovian , however, stopped him, and did not allow him, saying : ' It is not to our advantage to quit what is before us, adorned as it is with all that is magnificent. It is planted , and full of mighty cities and capitals , filled with all good things . The treasures of the kings are placed therein. If we were to pursue an aged man, who has grown old in wars and conflicts , and who knows the hidden places of his country, there is likelihood of his laying snares for us in his land and cutting us off from the rear, more especially as we are unacquainted with the entrances to his land . But, if it be agreeable to you, my lord the king, let us first go over into the land of the Aramaeans , and take the spoil of the country. Let us strengthen it, and make it the frontiers of our kingdom.' Julian said to him : ' Well , let us enlarge the frontiers of our kingdom as far as this, and let them construct there a monument, and define the limits .' The wretch took upon himself to say to his general : ' Henceforth, in each place that we enter my wish is that we destroy it, and clear it of its inhabitants , and throw down the walls of the cities . I shall leave them in ruins for the Persians , and avenge myself on them as they deserve for the wretched burdens which they have laid upon our country .' Jovian, however , wishing to save the souls , said to the tyrant : ' All that your Majesty has thought is right ; but if it be pleasing to Thee, my lord king, let not the sword weigh upon the inhabitants of the land into which we enter , but let us exile them from their places , and settle them in the country of Arsenia , in the land which our sword wrested from the hold of our enemies , those that are strong, vigorous, and prompt among the inhabitants . It is fitting and honourable to our kingdom that its frontiers be terrifying by reason of their inhabitants , and of its quantity of people , rather than the frontiers of Persia remain deserted , and the cities uninhabited , just as they have laid waste the frontiers of our kingdom.' This utterance was pleasing in the eyes of the tyrant, and he did according to the word of Jovian. Julian descended into the land of the Aramaeans with his grand army and the strength of his kingdom . They had the powerful aid of horses , and swept along with the mists and sand of the horsemen with their horses . Darkness covered the land as though ashes had come upon the inhabitants ; the country itself had become paralysed , for the sun had lost its brightness and the gates of the fortresses and of the cities , too , were closed , and the rest of the inhabitants of the country, dwellers in the plain , were seized with fear and trembling ; they left their families and all their possessions , and determined to flee from their country; and stationed a force of Arab soldiers after fleeing. They turned and placed it on the southern side M2 of Ctesiphon in the vast country where was situate the dwelling of Caesar . The Romans ruled over the country at their will, and the land was given over to pillage . There were not enough Romans to plunder the country, for it was too much for them, considering all their furniture and property. When they had determined upon flight from their country, the Romans went on for many days despoiling the country, and making slaves of the inhabitants . When the enslaving stopped and the spoil was completed , there remained only the two great cities of the realm of Sapor over which the Romans did not hold sway when the spoil was over, as well as the enslaving of the country.

Peace restored and the army having assembled , Julian commanded that a force be stationed over the whole of Ctesiphon. They commenced to make war with its inhabitants , who found themselves in great straits . The soldiers of the fortress did not suffice to guard the walls , and numbers of the inhabitants of the city who were put on the walls to help the military were struck by the arrows and died . Fear seized the inhabitants of the fortress ; they no longer showed themselves on the walls , for they were afraid lest they be pierced by the arrows. When the battle grew stronger, their sufferings and their fetters increased . The Romans having begun to get possession of half of the walls, the inhabitants of Ctesiphon rose to look, not being willing to allow the walls of their city to be overpowered by the ruses and methods of the smart and expert soldiers who were with Caesar. The chiefs of the city thought it would be to their advantage to surrender of their own accord to the kingdom of the Romans and to save their lives, rather than to be called upon to do so ; in which case the command to surrender might prove a pretext for their destruction . The chiefs of the fortress sought the advice of the inhabitants of the fortress . They went at night-time to the tent of Caesar , threw themselves on their faces at the feet of Julian, besought him for their blood and that of all the inhabitants of the fortress . He received them, gave them heart, and consoled them, saying : ' Be strong and fear not ; you have saved yourselves and gained your lives ; henceforth not a particle of a hair of the inhabitants of the fortress shall fall to the ground. But withdraw yourselves from the soldiers of the king who are stationed in your city, lest you perish because of them . ' The inhabitants of Ctesiphon did as Caesar had said to them. They delivered the fortress over to the Romans during the night . The Romans entered quietly, and massacred all the soldiers of Sapor, those whom he had left to guard the citadel. In the morning, with the rising of the sun, Julian entered the city , capital of Sapor, with the great pomp of those singing praises before him , elated with pride and covered with glory.

When the inhabitants of Salik had learned that the inhabitants of Ctesiphon had surrendered , they also wished to surrender. The soldiers of Sapor did not allow them, they who were placed to guard the city ; for they said : ' Do not lose our lives in saving your lives , but have patience till we have all come to one understanding, and are of one mind and one opinion in the matter of life and death . If it happen to us what happened to our brothers of Ctesiphon, their death will perhaps be requited , and their blood reclaimed , for the war is not yet at an end. So long as Sapor lives there is no victory for the Romans , and their rejoicing will not come to a head ; but as good servants , faithful to their masters , let us have patience a week of days . Let us be under the risk of surrender ; if from some place redemption shall arise for us , well and good ; if not, we will deliver up the fortress according to your word.' The inhabitants of Salik argued with them severely, and they strove and said : ' Go to , O counsellors of odious things , you have ruined the land by your tyranny. Who then is Sapor, who the son of Hormuzd ? A plague on you and on Sapor your king ; for you have loosened the peace that existed between the powers ! You have brought misfortune upon the country .' The word of the inhabitants of the fortress was of more avail than the words of the military , soldiers of Sapor , and they surrendered to Caesar. They opened the gate of their city before the army of the Romans. The army of the Persians , which was set to guard the fortress, was given over to the edge of the sword and destroyed . The Romans had dominion over the cities of the kingdom of Sapor . At will they took their property as prey . They emptied their treasures , pulled down their walls , and carried their inhabitants into slavery. The voice of their cries and their troubles reached to heaven . Jovian had feeling for them, and begged Caesar for them , saying : ' If I have found favour in the eyes of Your Majesty, may the cries and the sorrows of the captives excite your commiseration. Extend mercy to their sufferings , for the armies which are with us have used much violence towards them. And so your mercy will be the more praised when Your Divinity shall command that it be exercised towards the people , worried on all sides .' Julian said to him : ' See, this prerogative is given to you by us ; all that you shall be pleased to command you will be obeyed in, for I have appointed you director and commander over all my armies .' Jovian said : " Tis true ; the power is given to me by Thy Divinity ; but ultimately to do anything without thy will, I dare not. ' Julian did according to the word of the prudent man, and commanded that no one of the armies which are with us shall harm the captives ; that is our will . ' The tyrant bade them not to change the style of their clothes ; but to allow them to remain as they were clad when taken, whether man or woman ; no one shall dare to change anything whatsoever of their dress ; they shall not stretch forth their hands to the ornaments of the captives ; nor shall the wives of the captives be dishonoured in face of their husbands . Julian commanded that none of the captives shall be separated from his wife or children ; and he gave strict injunctions . All this was done through the instrumentality of Jovian, the Christian, worthy of a good remembrance for his spendid actions. Julian, having still the intention of making war with the king of Persia, wished to hasten the captivity away from his country to those places which he had previously conquered , according to the word of Jovian his general , lest the captives might become a source of trouble in the war. He ordered that they should prepare him a seat in the vast country to the north of Ctesiphon. When he had set himself on the platform , he instructed his ministers that, in accordance with the order which they received from him, he wanted carried before him the gold and the silver like rocks mountains high ; and the captives were to pass before him. When his armies were on his right and left all equipped, they passed before him the captivity of the Aramaeans in the same order and regulation as he had commanded , each person together with his family ; and, according to the number of souls , they had given to them gold and silver to sustain their lives , until they were settled in the land and could eat of its productions . When the procession of captives was ended , the troops lifted up their voices in praise of him, and with their voices gave him vainglory. They praised the madman for a long time. This accursed and excommunicated one , when his soul had had enough of the glory and empty praises invoked upon him, waved his hand , and quieted them. When they were silent, he addressed his words to them with blandishments , to repay them for the empty speeches of their prayers for him . He began by saying to them pleasantly : ' It is unnecessary for us to-day to extend praise to you for the heroism which you have displayed in the land of the giants ; for we cannot forget this thing : that it was not by our own strength or power that that was accomplished , but first by the aid of the gods who accompanied us , and after the gods by the extent of your heroism, has our kingdom obtained renown for victory. Who among all the nations and tongues has obtained a name and victory such as you have done ? As for the land of the giants which trod all kingdoms underfoot , you have trodden it underfoot ; and you have held it up to derision and reproach among all the powers . Who ought not to name you giants ? The exalted arm of Nimrod was overcome by you. Who ought not to name you all-powerful, seeing that the kingdom of the Romans enlarged its frontiers through you ? To you and you alone are due the power and the valour ; for Sapor the tyrant, who usurped all the powers , you have put to flight before you like a grovelling weakling. Heroism and triumph are due to you, for you have raised the head of our kingdom and have made it triumphant. What return can be made to you for this, if it is to be by something more than mere thanks ? For even though it be all the treasures of our kingdom, which I will give with the spoil that your sword has taken , we still cannot do sufficient to repay you for that which has been done by your hands. See, a throne has been set up for us in the land of Sapor ; we have been praised in his kingdom ; and he has taken to flight , and been driven from his country, like a coward without strength. Thanks , then, to the gods who have granted it to our royal personage through your help. Henceforth, it is but just that we fill our hands with sacrifices and offerings for the guilt of Assyria and the success of our kingdom. Now, as men of good taste and sense offer gifts to the gods who have given them the victory, let us celebrate in their honour the feast of our victory in the land of our enemies for seven days ; let us rejoice and revel in the spoil of our enemies, and become fat on the rich products of their land .' He sent for the chiefs of thousands, the chiefs of hundreds , and the chiefs of fifties . He weighed out and gave them gold by weight, with liberal eye and overflowing hand, each one according to his dignity and his rank, that they might rejoice and find delight in the feast of his idols . Jovian, however, mourned and was pained for the error of the mad king, that even in a strange country, one not his own, he should be goaded on by his paganism, and be affected by his folly ; and that a pure soul should be haunted by pressing anguish for the paganism of the befouled one. He, accordingly, devised an excuse by which he might shield himself and make himself scarce during the evil days which the tyrant had set aside for his idols . He said to the wicked one : ' It will not be becoming for my lord the king , if on the great day of the gods when all your camps are in a state of joy, the cries and sighs of the inhabitants of the land reach the ears of your Majesty and the ears of your chieftains . If it be agreeable to the will of my lord, permit me to expel them personally from their country , so that their captors may do them no harm , and that they may rightly take away what thy mercy has given them for the purpose of sustaining life .' This was pleasing in the eyes of the tyrant ; and he permitted him to do as he had asked . Jovian conducted the captives from the country of the Aramaeans , led them into the land of Arzan and that of Armin (Armenia ? ) , and installed them in a fertile land . He gave animals wherewith to work the land . With bounty and pity he conducted himself towards them. They thanked him for his graciousness , and prayed for his success ; not only they themselves , but in all the country of the Armenians , and in the country of the Arzans , the bounty of this sensible man was acknowledged . It was this just man's additional object to pass through the land, so that he might aid the poor with his own possessions . He was disturbed and hindered in his work when some of the smart ones from among the inhabitants of the place came and informed him secretly and in covert language : ' An innumerable host has planted itself on the frontier and seized the passage to Assyria, so that no one can bring provisions to your armies , and through famine the strength of your armies may be lowered ; and then they will fight against you. Now, therefore, before the enemies are aware of you , that you are encamped with a small army, pack up your camp quickly, save yourselves and those who are with you .' Jovian was concerned and in deep thought , but the accursed tyrant knew nothing of this ; he dwelt in a strange land as if it were his own , without any precautions . He was occupied and obsessed by the feast of his idols . When the days of his madness were at an end , he gave a banquet to which he invited his chiefs , and had them seated on carpets . They brought out the contents of the chests of Sapor and the vessels used at his table , which the tyrant had abstracted from the royal pavilion in the city of Salik . Caesar made use of these with his chiefs . When the heart of the madman was merry with adulation, he lifted his elbow from the cushion . Silence reigned on all his guests, for they knew that the king had something to say. Thanks to the immortal gods , who gave this day to our kingdom ; the kings who were before me dearly longed for it, but it was not given to them to see this day. The family of Constantine was of no mean order ; they were men who overcame five powers ; but they were without faith in the gods . This day's privilege was not granted to them. Who would not testify concerning them that they were kings , mighty and warlike , for the power of their heroism overcame ten kings and these could not resist them ? They placed their heels on the necks of their enemies . There was not a power that made war with them which they did not overcome , with the sole exception of this kingdom of the giants , which fought with them and overpowered them. And not even this power could , by its own strength, wrest the victory from them. It is these, however , the gods of our kingdom, who helped this rebellious kingdom to conquer it ; for their bounties were spurned by the kings who were before me , who deprived them of their worship ; so these gods turned their faces from the kingdom of the family of Constantine . They loosened their hold on their realm, and guilt remained with them ; for from the commencement of the government of the kings they had given them a hand, and they prospered in their conflicts . Wherever they turned they were victorious ; in the blindness of their heart they knew nothing, and understood nothing ; but through the help of the gods who accompanied them , they were prosperous in their wars . They did not know their protecting power ; for they ascribed their victory to a man whom the Jews crucified . It was not sufficient for their temerity that they violated the grace of the gods , and robbed them of their glory, but they undertook to stretch forth their hands against the temples and chapels of the gods . They uprooted their altars , and destroyed them . They pillaged their treasures. The gods , most longsuffering, looked for a considerable time upon the errors of these kings , but they did not hasten to avenge ; they gave them respite , and expelled them from the realm of the Romans . They suspended their vengeance till the end of the time of these kings . They did not give them the satisfaction of heirs to their kingdom after their decease, while during their lives the gods were angry with them. The left and deserted the realm of the Romans which was godless , and went to the kingdom of Persia which, by means of our help to-day, was inflamed and conquered before us . When the kingdom of the Romans was deprived of divine power and remained without a god, the house of Constantine once or twice roused itself to see if it could gain victory in the land of Assyria, but it could not. When the time of these kings was passed , and they died out of the world , the grace of the gods called on me that I should take possession of their leadership and sit upon the throne of their kingdom . When the government was established in my hands , I had no other care but to set about first appeasing their anger. According to our judgement, and by the allurement of sacrifices and offerings, I have drawn them, and I have made them go up from the land against which they were angered . I have made them return to the land of their heritage . In this manner we have been able with difficulty to calm the wrath of the gods . Our royal command was that they should open the chapels of their temples, that the altars for their sacrifices should be rebuilt , and that the burntofferings be re-established . I appointed priests for their service, and sanctuaries for the glory of their office . I ordered the return of all the treasures that were taken from them in the days of the kings before me. I restored what was due to their temples, all the ornaments and beautiful objects of the churches of the Nazarenes . Glory thundered forth in the chapels of their sanctuaries . They sought out the place of their secret treasures , and beautified their images . They celebrated feasts of dedication in their honour throughout all the cities . I did their will in all places ; and as for their last glory, it was more than that which they had in the days of Diocletian and in the days of Maximian, friends of the gods . Our kingdom increased , and our realm became powerful through them. It is by their hands that this victory has been given to us , and that our heel has trodden on the neck of this distinguished power, which trod upon our frontiers , and acted proudly over against the family of Constantine . To -day, through the protection of the gods who have accompanied us in the famous places of the realm of the giants , our armies rejoice and delight in the loot taken in their land , which was unable to meet the risk of our war. Not , indeed , by our strength did these things take place but thanks to the gods, by their hands was this victory . Then , my brothers , we ought not to wrong the grace of the gods , as did the kings before me, lest their guilt supervene upon us . For our war is as yet not finished . The conflicts and the war between the kingdoms are reserved for their appointed time. As men, then, who have placed in the hands of the gods the conquest and the responsibility of all the wars , let us to the full guard their faith within us . Let us be constant in our adoration of them , and take upon us the yoke of their service . Let us be anxious regarding their sacrifices, their first -fruits and their burnt-offerings ; and when we have finished that, we are still debtors for their bounties . For what can mortal man give in repayment of his debts to the gods for their grace but the mere expression of thanks with his lips ?? When the madman had finished these words , he gave the order that every item in the musical programme should precede the reclining guests , so that his guests might be regaled with the sweet sounds of all the metal instruments . When all the preparations were finished , he called for his guests . He was stretched on his sleeping-couch , and was anxious about the war. It was already night, and his sleep had departed from him ; he was in deep thought, realizing that he was in a land which was not his . He did not know what end his war would assume. He knew that Sapor was awaiting the time when he might reassemble before him the armies he had summoned . The fool had taken to heart the worry of his war. His thoughts were for a long time confused ; he then became restful and slept . He was sunk in deep sleep and , in his peaceful slumber , there settled upon him most frightful dreams and monstrous visions , worse than his thoughts when awake : these dreams disturbed him in his sleep . For there appeared unto him a formidable troop of military men to the number of forty. They showed a very threatening attitude to kill him . One of them was exceedingly threatening ; his bow was on the point of smiting him . One of his holy comrades stopped him, and said : ' My brother, do him not the honour of sacrificing this foul pig by smiting him in his sleep , for his soldiers and his enemies will not believe that this fool has tasted death , the natural condition destined for all men . But , in the waking state , let the audacious fellow be swallowed up , so that , by his blow, paganism may receive its quietus, and , by his sacrifice , they may be afraid who are in agreement with his apostasy .' When the tyrant awoke from his sleep, and recalled his dream , his heart trembled , and all his limbs were in a state of tremor. He was in great fear . He sent for his charmers and enchanters , recounted his dream before them, and asked them for its interpretation. These , according to their deceiving habits , playing with dry and meaningless words , tried to calm his trembling heart, and said : ' The heaviness of your feast , when it was over , developed within you during your sleep , my lord the king . This was doubtless the cause of the confusion and unreliability attaching to dreams and visions . You ought not to have any thought or anxiety about it . The dreams of the night are fancies and shadows ; once you look at them, they are gone .' That accursed and excommunicated one could not go to the length of the words which were spoken to him by his diviners ; but his heart was torn by the agitation of those things which had been spoken to him in his dream. The thoughts of them troubled him . While the madman was beside himself through the suffering of his thoughts, pain upon pain and fright upon fright were added to him ; for Jovian had returned from escorting the captives, and he broke the heart of the wicked one by making him listen to harsh words , without mincing matters . He said : ' You are not active in your campaign as a king in the grip of war . You are seated calmly in a land which is not yours . You are occupied with affairs which are not pressing for the moment . The soldiers of the enemies surround you on every side. You do not perceive it ; a great army of the Persians is set on the frontiers . They have taken the entrances of the country , so that provisions may never get in from our country for our soldiers . Behold also , Sapor with an army greater than ours has pitched himself around us on all sides . Now, let us look to ourselves, and take heed to our war, lest we perish through hunger, and fall by the sword of our enemies .' When Julian heard this , his heart was stirred ; he was in great fear, and his hands grew feeble . Jovian, just man that he was , sorrowed greatly for his people ; and he was swayed by the emotions within him , and by the burdens and pains of the whole camp . He decreed a fast unto God , and passed the night in the fast. And not only one day , but he fasted many days , and prayed to God for the redemption of his people . On one occasion , in the middlewatch of the night, while he was kneeling at the door of his tent, praying to God , he fell asleep during his prayer. Mercurius, the blessed , appeared to him in a dream, he who had appeared to him in a vision in the fortress of Nisibis , and he heartened and consoled him, saying : ' Why do you grieve and mourn for this madman, who left God his Creator, and turned away from his faith ? He despoiled the glory and adoration of God, the Most High, and rendered them in his error to demons and graven images . His own sin was not enough for him but , by the force of his tyranny, he compelled also many who did not wish it to follow his error. Henceforth he will not be able to conquer ; the victory is taken from him. It has been given to another.' Jovian said to him in his dream: 'O my master, saint of the Lord , it is not that I am grieved for this tyrant who is outside the faith of his Creator ; I know well that his end will not be peace , because the tree of his personality has been bare of the fruits of repentance . I am afflicted for the sake of my fellow-countrymen , innocent sheep , whom they drag after the paganism of the mad shepherd, lest, through their opposition to the True Shepherd, they fall by the sword in the land which is not theirs .' The saint Mercurius said to him : ' It is not your concern , this deliverance ; it is placed in the hands of God ; but apply your heart to the things for which I have been sent. See , Arimhar Mopta, the great man of Sapor, as he has promised you, has practised his wiles upon Sapor , and has brought him to the village Beth- Nisbet with a very small army. With his mask he has deceived him, like a man who disguises himself ; he himself being clad in Roman dress . During the night he will enter your camp to spy, that he may know how many hundreds of thousands of fightingmen are with you . Behold , to-morrow morning Mopta is going to send to you, saying : " Lay traps for Sapor , that you may take him alive, according to the terms agreed upon between you. " But you, do not assent to that , it is not the will of God . The will of the Most High is this : that the guilt of Julian should be proclaimed beforehand in all the world . When the end of the time of Sapor shall come, he also shall be reproached by the hands of the wicked like himself. Let not your pure hands be defiled by the blood of the impure one ; but in that in which he has defiled , the like shall be unto him. His sword, which was drawn over the innocent people of God , shall pass over him , faithless one, that there may be accomplished that which has been written : " their sword shall enter into their own hearts "-and according to the other saying, as it is written : "the pit which they have digged , they shall fall therein ." You, O man of God , pay attention and consider that which I say to you, so that in their time they may be remembered by you . Fourteen weeks of years the kingdom of Persia will be powerful over your kingdom ; thou shalt be subservient to it in tribute for some years . After these weeks the yoke of the tribute to Persia shall be removed from off your kingdom . Both the powers shall dwell in peace for seven weeks of years , and following these weeks of years, the tumult of revolution in Persia shall be roused. It will loosen the peace between the powers ; both sides will fight together. The duration of their combat will be two weeks of years . When the hands of your kingdom shall be strengthened , and it will rise up and be powerful against Persia, Persia will be subjected to the tribute of the Romans during ten years . So far does my message extend . I have been commanded to let you hear this ; and it has been said to you for this purpose, that the recollection of it may be before you. When the war of to-day shall reach its end , and the two sides shall come to an agreement, the fortress of Nisibis being given for the release of your lives for the years as determined , twentyone weeks , according to the date which I decreed for you ; you will mark the decision ; you will make peace between the kingdoms by agreement , and you will place the children of your nation under the tribute of Persia for the years decreed for you. You, O man of God, console yourself, and remove your sadness from you ; do not occupy yourself with the war which is cast in your way. By the sacrifice of this impure and foul fellow, the war will be finished . The powers will be in peace for the years which I have determined for you.' When Jovian awoke from his sleep, he understood the dream ; he was very troubled, and his mind was restless , for he knew that there must be some guilt remaining among them. The discreet man was sad at the idea that through them Nisibis was once to pass into the hands of the Persians. When it was morning , he received the letter which was sent by Mopta the great, according to the vision which appeared to him from God. He wrote to him in this way : ' My brother, necessity obliges me to notify to you the matters which are pressing for us . My letter is a testimony to our affection, that the promise which I made to you God will accomplish to-day. Sapor, enemy of your kingdom, is staying here with a small army at the citadel, Beth-Nisbet, this by the working of God and by the methods of our own feeble strategy. Bring with you a force of armed men . Come, avenge yourself on this wicked and cunning one for the evils which he imposed upon the servants of God, and revenge the innocent blood of the martyrs of Christ which was shed by his hands without cause . Take on yourself zeal for the churches of your Master which he has uprooted , destroyed, and burnt. Make him answerable for what his misdeeds deserve . When you shall have done that, and your heroism be proclaimed , your faith praised , and your camp rescued , we also shall rejoice in your victory. Be strong in spirit, and firm in your faith ! ' Jovian would not conceal the truth from a person who had delivered himself unto death for the victory of the Romans ; so he wrote to him, revealing the state of affairs . Hẹ felt admiration for him ; and praised and thanked God that He was willing to reveal His will to His believers. Then Mopta wrote to him a second time : ' Now then, my brother, since that was the will of God, and His will must always be accomplished , listen to me, and I will advise you how the way of our journey need not be quite profitless . See, some men of ours are being dispatched to you in Roman attire , to find out your secrets and spy out your camp ; but you can do a kindness to Sapor even when you are distant , that this favour may be put to your credit in advance of us. See , these sent by us are commanded to pass this night on the side of your tent , to investigate and hear what shall pass between the military chiefs in your tent. But you, in wisdom, send away your chiefs from you this night, and take the persons who are sent by us , letting no one know ; bind and put them under torture, that they may confess to you what they have learnt from us, so that it may appear to Sapor that these were forced to reveal the mystery. When you have heard it from them, show them pity, and send them in peace to their master ; charging them to say what you will tell them as being necessary to say to Sapor, so that he may bear the responsibility of gratitude towards you, gathering from hints in your letters that the victory is his .' Jovian did as Mopta had sent to him. He took these men, tormented them severely ; and when they promised him the truth concerning their journey, he showed them pity. He placed before them food , and they ate and drank. N He presented them with gifts , and said to them : ' Go to your master and tell him that Jovian, Caesar's general, says this : " See , to -day I give you life ; for your life was in my hands this night . Had I wished for your death , or had I desired to take you alive , you would perhaps have been taken already, and shut up in prison with the prisoners of Caesar; for your wiles have brought you to fall into our net without trouble and without war. But since I esteem your life highly, and my soul has not wished to slight your old age, try to save yourself with those who are with you, before this report be circulated in our camp : for then , if you would wish to save yourself, you would not be able to do so. These men went to their master, and told him all these words . Sapor trembled , and was in great fear. He blamed his Mopta who had led him to such ideas , which invited him to death . With an excitement resulting from danger and fear, he mounted his horse , and returned to his camp with those who were with him. He thought within himself : 'What return can I make to the general of the Romans for my life and the deliverance granted me by him ? All the treasures of my kingdom will not suffice for this .' Sapor had in mind secretly how to show his gratitude to Jovian for his bounty. He,held it in reserve for its proper time , for he loved him as himself. When the leaders and chiefs of the Persians learnt of this , they were filled with zest, and murmured among themselves against Sapor, saying: 'When are we going to finish our war ? Our kingdom is blamed throughout all the kingdoms ; for our land is ruined , and lacks its inhabitants ; see , its enemies are in their stead growing fat on its products . They have to-day made over the seat of our nobility to the Romans . They laugh at us , and mock at our power. Our belongings seem to us like ancient history.' Tamshabur, King of Ḥadib, brought these complaints of the nobles before the king of kings , Sapor. He constrained him to fix up the war. Sapor ordered the nobles and chiefs of Persia to appear before him. When they entered and did obeisance to him , he gave them heart, and quieted them by his words : ' If I had not paid attention to the force which accompanied me, perhaps by this time our war would have been finished . Now you go on, and be jolly, and have no concern about that matter ; for before the weeks of days are over, our sword shall have avenged itself upon our enemies .' Having calmed their minds , and dismissed them, and they having departed from before him , he sent ambassadors to the camp of the Romans ; and with the style of his utterances, he impressed them with fear ; for Zurand spoke before Caesar words strong and forcible, saying : ' The great King, the Magus and the mighty god Sapor, feared by all, saith this : "What is this confidence in which you trust, that you have the wantonness to attack a redoubtable power, our exalted arm and our mighty hand ? You have marched on to a land which is not yours ; like a thief and a robber you have laid waste the frontiers of our realm , and in your folly you now come to believe that you have won the victory over the kings . Can you not see, in your vainglory, that you have thereby appeared mean as a king, and that your victory is a victory of women ? Warlike and powerful kings , when they exhibit any sign of their valour in war with their enemies, and they carry off their victory in combat , their conquest is published , and their aggression hailed with blessing, not in a mean way like you . For as a robber you are now bound as in a prison-house in a land which is not yours ; for if you wish to run off, the chance of flight is lost to you, as the passes of our country are closed against you. But if you have the power to make war , the strength and the heroism to enter upon a conflict , then set your foot like a hero, and go forth to meet the great war of Assyria. If you have not the strength to meet us in our war, then put aside your arms, and bow down to our crown, confessing the guilt with your mouth , and seeking pardon. Give up the spoil of our country ; and as a ransom for your souls , in every place from the sea to the Tigris , the river that separates the frontiers , let the yoke of our tribute be placed on the neck of your kingdom. Remove your camps and return to your place in shame. ” ’ N2 When Zurand, the Magus, had finished announcing these words to Caesar as coming from the mouth of Sapor, he requested a reply to the written message . Julian said to Zurand, the Magus : ' Go , say to the master who has sent you as follows : " Verily I am very much ashamed of you, since I have been devastating your land for a long time, while you, like a child of weak intellect, babble scattered words like the leaves of trees . One cannot be surprised at the weakness of your mind. The ruin of your country has inured you to folly; but do not chafe under that which has happened . Had I not been occupied with the feast of my gods , our camp would perhaps have been at Gurgan . If you be a mighty king , and if you have an arm capable of heroism , show yourself with your armies , make manifest your activities , and save your country from my hands. And when you think that you have conquered , you will display a sad countenance , and speak ; your face is already sad. If you but understood, your words sound indeed important and strong, but on investigation it never occurred to you what a weakling and sickly one you are to

us ; you have not a leg to stand on.' The delegate returned , and told Sapor the king all these words. Sapor was in a rage ; he was irritated at the words of Caesar. He sent for all the chiefs and leaders of his kingdom. He bade them listen to the words of Caesar . The chiefs of Persia spoke complainingly to Sapor, and said : 'It is true ; he has a right to be arrogant, becoming, as he has, powerful over our country. He is majestic, and glory is due to him ; for he has ravaged our country, and ruined our land . The soldiers boast themselves , and grow fat upon the products of the country ; the palate of the inhabitants of the country has lost its relish . '

Sapor was wounded as with arrows by the words of the chiefs , since for a long time he had wished to make war upon Caesar. He summoned all his camps to make war with the Romans . He assembled before him all the armies of Persia, the thousands and hundred thousands without number ; besides which he invited the armies of strangers belonging to all the nations to help in the conflict. When all the armies were moving to go up to the country of the Aramaeans , the land trembled before them ; like locusts they covered the face of that land with their great number. When the news of their numbers was heard in the camp of the Romans , these trembled , and were sore afraid . Fear, like a whip , was beating them in two ways, first , because they were placed in a land not theirs, and secondly, because a terrible famine was upon them. The provisions from the land of the Aramaeans were exhausted ; and they had no relief from any other place , for the passages of the country were closed to them. Bound as though in a snare, they were in straits .

On the day when Sapor went into the country of the Aramaeans with the great number of his hosts, the 24th of June( ? ) in 674, according to the Greeks , it happened that the camps of the Persians and the Romans were ranged face to face, and the two kings facing each other. All the hosts were stationed on the banks of the river Tigris , one side towards the other to the north of Ctesiphon, ready armed , observing the rules of their kings , and awaiting the command . They remained in silence . No one twittered ; the two kings alone determined matters. They fixed the day on which to start fighting. And while all were straining their ears to hear when the clash of war was to be, amid the quiet a voice came to them from Heaven, saying : "The arrow of salvation in the camp of the Romans ! The wicked shall be taken from its midst! Peace shall reign between the kingdoms ! ' When this voice made itself heard, fear was cast upon both sides , as they did not know to whom these metaphorical words applied, and even upon Sapor, wretch and cunning as he was. When he heard the voice , he trembled, and was in great fear. Julian , in his haughtiness and hardness of heart , did not pay heed to that voice, but he mocked it in blasphemy, and said : ' Lo , these echoes of trumpery by which little children are deceived ! ' He turned , and said to his armies : ' See, you must not go astray after deceptive voices , and fall by the sword in the land of your enemies ; for the voice which we heard is not the voice of any God, but that of the Nazarene who called Himself God . If it really be God, let Him give proof of His divinity by a public sign , and we shall believe in Him .'

At the words of the tyrant the verdict of Justice caught him ; an arrow flew through the air from the place where the voice had made itself heard , struck the wicked one below the breast , and slew him. The miserable one howled, and gave a shout . He received in his own hands the blood from his wound , sprinkled it towards Heaven, and blaspheming said : ' Have your fill , Jesus ; have your fill from to-day and to-morrow ; behold , sovereignty also in addition to divinity is given unto you ! ' When the pangs seized upon him, and the pains of death were worrying him , the Romans hurried and brought him into the camp. He said to those who had gathered beside him at his death : ' Now I am about to die . Appoint unto yourselves as king in my place the general Jovian ; for you have no one who is of such service to the government like unto him. He is able by his intelligence and by his shrewd methods to extricate you from the fetters in which you are bound.' Having said this in the anguish of his heart, the soul of the miserable one left him ; he had had more than enough of life . From that time onward he received the torments which were reserved for him, the hell which was kept for him and for the wicked like him. In this manner the wicked Julian reached the end of his life, according to the prophecy which was spoken against him by those righteous and perfect ones, who witnessed as martyrs owing to the persecution of the wicked one . There was accomplished in him the prophecy which had been prophesied against him . His destruction and death took place in the land which was not his ; and he verified in himself that which is written : "The end of the wicked is for destruction ; the Lord is the Saviour of the just .' · In judgement God wrought the salvation of the Church and of His children by the destruction and death of this pagan and truly wicked one , for, even in the land of his enemies, this madman did not cease from his paganism ; and while his hands were stained with the sacrifices of his .pagan worship, his end occurred . When he filled his mouth with blasphemy, the verdict of justice trampled upon him . In truth, he , the master of cunning , finished his days in the service of sin . He boasted himself, and lost the hope of penitence . He departed , bearing on his shoulders the burden of his wickedness . He trafficked in that penalizing merchandise, obtaining for himself the fire which is not quenched , and the worm which doth not die, as a demented captain, one blind to reason, who sent forth his ship—his own person- into the sea of sin, and it sunk, overwhelmed in the slough of paganism ; it went out and harboured in the port of darkness , where tears and the grinding of teeth are destined for the wicked who are like him . From the history of the wicked one is shown how, by his own sacrifice, the sacrifices of paganism reached their limit . We shall soon note the worrying dangers and the terrible famine which befell the Romans in the land of the Persians ; what troubles and trials the Christian Jovian had to suffer for the safety of those who were with him ; how he was able, by his knowledge and by his tantalizing wisdom, to save them from harm when in those tight situations in which they found themselves ; for they were in great straits , and the famine was overpowering them, so much so that they ate their horses and other animals and the carcases of their dead beasts . Their strength languished and became exhausted , and their spirit was reduced . And when they furthermore saw that Julian their king was dead , their hands relaxed in their fight , and they became faint-hearted ; they were much afraid of the Persians. They thought of taking off their arms, and surrendering to the Persians , in order to save their lives . Jovian rebuked them , and said to them : "Take heed , lest they humiliate you, and take your arms from you , and you fall by the sword in the land of your enemies , while those who are prompt to save themselves among you shall be slaves to the Persians for ever ; but take courage, be men, and fight for your lives ; be not excited . I have hope in the God of the Christians , in whom my fathers hoped , that if you will listen to me and turn from your error , and return unto the living God, and serve Him with all your . heart and with all your soul , and believe in Him, there will not fall one single hair of your head in the land of the Persians ; only mend your hearts before God , and He will fight for you .' On that day Jovian avowed publicly that he was a Christian . All who heard him were astonished . They took courage at his words , and consoled themselves with his utterances . They wished to proclaim him king the same day ; but he did not hearken to their wishes ; he listened to them, and said : ' As to-day the war of our enemies is set before us , leave that point , and let us have regard solely to our war.' The Romans said to him : ' All that is good in your eyes, and that is pleasing to you, we will do ; only bring us out of this prison without harm .' Jovian replied to them : 'Yes ! When we are good before God, and we find mercy .'

On that day the Persians wished to engage in battle with the Romans . Sapor did not allow them . He said : 'I do not wish to mock the voice as the Roman king mocked it, and whose destruction was sudden . I will not be a partner in his rebellion . ' He was thinking with concern of that which had been said , that the wicked one would be removed from the midst of them, and peace would reign between the governments , and on that account he would be blamed if he declared hostilities. It was not out of kindness that Sapor had ordered that no engagement was to take place on that day. For his chiefs and the satraps of his kingdom grumbled at him seriously, that he made them miss the day of vengeance by not allowing them to make war ; for they saw that the Romans were dazed because of the death of their king, and they were about to throw up the war, as they were chafing under the obstacles put in their way. When Sapor learnt that his chiefs were complaining of him , he sent for them, and rebuked them severely, saying : ' Had you been true and straight, you would not have grumbled without cause at my wishes , for you yourselves with your own ears have heard that which was spoken, and you have witnessed that which took place . You know well that , because Julian mocked at the voice, judgement, furious and merciless , overtook him ; he was pierced by an arrow from the air which an arm of flesh did not shoot. And now understand and see what you do , lest through your zeal against the Romans you bring evil on my kingdom. How many times have you already desired my destruction ? ' His chiefs were afraid ; they could not give him an answer. Sapor sent for the Wise Men and the Magi of Persia. He asked them in the presence of his chiefs : 'What is this voice which was heard ? Which of the gods thundered with his voice , and manifested his will to the children of flesh ? ' The Magi and the Sages said unto him : "That which your Majesty asks at our hands, if it be not given unto us from on high to explain it , we are unable to say anything concerning it ; the thing is covered and hidden from us . ' Sapor said to them : ' Now go and look into the books, and examine the treasures of the revelation of Magic , and take the reckonings and the numberings of Chaldean lore , and reveal to us the truth of the matter, as it happened . When you do that, you will receive from us esteem and gifts .' The Magi and the Astrologers went from before the king ; they examined the books of Magic, and took the calculations and the numberings of astrology. When it was made clear to them , they were afraid to tell Sapor the exact truth as it was ; for it was altogether foreign to the belief of the foolish king, the revelation which was manifested to those who held of the books of astrology . They took counsel together, and grasped vague and senseless expressions to bamboozle him. They veiled their words before the king, and said: "The Sun , God of Creation , was angered against the Caesar of the Romans ; he thundered at him with his voice, and smote him with the arrow of his rays , taking him from life ; for he stepped beyond the frontiers more than was necessary, and crossed into a land that was not his .' Sapor said to them : ' Now I know in truth that you are liars ; there is no reality in your words. The Sun, of which you have spoken, has never made his voice heard to humanity, for the ear of flesh could not stand the voice of his power. Surely it is not in consequence of his voice that he is recognized by me as a god, but by his continuous help to us. He rises in creation. He destroys and annihilates the nature of evil . He makes the roads easy for merchants. He unravels knots and problems , and explains incantations. He chases the winds before him, and drives away dangers . He purifies the fountains of the maladies of bathers . He shows the hours ; marks the time. He informs human beings when they should begin their work, and when they should finish ; and travellers when they ought to travel , and when they ought to desist . With all that , with the breath of his heat he causes the fruits to ripen, and bring forth seeds ; he produces the flowers ; and again, by the warmth of his heat, he causes the harshness of winter to pass , dissolving its severity. But that which is greatest and most important of all , in its course of one full day he travels from one end to the other with the spiritual wings of his divinity. And so many other things , the marvels of which we cannot grasp . By these displays we know that He is God ; and that was not his voice, as you have said. But what astonishes me most is, that while I spoke to you, thinking you men of perfect good faith, you, as men of deceit , have thought of false and profitless words wherewith to address me. You feared not , nor were afraid of me . ' The Astrologers and the Magi replied : 'We beg you , O fearful Power, not to be angry with your servants in this matter, since we did not dare to elucidate in your presence the story concerning that which we gathered from the luminaries of the constellations ; for their range is altogether foreign to that believed in our kingdom ; and if any one would introduce anything alien to that of the gods , he will be in great fear of your power ; it would be a rash act against himself. ' Sapor said to them : ' If it is this that hinders you from speaking the truth , behold , the promise of my word is guaranteed to you , that no harm shall come to you because of the matter concerning which you have inquired ; for I wish to learn the truth .' They said to him : 'Since this is the will of Your Divinity as expressed to us , face to face , we shall inform you of the truth of what happened . That voice which spoke was not the voice of any visible god. It is not put in the number of the gods of those in heaven and earth .' Sapor said to them : ' Whose voice, then, is this which made itself heard ? ' The Magi and the Sages said to him : "That of Hormuzd , the god of Heaven, who is concealed and hidden in the heights above , and whom no search can reach .' Sapor said to them : " That there is a god in the heavens , that has been told to me ; but I have never applied my mind to find Him out , nor have I examined His existence in the writings of our kingdom. I have found that His nature is of fire , and we have adored His similitude for a long time, but I would like to hear if one could know the details of His certainty.' The foremost of the Sages who were among them , especially those who were well acquainted with the books of the revelations of astrology, said to him : ' How can you know the story of His certainty, whose origin is high and exalted , above the thoughts and reflections of the children of flesh ? No intellect has the power to attain to and reach the height of His greatness , as the search for Him is hidden , and it cannot be brought to mind ; it is founded and set in the realm of silence . He is a god who has no beginning, a being without end, and beyond times which were not created ; while on this side of Time He appears as it pleases Him. It is difficult for us to explain, since we are strangers to His worship ; and if there had been any one among us who understood it , our sword would long since have been drawn out against Him. ' Sapor said to them : ' What you have said to me is all new ; I wish you to explain .' Knowing that his ideas were crooked , they got themselves out of his demand in this manner : ' Never has the signification of this been given to us . So much alone has been revealed to us , namely, that He, whose voice roared, made known to us thereby what He wished to teach us.' The Magi and the Sages said to him : "The will of the Most High is this , that henceforth the enemy of our government is removed. Let us leave the war, and give up the fight . Let the sword return to its scabbard, and let peace reign between the kingdoms. This is the will of the God Hormuzd . Know and see what you have to do. Even though you do not wish it , His will exists unto all time . He does it at the risk of his life who goes against His will ; for who can harden himself against Him and be whole ? ' When the Sages had finished their words , Sapor said to his leading men : ' What do you understand by that which you have heard ? Give me counsel concerning these things in a few words . ' The nobles and the chiefs of his kingdom said to him : ' What can we advise you regarding something which is not placed under our control , and which the Sages made dependent upon the will of the God Hormuzd ; or how can we deride His voice , which is accompanied by the rod of punishment ? Even if it be determined that we make war, the victory is not necessarily given to us , as was revealed unto us by the Wise Men, that these Romans may not boastingly say: " Now we have no king, the Persians have the power to meet us in battle ." If it be pleasing in thy sight, our lord the king, let us take time to act , and not be in a hurry. Let us show them our pity , lest pride take hold of them. But, first, let us make them hear some severe things ; let us torment them with famine, and permit the inhabitants of our country to sell to them, as though out of compassion, flour which is mingled with plaster , so that they may eat and become feeble . When their strength has weakened and become exhausted, then the force of their pride will be lowered ; and they will know themselves, and confess their guilt , so that they may return the spoil of our country, the citadel of Nisibis taken from our ancestors, and the lands which owe submission to the Aramaeans ( ? ) ; and they impose once again upon their kingdom the tribute due to our government ; then we shall shower pity on them, as though in benevolence, and shall turn them out of our country in disgrace .' Sapor said to them: 'You have thought well. I am of your opinion . But if it please you, let us permit them first to appoint a king over themselves , so that they shall have no defence for their guilt , lest they deceitfully say : “ If we had a king, we should not have been guilty, and we should have carried on to a finish the war with the Persians , the blood of their king being upon their head . They have no excuse which they can disgorge ; on the contrary, their infamy has much increased, and their shame become more pronounced." The suggestion of the king was pleasing in the sight of the nobles and chiefs of Persia, and they carried it out . That accursed and excommunicated one did this cunningly, to repay his gratitude to Jovian for the favour which he had done him in the city of Nisibis , and to make him a return thereby for the great obligations rendered to him on his land . Sapor had the intention of making him king over the Romans by the method of a written communciation. He sent ambassadors to the camp of the Romans, and said to them : ' Because the mighty hand of Hormuzd , God of Heaven , has been on you for evil , as a just punishment He sent upon you the oppression of famine, for you have done a corrupt thing, one which is not fitting, in having crossed into a land which is not yours . We, as persons learned and wise, are looking at the matter in a suitable way. It is necessary to give an opportunity for God's punishment, since His anger is strong over you, and His wrath has the mastery over you . We also on that account , according to the power given us from on high, will avenge ourselves on you with justice for the evil obligations which you placed on our land without cause , so that you may know in the hour of your destruction that you threw away your cell in the great open plain, even against my sovereignty divine that received the crown from Heaven ; for we will not be guilty of contempt like those associated with you in your punishment . In our compassion we have conceived the idea of being longsuffering with regard to our war for thirty days . In this interval you may bethink yourselves and appoint a king over you, that you may be consoled for the death of your master. His death hath caused me more acute trouble than you, for I did not wish his death ; I would have preferred to take him alive , that in him I might have accomplished my will, and shown him what was the extent of his valour. I was not anxious for his death . In a life drawn out and full of sufferings , I had resolved on putting him in prison, and casting him in chains , having his two eyes put out , as my ancestors did in the case of the kings of Judah, so that by means of tortures and torments he might learn and become wise, realizing that a man should not go beyond that which is right and fitting . I was waiting and hoping for it ; but now in this manner did the will of the God of Heaven come about, and all depends on His will, for like you it was my wish to gain the mastery over you . But no hint from on high was vouchsafed me as to what I am to do to-day, yet He enlightened me with His voice to allow time for punishment, and then accomplish His will on you. Be certain of this , and set it before your eyes, that when the thirty days shall have passed which our mercy has granted you, we have to make war with you without fail. Then seek among you a man who may be capable of governing your kingdom well, and who has the power to stand up on your behalf, and encounter mighty battles , that the sovereignty may be his due , that he may fight for you . I have learnt concerning Jovian , your general, that he is a man of mind and possessed of knowledge , aware of what is necessary , and understanding the rules and regulations of government . He chooses that which helps ; he deals wisely with that which is harmful, and does not deceive himself in anything. He is strong in power. He has the arm of valour to undertake war . I have long been wishful that I had some one like him, that I might make him the second in my kingdom. If you will, make him king; we, too , find it timely for your kingdom , that is to say, for your aid , that he may rise up as your head and fight for you, that he may give evidence of his knowledge and proof of his statesmanship in the war which is cast upon us. As for me , that which seems to me helpful, I have put before your eyes . It now remains for you to choose and name as king the man whom you please ; as after the days afore-mentioned there will be war between us .' When this letter was read in the ears of all the soldiers of the Romans , they rejoiced with a great joy. They said one to the other : ' Truly Jovian has found mercy and loving-kindness in the sight of the king of Persia . Perhaps that has come about by the God of the Christians for the succour of our camp. ' These words were spoken concerning Jovian in all the camps of the Romans, and all the people turned their faces to him, requesting him to reign over them . Sapor, to do a service to the Romans , removed his camp away, and went from them one day's distance , so as to give them the opportunity to appoint a king . Jovian, in obedience to the necessities of custom and the rules fixed for the Roman kings when they die , gave orders to the doctors who were with them to embalm the corpse of the wicked one. They had a coffin made , and put him therein, until it was time to send the body to the country of the Romans . Then the generals and the officers assembled, the chiefs of thousands, and the chiefs of hundreds , even the distinguished persons that were among the forces. They held a meeting over Jovian , to take him by force and proclaim him king, as he did not wish to allow himself to be made king . When Jovian learnt of this plan , he made himself scarce from before their eyes, and escaped into the village of Beth Gormi , to which no one thought that he would have escaped. There was great commotion and trouble among the Romans on account of his whereabouts . They went everywhere , and gave orders about him on all sides . When they sought him , and he could not be found , they issued a false report to this effect : "These ten generals appointed to go after Jovian , these are the ones who have made a plot against him, and have made him flee, so that he may not be made king over them, and their power thereby be diminished . ' The whole army rose. against these generals, and demanded Jovian at their hands . They fought seriously with them , and said : ' Give us the man whom you have made to flee from us by subtle devices , that he may not be king over you, and thus your power become lessened . We know well that you are doing this out of jealousy. All the world knows that you yourselves are longing for the kingdom . Is it possible that you can all be kings ? Then seek him for whom the kingdom is destined ; we have no other to be king over us, if it be not Jovian the general , for whom the two kings destined the kingdom , Sapor by letter, and Julian while dying. Now produce the man ; if not, your blood shall this day be shed in the camp . ' Bitlis, the man who had reproached Jovian, said to them : ' O men, what is this disorder to -day ? To what purpose do you strive with us in vain and without cause, and wickedly judge us guilty of that which we never thought of doing ? See, we have bound ourselves not to eat bread, nor to drink water, until we put the crown on his head, and make him king. We are at this moment grieved more than you ; and we are pained on account of his whereabouts ; we are in great despair because of him, that our oaths may not be false . But we hope, nay, we are certain that our oaths will not be in vain , and that your will will come to pass . Only remove from us the tumults and the troubles , for with the false report you have stoned us as though with stones ; give us a little respite , that we may go in search of him, if you so desire .' Bitlis having said this, hardly had the noise and the cries of the people ceased , when all separated and departed , every one to his house. These chiefs went to look for Jovian. They looked for him in all the camps of the Romans . They searched the articles in his tent, but found him not ; and so wherever there was any suspicion ; but he was not there . These persons were afraid to remain any longer in the camp , lest they should be stoned by the people ; and so they determined to run off. While they were in a state of remorse and excitement , a man came secretly to tell them : ' I have seen Jovian rush into the village of Beth Gormi , when no one was looking except myself, who happened to knock up against him. Go and hasten, and you will find him there . ' They took hold of this man cautiously , and said to him : ' You must come and show us.' He went with them , showed them the place , and they entered into this arbour . They found Jovian hiding himself in Bet Gormi. They argued with him seriously, and stormed at him, saying : ' Alas , O man, why have you done this to us, for you have deranged all the Roman army ? They were on the point of stoning us because of you . You surely do not know that the whole of our camp have turned their faces to you, desiring you as king over them, that you may release them from this tribulation which has tightened around them , and in which they are bound . Why did you consider that that would be a sin against your God ? The people are groaning and weeping that you have disappeared from their midst.' Jovian said to them : 'Why do you judge me in vain and without reason ; for since yesterday and before , my message was that I would not assume the royal dignity, as it is not for the purpose of government that I am come here ? The power that has been entrusted to me is the same as to any one of you. The trust has been reposed in me to be general ; and I do not cry off from the office to which I have been accredited . As a general , as much as I possibly can, I will fight for the victory of the Romans ; and I have the hope that not a particle of a hair of the head of one of you shall fall to the ground in this war which lies before us . Bitlis said to him : 'We will force you to accept the sovereignty, but you yourself should of your own will accede to this appeal which has been made . Is it that there is another above you to oppose your wish ? Why then, have you placed yourself in this humiliating situation by thus withdrawing from us ? Come, let us go together to the camp, and grant the people which waits for you the favour of their request , that our camp may not miss the one man who can govern the kingdom. ' In the end, he could not be persuaded to go with them, saying : ' I cannot endure this compulsion. I am but a humble and plain man ; I am not skilled enough to govern the kingdom . ' When they saw that he could not be persuaded to go , they took hold of him, and brought him by force to the camp. All the forces of the Romans assembled before him. They were quarrelling and complaining of him , and said : 'You have not acted justly towards your servants , having brought us up and bound us in the land of our enemies . Since torments have grown thick upon us and misfortunes surrounded us on all sides, times have changed for us in a kingdom which is not ours . You have cried off from leading us, and have hidden yourself from our eyes. We have been forsaken by you like sheep who have no one to gather them . That is not fair . But for your promise to us, we might perhaps have delivered ourselves up to the Persians , and have saved our lives . It were more helpful for us to be servants to the Persians than to suffer and die of hunger. Is this your justice, that to strangers your bounties have been abundant, and your grace mighty, while we, who are your servants, have been accounted by you as strangers ? Through you our salvation has been taken away .' Jovian said to them: ' Do not murmur against me ; it is not from my hands that you have come to this ; but go and murmur over the corpse of your master, over him whose paganism you have followed, and over him whose errors you have gone after. You have sacrificed to demons and to spirits ; you have given your adoration to images and idols, and have believed that they were gods . If indeed they be gods, let them rise now, and help you, that they may be a refuge to you .' The Romans said to him : ' We never heard anything of this but a day or two ago ; now if there be anything you wish, be king first, and then do all with authority.' Jovian said to them : ' I did not want this your repentance to be by force, but of your own accord. As for myself, however, I must once for all be excused from taking the sovereignty. Make him who is pleasing to you king over you, and I remain general, as I am, and will fight for you to the best of my ability.' The Romans said to him ; Even if we had not known of a certainty that the power was assigned to you from above , and that the two kings , though against their will, were agreed upon you ; even if there were another who might reign over us instead of you, there would have been no question about you . Then from now onward put an end to all , whether you be willing or not willing ; the kingdom is yours. You have been our king a long time since . It is to greater advantage that you accept the kingdom with good-will than by force.'

Jovian saw that it was of no use, and that he was not able to move away to any quarter, for they were very cautious with him. He , accordingly, mounted an elevated spot, that he might be seen of all the people, and made a signal with his hand that they should be quiet . When they were quiet, he spoke to them, and said : ' What is this noise to-day and this confusion , that you have needlessly come together in vain ? I have only one word to say to you , and that is, that if you will not turn from your error, and estrange yourselves from your paganism, I will not be leader of a people who have no god. I will not be named king over the pagans , even if I have to die for it at your hands. I am a Christian, and the son of Christians . God forbid that I should ever have associated myself with the paganism of Julian, even though I had externally assumed the appearance of a pagan for form's sake . If, therefore, you have made up your minds to persist in your paganism , there are among you men of your same line of thought who can govern your realm with power. Appoint a king from among the children of your own belief, and do not bother me.' All the people answered : ' We have no other king but you. All that you will tell us , we shall do ; only not to do service in Persia . ' Jovian said to them : ' If then you wish for me, remove the strange gods from among you, and make firm your hearts unto God , for He has the power to save you from the hands of your enemies . Return unto Him that He may return unto you . Seek Him, and He shall be found of you. Call upon Him, and He will answer you, for He is near to those who call upon Him . He opens the door unto those who seek Him. Return unto Him with all your heart, and believe in Him with all your soul. If you really and truly await His salvation , give evidence of your penitence by adoring the Cross , which is the sign of salvation for those who believe in Him.

Christ will reign over you first, secretly as God ; and then will I also reign over you, publicly as man.' The Romans consented to this willingly, for the greater part of them were Christians ; although , through fear of the wicked one, they agreed to his paganism . When Jovian saw their good-will, he took the Cross which went in front of the troops , and fixed it up on a high place , that it might be seen of all the people . There was a great discussion over this among the men of importance as to why Julian , cruel and pagan as he was , did not abrogate this regulation , a custom which had been fixed by the Christian kings before him, that the Cross should go in front of the army. They persuaded themselves that the tyrant had acted thus , thinking that the kings before him, by means of this sign, overcame and conquered in their battles . If he had transgressed it, he would have been blamed, and the Romans could have had an excuse for saying : "The victory has not been given us only because the sign of the success of our kingdom was taken away .' On this account did the tyrant connive at this sign , and did not have it taken away from the camp of the Romans. For if he had been victorious , he would have had it dragged after his idolatry ; and if any blame were attached to him, he would have put it upon the sign of victory by which salvation was given to all creatures. That was the opinion held by learned persons concerning this affair . Brethren, one must admire and marvel at the faith and knowledge of Jovian, the perfect one ; that all the methods he employed tended towards gaining to repentance the thousands and tens of thousands who were with him . For when they approached to put the crown of royalty on his head, according to the custom of the law and the ceremonies which the Romans observed , in order to show his detestation of paganism, he would not receive it from their hands. He said : ' Heaven forbid that it happen that the crown of a pagan with which he adored idols should be set on my head before it is placed on the head of the Cross . When Christ was made king over you on the Cross , the crown of our kingdom was blessed and sanctified by Him. And so as regards myself ; I would accept it worthily and in fitting fashion from the blessed right hand filled with holiness , by which the unclean were sanctified , and sins were remitted . Approach then, and put the crown which is in your hands on the head of the Cross , and come let us implore Christ, by the worship of His Cross , for the peace and the existence of our realm . ' The king's officers did as they were commanded . Jovian prostrated himself, and adored the Cross ; and all his soldiers worshipped with him. Jovian threw his soul into prayer before God . He shed tears during the petitions , so that the soil was bedewed with his tears. He cried painfully, and besought God for the peace of the churches and for the salvation of their children, for the victory of the Romans and for the existence of their kingdom . Having passed a considerable time prostrate on his face in prayer, he rose from the earth , spread his hands towards Heaven , and called God to witness , saying : ' Thou , O Lord , God Almighty and Holy, who knowest all hearts ; be Thou this day witness to Thy servant that he did not desire this power, nor this kingdom which comes to an end ; for I look forward to a feast that does not end, and await it. Henceforth, Lord, since such has been Thy will, and Thy grace has summoned me to be leader and king to the guilty who take refuge in Thy Cross , and look for Thy salvation, I pray Thee Mighty Lord , that this power may not be injurious to my soul , hurtful to my spirit, and incriminate me ; may it tend rather to propitiate my soul , and to divorce my spirit, and for my self-confidence, for the repose coming from Thy Divinity, for the reconciliation of Thy people, and the peace of Thy churches ; for the return of their children , and the existence of our faith ; for the conquest and salvation of the deluded , that they may turn from their error, and take hold of Thee. As for me , sinner and guilty one, unworthy of the crown to which Thy divine will called me , grant me to be worthy of it by Thy Grace , that I may accept this crown from Thy blessed right hand full of holiness , and that in Thee I may have glory in all the kingdoms of the earth . ' When Jovian had finished the words of his prayer, the whole of his army prostrated themselves and worshipped . He made the sign of the Cross on his breast and on his forehead . He approached with the ardour of his faith . He inclined his head before the Cross . The crown of royalty descended , and placed itself on his head .

hand of man had not approached it . The Romans as a body were stupefied, and marvelled at this miracle which was wrought. They cried out, and said : ' Henceforth, Christ is our King in heaven, and Jovian is our king on earth. ' Fear and trembling fell upon all the forces on account of Jovian ; for they knew in truth that the Lord was with him. On that day Jovian, the son of Orninus , reigned over the Romans in the land of the Persians at Beth Armea on the river Tigris, which is on the north side of Ctesiphon, in the month of June (Haziran) in the year 674, according to the Greeks, on Friday , the 27th of the month. Jovian showed himself very zealous for God in the hour of his appointment as king. He ordered the seven priests of sin to be brought before him , those who had come with Julian into the land of the Persians , and the seven idols of gold which the madman worshipped , and to which he sacrificed most . This Christian king, Jovian , remained in the place in which he was proclaimed king , having the Cross on his right . They brought to him these priests and these images of folly . Jovian looked at them in wrath , chided them, and said to them : ' Tell me then, O guilty ones , what is this madness that has seized upon you , for even now your stupidity is not at an end. You have retired from your occupation , and taken refuge in this sort of divinity. The time of Julian was not enough ; in ours also you continue to do it . Know then, that you shall surely die, and your blood will be upon your own heads , for you have called down destruction upon yourselves .' He ordered them to be thrown into the Tigris . When these priests saw that the command took a serious turn for them, they came forward and grasped the Cross , which was set on the right of the king ; their hands took hold of it furiously, and they cried : ' Our Saviour, Cross of the Lord, save us , for through Thee did salvation come into the whole world ; and we also , O Thou anointed One, have taken refuge in Thy Cross . Salvation is meet for our guilt , and we are not beyond Thy salvation . ' The officers of the king wanted to throw stones at these priests , so as to remove them from the Cross ; but the order of the king rebuked them . Jovian said : ' I will not frame during my governorship so monstrous a law that will drag a man away from the refuge of the Cross , even though he who seeks shelter be guilty of death .' Jovian , however, said to those priests : 'Tell me, O priests void of faith, what is the reason that to-day you rather take refuge in the Cross , while in former days you spoke words of blasphemy against that adorable Name that was crucified thereon ? ' Those priests answered him: 'We beg for your mercy, O king. Is then our fault graver than that of the Jewish crucifiers , and their books tell how your God on the Cross asked for pardon on their behalf ? Now the crucifiers , though they do not confess Him, are left in the world ; and no one demands their punishment ; while as for us , who wish to confess Him with all our heart, we get our penitence spurned , and not accepted .' Jovian said unto them : ' Had your penitence been true and sincere, there might have been redemption for you. But it is clear to those who understand , that your repentance does not spring from belief but from the fear of death .' These faithless ones said unto him : ' Far be it from us henceforth to lie concerning our repentance , or to be strangers to the worship of the Cross from this day forward ; for the sign of compassion was witnessed and marvelled at by us with regard to it , in a way that it has perhaps not appeared to you.' As the righteous king wished for their conversion rather than their destruction , he rebuked them, saying : 'What have you done in the course of your lifetime that you should be worthy of pardon ; or that you do not hope in vain for pardon ; or how can one believe your words that you have seen compassion through the Cross , to which by your stupid doings you are enemies ? ' The priests replied : ' How could it be otherwise , that when the astounding miracle, like the one which has been wrought before us was seen, we were awakened ? When the flame of fire descended , it did not burn us. If Christ had wished our destruction, we should have been the first to disappear by the burning breath of the Cross in which we have taken refuge . ' Jovian wondered at their words ; he doubted their penitence, but God , the merciful , who always loves the conversion of sinners when sincere, opened the eyes of the Christian king. He saw the Cross shining and in flames like a fiery torch , and the hands of those priests smoking in fire. When Jovian saw the signs of their penitence, compassion arose within him. His idea was to let them live . He began to address his forces : ' What ought we to do to these guilty ones , for see , they have taken hold of the Cross to shelter themselves ? ' When the soldiers saw that his words were full of mercy , and that he wished to preserve them alive, they seconded the will of the king. They cried out and said : ' In the day of your joy pardon is becoming to you ; compassion is fitting for you in the first days of your reign. Life is justifiable for those guilty of death ; consolation to the broken-hearted , joy and gladness to those troubled in spirit , mercy and pardon to evildoers. On the day when you are decked with the crown of sovereignty, no one shall die ; but joy shall reign over all , and your mercy shall be praised by all .' Jovian said to those priests : ' To do the will of my armies, and furthermore , because you have taken refuge by the Cross , life is this day your due ; that is to say , if you remain for ever in your faith . But if you return to your error , know that you shall surely die .' These priests said to him: ' God forbid that we should return to our error, and renounce the God of the Christians, who alone to -day has granted us the blood of our lives .' Jovian said to them: ' If your belief be true and real, put your hands to your idols .' He gave them hatchets , and said to them : ' Go to , and break the images of your false belief .' The priests took the hatchets , and with their own hands broke the idols of their erroneous doctrine.

Jovian had them melted down ; and he employed them for the expenses of the churches which were demolished during the persecution of Julian , the wicked ; while he commanded that these priests should be settled in the convents, and that they should be perfected in the faith of the righteous, and then they should come to be baptized. Jovian gave gifts to his troops . He encouraged them , consoling them , and saying to them : ' Be courageous , and have no fear , as the Lord will not leave you to be worried, for henceforth He will care for you , will fight for you in secret, and through me He will give you salvation openly. If Sapor be willing to conclude with us the peace of friendship, we will conduct ourselves with him in a gentle and humble manner. If he continues to resist in his tyrannical way, you need not be disquieted, nor let your minds be troubled ; for I have hope in the God of the Christians, in whom you have taken refuge, that if his armies are more numerous than ours, thirty myriads , the victory will yet always be ours, and to them will belong the guilt . Sorrow and suffering shall not reign over you in any form, for not a single hair of the head of any of you shall fall to the ground in the land of the Persians . ' The Romans were consoled by his utterance, and all their souls were set at rest ; the load of the weight of their sufferings was taken off their minds . They were glad and rejoiced that so potent a balm had fallen upon their wounds. When Sapor learnt that Jovian reigned in the place of Julian, he wished to catch him by the letters in which he would test him, so as to learn what were his views . His idea was to address him in language bombastic and violent , so as to inflame with zeal the mind of the righteous one. For this purpose he sent him an ambassador , charged with conveying letters that called for the sword, and that raised war. This prudent man , however , understanding clearly the necessities of the situation , when he received the letters of the tyrant, put them to his eyes , kissed them, and fondled them ; and he gave orders with regard to the ambassador. (One leaf, or more, is missing here.)

" These are my words , and heaven and earth are my witnesses that, if by chance war should be declared against us from your side , I have confidence in the God whom I serve, in whose hands the wars and the combats of the world are placed , that you will soon ask peace from our realm . But it will not be granted you ; for the two sides will not have clashed one with the other . '

The ambassador Guphar returned to Sapor, bearing the letters of reconciliation from the king of the Romans . He told his master all that he had seen and heard in the camp of the Romans . He blessed Jovian , and praised him before his master. When Sapor read the letters which were sent him , he admired the knowledge of Jovian and blessed him , for the message which he had sent him was interspersed with expressions both tender and stern . Sapor closed the letter which he had received , and returned it to the ambassador, cautioning him with these words : ' Let no man know of the contents except that they have been read before me . ' He put the word in his mouth what to say to the nobles and chiefs of Persia as to what had been read from them ; and the ambassador departed from before the king, having the bridle of silence imposed upon him. Sapor sent for the elders of his kingdom , the nobles and chiefs of Persia, and said to them: 'The ambassador is returned from the camp of the Romans, bearing letters from the new king, whom the Romans have appointed over them . We decided not to read them except in the assembly of us all .' This expression pleased the elders of his kingdom , his nobles and chiefs . Sapor sent for the ambassador Guphar, and said to him: ' What have you seen in the camp of the Romans ? Tell the truth, and do not lie .' Guphar said : ' I pray thee , O exalted crown of sovereignty, king of kings ! How reprehensible it would be for your servant if he dared to tell a lie before the might of Your Divinity. My lord, I went according to your command to the camp of the Romans ; and I was much astonished to see how tranquil they are . They have no idea of fear or the least anxiety in their heart concerning war with us, but they are rejoicing and delighted with their king . I presented the letters of your Majesty to Caesar , king of the Romans ; and he was pleased with them as with a precious gift . He rose from the throne of his kingdom , received them in his purple robes , placed them to his eyes, kissed them and fondled them, receiving them affectionately. He gave us much honour ; his chiefs also came to welcome us, and conversed with us with expressions of peace and good-will ; for in their hearts they bore gratitude towards your Majesty, and were ever confessing your great commiseration with them. I entered into their minds , and examined their thoughts ; and learnt this truth, that they have not determined to make war with us , even if we should make war with them ; for they left their war in the hands of Hormuzd, God of heaven, and in the hands of Jovian, their king. He has found favour and grace before the God of heaven, according to what his chiefs have told me about him , and several times it has been revealed to him by dreams in the night, that in all his wars victory would be his due. I have witnessed this in the camp of the Romans ; I lie not . See , the letter of Caesar is witness to my words ! ' The ambassador, handing over the letters of Jovian, gave them to Sapor. He also arose from his royal throne , and treated the letters of Caesar with respect . He remained standing until the letters of Jovian were read . Then he sat himself on his throne, and said to his nobles and chiefs : 'What do you think of that which you have heard ? Give it your consideration . The chiefs replied to him : ' What matters it what we think concerning it, since it has once been placed in our hands by Hormuzd the God , that there is to be no war with them , and that this was His will ; but, my lord the king, not only this ; how have we to deal with them after they have sent this message to us ? These men have made themselves responsible by the letter which they have forwarded to us , and called themselves servants of our kingdom. If we make war with them, and ruin them or be ourselves ruined , exterminate them or be ourselves exterminated , we would not obtain any more influence ; but lo, once grant them their liberty, and henceforth we shall have no fear from their side ; only let us approach them with concessions , do their request, and give them pardon on our side . Let us favour them because of Jovian, their king, the fame of whose life has entitled him to become by the adoption of sons , the son of your kingdom ; his father, moreover , named you in his letters ; who then would now dare to put discord between father and son, and yet live ? But , my lord , if your Majesty wills , from henceforth let there be peace between the two kingdoms . ' While the cursed tyrant countenanced cunningly this view, yet that the nobles and the principals of government might not ultimately blame him, he commenced to say to them : ' I have been thinking of one thing , while you have been thinking of another. I did not anticipate that in this manner the war would come to an end between the two kingdoms ; for I wished to avenge myself on the Romans, and to obtain satisfaction for the deeds which they had wrought on our land . But as your mercies are extended to them, I also agree with your wish. Maybe, the gods have put it into your heads, so that we may not be smitten by the sins of the Romans . It does not behove us to bring home to them the misdeeds they committed as far as to-day, because they were subjects , and were under orders ; they but did that which had been commanded them. We must, therefore, not pay heed to that which has been done by the hands of the tyrant governor ; but we have to look at that which has been done by the hands of the wise king , who has shown such good- will to you in his letters . It is not only to-day that our kingdom has received from him such kindness , but before he became king, he rendered great services to our land . You have accordingly counselled well and fittingly, as it should be. I readily assent to your will , if it is surely with a good and lofty feeling that you have begged of me peace between the powers . Go then now, give proof of your goodwill in writing , namely : the pardoning of the guilty, and this will accordingly be a memorial of your commiseration to the generations that will come after us .'

The nobles and the chiefs of Persia went out from before Sapor, and they were not quite pleased with that which had been commanded them. They did not wish with all their heart reconciliation with the Romans , as the Romans would have had no small catch in the land of the Persians, had not the Persians been afraid of the incident which happened to Julian , that having dared to transgress the word of the Most High, the terrible judgement overtook him . For worse than the damage which the Romans had committed in their land , the Persians had made their catch in the camp of the Romans ; that was the reason why the Persians gave up revenging themselves , and gave in to the will of the king . They made an agreement and ratified it with their signature, and gave it to Sapor. When the tyrant received the letter which they had prepared , he opened it before the Sun , and also added his signature . He lifted his eyes to the sky, and with a high voice exclaimed : ' O Sun , god of the East, in whose hands exists the kingdom of the giants , be Thou my witness in regard to this document ; that the nobles and the principals of my realm have of their own free- will demanded the peace of the Romans , while I was not at all anxious for it . Only in consideration of one soul whose life is dear to me have I submitted to their will , have agreed to consent to them, and have given my sign -manual to their document . I promise you with oaths , O Sun, Light of the world , that henceforth we shall have nothing but friendship and affection towards the Romans. If anyone , after this document , dares to demand vengeance from us , and disturb things , he shall be torn limb from limb ; and all that he has shall be given as a prey, once we have seen fit to have peace between the kingdoms .' When his chiefs heard his words , they threw themselves before him, besought him, and said : ' May the king live for ever ; may your crown sit firmly on your head ! We pray the power of your might, permit us first to put

forward our request regarding the pillage of our land , and

then you give us your decision. Your Divinity knoweth

well what ravage the Romans have made in our realm ;

they robbed our land, and emptied it of its crops . Even

if they returned to us the booty of our country from the

Euphrates to the Tigris, the injury represented by the

pillage of the land would be greater than their gift. Then ,

my lord king, the Romans would be impressed with your

mercy and favour, even if the fort of Nisibis and the

• places in the East were returned to us with the spoils of our

land , according to the conditions which your Majesty

might make ; for this fort belonged to us before . It was

snatched from our ancestors in the days of the tyrant kings

which rose up among the Romans .'

Sapor was enraged at the words of his chiefs , rebuked

them , and said to them : ' It is not you who have insulted

me ; it is I who have suffered myself to be insulted , inas-

much as I have humiliated myself to ask your advice,

when I had the power to do all those things as my preroga-

tive in the capacity of king. But, O men of knowledge ,

why are your hearts so hard as not to understand that the

word of a king can never be recalled ; and that, after

pardoning, there is no questioning ? You ought to have

asked that before the letter was signed and sealed by our

hand , and was affirmed by oaths with the Sun, god of the

world as witness ; as learned men, as prudent men, should

you not grasp that, after the promise which we have had

of peace with the Romans, what you have asked of me is

wicked and unfair ? After the writ of pardon was pro-

claimed before the Sun and before all the stars of heaven,

and your consideration has been blessed amid the regions

of light, you now turn to make a request , which if we paid

attention to it, would bring us woe among the hosts on

high. Leave off having too much zeal for that which has

occurred this day ; and, as merciful beings , apply your

hearts to the peace and the pardon which you have made.

As for me, I will ask of Caesar that which you have asked ,

without harassing his free-will , so that without force he

will fulfil your request ; do not frighten him off by opposition, by force, or by power. We have no quarrel with the Romans, according to the conditions which we have made to the gods . ' The chiefs of Sapor kept silent . They did not dare to make any further request concerning this matter . Then Sapor indited some letters for Jovian . He sent to him as follows : ' The Roman army owes a great debt to the Persians on account of the tyranny of the king before you ; and the whole extent of your kingdom would not suffice to pay the account of your dues. The chiefs and leading men of my kingdom had the intention of washing out the great bond of your debt with the blood of your person. But when I looked at the facts with the clear eye of my sense of justice , I judged the truth, and justified it as propriety, that it is not right before the gods to demand satisfaction for the debts of a dead master on the servants who were under command . But he who has taken his place as heir to his realm, and has possession of the crown and throne, he, by the blood of his person, shall pay for the vengeance of our land, and the subject servants shall receive pardon. Accordingly, if you wish it, and you prefer it , you will gain life for your armies by giving your blood as a sacrifice . Come to me with distinguished persons in royal robes, that one king may take satisfaction from the other king, while the armies of the two sides shall part in peace from one another. I swear by the crown of my kingdom , and by all the gods underneath the heaven, and by the hero god who is above , that in the hour when you appear before our royal presence , the wrath of Persia shall be calmed by you . The armies of your nation shall receive liberty through you , and they will return in peace to their kingdom, not a hair of the head of one of them shall fall to the ground on the territory of our kingdom, nor even of those appointed to come with you ; for your death will suffice to avenge all your camp, as your blood is more precious in the sight of my kingdom than the four hundred thousand soldiers that descended with Julian into Persia. See then, what answer you have to give to that which has been sent you by us.' The scheme for the peace which supervened upon the Romans in the camp of the Persians was indicated to Jovian by secret mystery, and his mind found much consolation . When this letter was read in the ears of the people of the Romans , they all lifted up their voices , and wept ; and they cast dust upon their heads. They cried in sorrow unto God, and said : ' We beseech Thee, O good and kind One, we have sinned ; and we have angered Thee by our sins . Regard not the sins which we have committed against Thee in this time of danger, but turn to our penitence, and look upon our humility, for unto Thee alone is our grief known. The cruel danger which envelops us is not hidden from Thine eyes , for we have eaten our beasts and animals through hunger. And this is not sufficient for our punishment . Even the light which Thy bounty has lit for us that we may walk in its glare, the winds and whirlwinds of Persia have blown upon it , so that our eyes might have the light of its illuminating power cut off. We pray Thee, Lord of Times and Seasons, that the light of our camp may not be extinguished , that the dismal darkness of Assyria's night may not fall upon us , that the name of our kingdom be not destroyed , and that the grievous shadows of Persia be not inclined upon us. We have not the shamelessness to beg this of Thee . Endow with favour our Christian king, who fears Thee with all his heart, and give him mercy before the kings of Persia. Put into their hearts the thought to demand the peace of our realm .'

When Jovian saw his armies suffering in grief, he encouraged them , consoling them thus : "Take courage, O ye feeble of heart, take courage, and fear nought , for the hand of the Lord is not too short to save ; it lies in His power, even now while you despair , to cause salvation to spring forth for you, if Sapor really elects that my blood become a cause for war. Ye are weak ones, and could not meet a war with Persia .' The troops turned aside from him, sorrowing and pained, and Jovian went on his way with the men who were with him. The guard which was appointed by Sapor, when they saw Caesar and the men accompanying him, informed Sapor that Caesar had appeared with a few men, about thirty persons . The king of Persia was astonished , and said to his chiefs : " This appears to me very strange, that Caesar should have delivered himself up already, that he might be given over to the hands of the Persians . It is of great importance that he believed in our written message, and entrusted his life to us.' While they were wondering at this thing, lo, Caesar appeared with his men in the camp of the Persians , his face smiling and his features happy, as though his lips were distilling peace . All the soldiers of the Persians were seized with wonder in beholding him ; for it was not clear to them that Jovian could have trusted himself to them. Their fury was already calmed , and their anger appeased, and with a kindly eye they looked upon this clever man. The Lord had given him mercy, and he found favour and kindness in their eyes. When Jovian saw the king of Persia with his armies, he alighted from his horse, he and his men. He took the crown from his head . Like a simple man, he bowed face to face, and did obeisance to Sapor and all his camp . Through the humility of the prudent king, the wrath of the Persians had passed off, their anger was appeased , and ill will was removed from their minds . They made Sapor swear in the Persian language, on the bones of his ancestors, that he would harbour no evil intention against Caesar, and that he would not think of killing him. Sapor rejoiced at their request ; he had not previously disclosed to them his intentions. Sapor rose from his stand, walked towards him affectionately, until the two kings met each other. They threw themselves on each other's neck ; they wept, embraced, and kissed each other. The two kings were joyous and delighted when surrounded by the Persian troops, who, themselves , were glad and joyful. The lords and chiefs of Assyria marvelled at this new and unprecedented business between the powerful kings of the Romans and the Persians. They said, one to the other : ' Such a thing has never been done all the days of our ancestors .' Sapor said to Jovian : ' Put now your crown on your Р head. Your submission this day has wiped out the account which your government owed to us, and this could not have been paid off but by your life-blood . By your wisdom and skill our sword has been kept off from the Romans ; it had been whetted for their death . See, by the homage paid by your person, this sword of ours has been kept in its scabbard. It will not be drawn in our days against the children of your nation , that you may know that you have found grace in my sight, and also with my nobles and the chiefs of my realm . I was in difficulty as to how to manifest it openly. That which a short time before has been performed in secret , let it now be known to all the world, that it is not in vain or to no purpose that I had an affection for you . I have avowed your bounty publicly and without shame to this effect, that if you had wished the blood of my life and my destruction, I might to -day perhaps have been dry bones , and my bones would have joined the bones of my ancestors . And had you wished to mock at and dishonour my old age, you might have done so, as with the servants I was bound in your camp, while the power of the giants was mocking at me . My life was in your hands at the city Beth Nisbet , when I was disguised to spy out your camp with my distinguished men . My life has been esteemed by you ; you thought it right to give me new life . It is not only this act of grace that our kingdom owes you, but as regards the inhabitants of our country, it was by your act of mercy that our outlying land was inhabited. By the good counsels of your knowledge, the sword was averted from it, and it was not emptied of its inhabitants . Now kings and chiefs of Persia, what services ought we to render this man in exchange for his services , if only for that which has been done to-day ? ' When the Persians heard this , they were amazed and much moved at that which had happened to Sapor at Beth Nisbet, the city. They said one to the other : " The king of the Romans is more innocent than our king. The service which he has rendered him is great. What will remove the shame from our realm ? If Sapor had passed between the hands of the Romans , they would have mocked at him in their land , and they would have made an exhibition of him in all the cities of their realm. Not only that, but still more important, the Romans would have assembled against our land and have laid it in ruins ; Persia would not have been inhabited in our days ; the grace of this man would have been kept from us until this day, and his action would have been unknown to us.' When Sapor noticed that they were putting questions one to the other, he asked them what were their questions , and the cause of their astonishment . They answered him : ‘ Our astonishment , my lord the king , is at what happened to you in the city, Beth Nisbet . And our conversation is about the bounties which this man wrought for us . And yet he has not been rewarded according to the merit of his actions ; for it dare not be accounted to him as a favour that he was enabled to show himself this day in our camp. We must not do him wrong. Even though our government did not bestow upon him a favour, we would not have the face to do a wrong to the man who has come of his own free will to greet and do homage to your Majesty ; how can we do him wrong ? All the more reason to-day , when at his hands shame is removed from our realm, and he has given us the power for victory, how much more does there devolve upon us the weight of his bounty ; for all the treasures of our realm will not suffice to repay the obligations of kindness which he has placed upon our land ! '

Sapor said to them : ' Now it depends on your will ; examine this affair with justice . Give the man that which is his due, and I will be glad to settle for him that which is conformable to justice . ' His chiefs said unto him : ' Now, my lord the king, justice demands this : that the man who gave you life , and gave the possibility of victory to our power, should be the second in your realm, the associate of your throne, and heir to your kingdom . The remembrance of his goodwill should be written in the book of the memorials of our realm for the generations that shall come after us. And it shall be accounted to him as an P2 additional honour, that it was on the territory of our realm that the crown was given him.' Sapor said to them : ' What ought we to do to the Romans who made him king ? ' The nobles and chiefs of Persia replied to Sapor : ' If you do not care for that which we have proposed to you, it will be sufficient for the Romans if, in accordance with the pledges which our government took from them, the misdeeds which they committed in our country be forgiven them, and if, reconciled and without harm , they return from our land to their land in peace, and on the territory of their own kingdom they be allowed to appoint a king . ' Sapor said to them : 'You have judged well . But if you will , let us learn first what are the wishes of the man himself ; that which will be pleasing to him , we will agree too .' When Jovian heard this , he presented this favour, and said : ‘ Even if in name I am the servant of you all, by grace you have styled me the son of your kingdom . As from fathers I ask of you this favour : that in the land of my ancestors and on the throne of my kingdom I would reach the end of my life, and would lie with my forefathers , so that my bones might mingle with the bones of my departed ones . That is my whole desire . ' Sapor and those who were with him, said : ' Now as this is your will, and this would give you satisfaction , we avow that we are your debtors for your kindness in all your soul's desire . ' Sapor gave a great banquet and drinking festival to Caesar and to the men with him, uniting with them in his feast the nobles of Persia and the chiefs of his realm . While they were eating and drinking and enjoying themselves with wine , the nobles of Persia said to Jovian : 'See, in both things we give way to your will as to a pledge ; now do you also agree in one thing with our wishes .' They said to him : ' We should rejoice if you intermarried with us . Take a wife from among our daughters , and the peace of our kingdom shall be assured to you .' Jovian said to them: ' These flimsy words that have been uttered with reference to myself, see, that comes from drinking wine. The morning is the best time to speak. All that your mighty government shall command us , we shall do .' Jovian passed that night in the guarded chamber of the king, and so also the men who were with him. On the morrow he went to the tent of Sapor, where his chiefs were assembled before him. He approached , and greeted them , and said to them : ' If I have found mercy in your sight , tell me what is your will in all that has been done until to-day . We will listen to your ruling with a good will . Then dismiss me, that I may depart from your land . With mournful faces we are dwelling in a land which is not ours .' Sapor said to them : ' This day, as you have come of your own free will to inquire after our welfare, we will not ask you anything in regard to the war or the pillage of our land ; return in peace to the camp , you and the men with you ; and on the third day we shall meet at the spot where your camp is situated . The two sides shall then take account as to those things which have been done without justification , and they will make the award . They will make peace together . The war will be finished , bad feeling removed , and you shall return in peace to your land and to the territory of your government.' Jovian bowed and returned to his camp , he and the men who were with him . One must admire and wonder at Astina the queen, daughter of pagans , at her whose family we traced a little time ago in our history. While she was yet to the full the daughter of the Magi , she felt sorrow for the persecution of the Christians, for the breaking of their hearts , and for the grievous death of the servants of God , as she was a woman of pity, and full of kindness to all . She found favour and love in the eyes of Sapor. He was very fond of her, for she was a woman beautiful and fair to look upon. She feared his paganism , and face to face she begged favours for the Christian people without intermediary. When she learnt that Jovian was a Christian , she wrote a letter in secret, sealing it with her ring ; and sent it to him by Zurand her confidant, who was the master of all her treasure, and knew all the mysteries of his mistress . She , moreover, put other words into his mouth besides the contents of the letters which she addressed to him. She sent to him , saying : 'I have desired for a long time to see you, and to find out if you could possibly satisfy my hunger out of the plenitude of your powers , and quench my thirst at your pure spring, so that I might accomplish my wishes . Since , however, it will be difficult for me, see, in the letter which I have sent you I have buried and interred my words as the dead , for it is my language , without intermediary. Open it then ; it may revive you, and it may find favour in the eyes of your Majesty. My brother, if you do that , you will soothe my feelings , while the desire of your heart will be accomplished .' When Jovian heard the words which Astina had sent to him, he made the sign of the Cross, and drew back from her letter ; he would not accept it . He thought that she had perchance an evil design against him, like a snare . When Zurand saw that the righteous man turned his face away from the letter of his mistress , he was very sorry, and he spoke severely to him , and said : ' O king of the Romans, you are not justified in thus spurning the letters of her who holds the power of Persia, for more than all the other queens she is esteemed and beloved by the King of Kings , as she is a great favourite with him. It is in her power to do you good, and she can also do you harm . As a wise king then , who understands what is due, you should have read this letter in secret to yourself ; and if you were pleased with that which she had written to you—well and good ; if not, you should have returned it to her without reproach .' The words of Zurand pleased Jovian ; he quite respected him, and took the letter from him. He entered his tent ; and having opened it , he read it . He was grieved in himself, and sighed ; he filled his mouth with woe , and taking it to heart, said : ' O that we have not been affected by the persecution of our brethren as this daughter of the pagans ! ' The letter which was sent to him by her was in this strain : 'Know then, O king of the Romans, your journey in the land devoid of pity has not been in vain, for the God of the Christians whom you serve has put it into your mind, that you should descend , and visit the prisons of Persia. For it is thirty years and more, that her back has been bowed down under torture , her sides under sufferings , and her members given to blows , the entire body itself of members beaten and torn with tortures and sufferings of all sorts . You cannot deny this : that your God is tormented and bears suffering through His servants . Truly from that which has been said to them by the persecutors , " Renounce your God , and free yourselves from torments ", it is clear to those who understand , that the name of their God by which they were called was tormented through them . If a man strike the effigy of a king who is mortal , and people are astonished who see it, as though it were the king himself in person who was struck, how much more so does God suffer through His servants , who for His name give themselves up to torments and to death ! If therefore with all your soul you fully take hold of your God , receive upon yourself the griefs of His servants ; be their help with the demands made by your mouth . Perhaps God has named you king for that purpose . He has placed the crown upon you in our country , that you may succour by the favour which He has given you with the King of Kings the people of our country who are tormented for the truth of your God . Do not grow slack in this good work among those who are Persians , for once they were strangers to us, and their names testify concerning them, as they call themselves Nazarenes . Do not neglect to help them, and to consider the life -blood of their being. As for me, if I had the power to do it without intermediary , I would not have troubled you in the matter ; but because it is difficult for me and easy for you , see , I let you know by my letters, what cruel persecutions arise against your co -religionists in our country. God will demand it at your hands , if you neglect to succour them. Behold the King of Kings will come to you on the third day , as he has promised you, and he has determined to ask of you to give up willingly the fortress of Nisibis and all the country on his side of the East ; that is to say, dependent on these conditions , you can ask whatever you please . Then, O king , think and consider what your request is to be, and consign the treasures of our realm and the cities of our territory to the mercy of your God ; and make up your mind as to the request of the side which appears to you to be injurious to the other. As a daughter of the Magi , it seems to me that you will have no better chance than this , in order that you may save, by your request, the persecuted righteous servants of God. This is no small thing that , by the request to take back from you one citadel , you can take the sword of our kingdom from off those who profess your belief, so that it may rest in its sheath and tarnish ; for , in spite of the forty years that it has been drawn over the Christians , it is not yet satisfied with their blood . When you do this, you will please your God, and you set me at rest, and are entitled to gratitude. I am a woman filled with compassion ; my inward parts have for a long time been turned, and are destroyed, because of that which the servants of God have endured without justification . These things which I have written to you should suffice by letter to take my place , and instead of me they are to engage your attention. All that I thirst , hunger, and long for consists in this , the day when these ills shall be removed from off our country. Be in peace, you and your camp ; and pray for me to your God , that He may render me innocent of the pure blood that has been shed in our kingdom, not in ignorance .'

This then was the purport of the letter which had been sent to Jovian by Astina , the queen, by the hands of Zurand , the confidant. He prepared his reply to her, and sent her expressions of faith , useful for her repentance , to strengthen her mind. See the faith of this wise man ! Although it had well entered into his mind to do this very thing without the kind offices of Astina, he yet in the letter which he sent her praised and blessed her for her commiseration, as though she were the original mover in this affair ; he thanked her in his letter to her.

Many were the incidents that took place during this war. Our love for you has obliged us to trace its history. We have withheld from detailing a great part which is irrelevant, and have selected but a little out of a mass of material worthy of recording and to be remembered. In this work we have written for those who are fond of perusing such stories . In order, my friend, that you may know how the war between the kingdoms ended , we have weighed all thoughts and ideas , so as to give you in brief the end of our history , and thus refrain from being prolix and multiplying words. When Sapor showed himself on the third day in the camp of the Romans as he had promised , together with the great number of his army-he had with him the nobles and chiefs of Persia-he fixed his camp opposite . The two kings left their camps , approached each other between the camps on the two sides , in order that they might consult together for the peace of the realms . The nobles and the principal men of the kingdoms were bidden to take their places in the assembly of the kings ; and so it was , the two kings and their chiefs were seated between the two camps .

They took the opinion of each other to arrive at a decisive conclusion. There was great discussion between them concerning what had been done illegally in the kingdoms of the two sides . They considered concerning the countries which Sapor had wasted in the Roman kingdom in the days of the sons of Constantine, and the places which Julian had destroyed in the land of the Persians . There was less damage on the side of the Romans than on that of the Persians ; and Nisibis had been given to the Persians for a hundred years together with its provinces on its eastern side . That had been done voluntarily and without compulsion . Sapor said to Jovian : ' It is only right and just that Nisibis be returned to us, first as compensation for the ravages of our country ; and secondly, because the fortress was ours of old, before it was snatched from our people ; and furthermore , this should be so on account of the friendship which exists between us . I have taken it upon myself to act thus, and to pay service for service , and to render gift for gift. I swear unto you by all the gods , by Hormuzd , god of heaven, whose power rules over all the gods, that no worry concerning Nisibis need enter your heart, for all that your soul shall desire from our realm, ask, and it shall be given unto you in return for the fortress taken from you .'

Jovian said : ' What is there in the world dearer to a man than his life , enlighten me, O King of Kings ? ' Jovian added : ' Since life is dearer to me than aught else , I entrust it to you, and place it in your hands. I am not affected by the thought of Nisibis ; do not think that I am angry at your demand , no ! Understand then , my lord the king, and believe my word that if you wished to take from us from the sea to the river Tigris which separates the frontiers , I would not afflict myself for your demand ; for I am the son of your kingdom , and the father has a right to the inheritance of a son.'

The nobles and chiefs of Persia, on perceiving the goodwill of the king of the Romans , raised their voices in praise of him. For a long time they blessed him in the Persian language ; they named him the son of their kingdom, and said to him as son , heir to the properties of his father : ' Ask as much as you will, it shall be given you ; you dare not be grieved over Nisibis .' When they had finished blessing him, Jovian addressed them , and said to them : ' You have this day shown your goodwill ; we also equally consent to the glory of your kingdom ; we have no care concerning the prize of Nisibis ; and by reason of our mutual friendship , ours is yours , and yours is ours . In return for that which you have desired to take as a gift , our demand is not very important ; your kingdom will not be diminished by it ; it is not country for country, nor city for city that we have to ask, but only compassion and peace for sufferers like yourselves ; by which means your government will be more praised , and your mercy will be blessed . ' Sapor said to him : 'What is your request ? It is already granted you. ' Jovian said : 'My lord the king, my request is this , that during all the years that Nisibis be given to your realm , peace may reign over the Christians in your kingdom, that harsh and merciless judgement may be a thing of the past, that your Majesty give instructions concerning them, that no one shall raise against them persecution in the course of those hundred years that Nisibis be given to the Persians ; but that they may dwell in peace in your kingdom, that no one may do them harm , that claiming the privilege of your mercy their churches may be restored to them , and by favour on your part they may freely exercise their public services . If they do that, we shall be indebted to your graciousness all our days .' Sapor said to him : ' Is that all your request , O king of the Romans ? ' Jovian said : ' It is more important and valuable in my eyes than all gifts, for they are my brothers in faith , and I do not wish their destruction . '

Then Sapor wrote, and sent to all the countries under his rule, that persecution of the Christians shall cease in all the lands that were in his power ; ' For that is our will, that all the cults may find favour and mercy in my sight, as they do under your government . Henceforth , let the houses of their assemblies be delivered up to them ; if they have been clean destroyed through the ill will of the Magi , let them be renewed and built afresh . Let the expenses be paid out of the treasury of our kingdom until they be completed . If any Christian be robbed or anything stolen from him , let the amount be returned to him willingly , and ` he will gain his life . If any one dares , after this order , to stretch forth his hand to plunder the Nazarenes , he shall be torn limb from limb ; and all that he possesses shall be given as a spoil . We have taken this resolve , as owing to the friendship which we have with the king of the Romans , we would do favour to this Christian . We exempt from imposts the religious who are in the churches of the Christians throughout the territories of our realm ; let the relics of their dead be given them ; let them build over them memorial chapels , according to the custom among the Romans . I Sapor, king of Persia , the son of Hormuzd , the Terrible, I have given forth this order, and I have determined it. It is not permitted to the kings who shall come after me to dissolve the peace between the two realms , or to awaken and renew persecution against the Christians before the conclusion of the hundred years after the taking of Nisibis .That was the will of Hormuzd , the great and powerful god of the Sun and of the Fire , the god after him, that there should be peace between the realms for a hundred years . It is permitted to the Persians to transact business with the Romans, to buy and sell, to engage in commerce together. May the peace of our kingdom last for many years ! ' Thereupon the Romans lifted up their voices to bless Sapor ; they praised him for a long time ; and the echoes of the charming generosity which swayed his heart were returned to him in the shouts coming from their camp . They named him the Father of their kingdom. When the tyrant had heard enough of their felicitations , the two kings arose from their thrones , and returned to camp with their chieftains .

On the morrow towards the morning, according to the secret arranged between the two kings, the drum was beaten between the camps . The soldiers of both kings were divested of their arms. At that moment they were stirred to send forth their voices with a series of songs of all sorts , Persian and Roman. Joy and gladness prevailed in the camps of both sides. They were much astonished at the change which had taken place ; they clapped their hands , and stamped with their feet ; they rejoiced one with the other, and their glad voices were heard a long distance off . The two kings moved their camps . The two sides approached each other . Their mouths were full of laughter , and their tongues filled with gratitude . They were in peace, and friendly with one another . One embraced the other, and they kissed each other. There was great joy between the two powerful governments , the like of which had never occurred since the world existed . After this occurrence , Jovian said to Sapor : ' If it be your will , the remembrance of this day should be recorded in writing for those who shall come after us, and also of those events which have occurred until this day .' Sapor said : ' My son, it is not appropriate that this record be prepared in our territory, for many people would think that Nisibis had been taken by force from you on account of the trouble you had experienced by being locked up in our country. But let us repair to the frontiers ; let this document be indited there , and let it be confirmed by the sign-manual of our chiefs ; and so it shall be known to all the world, that after the two sides had made peace and become reconciled , and had eaten and drunk together , Nisibis was given up to us in compensation for the pillage of our country by the free will of the Romans settled in their country and thankful for our kindness. This speech pleased Caesar, and he agreed to it . The two kings proceeded from the land of the Aramaeans to go to the frontiers with the pomp of their armies and their imposing camps . When Sapor passed into the tracts of land which the Romans had subdued of his realm, and saw that it was inhabited , and the contentment of its inhabitants , he dismounted from his horse ; with his two hands he thanked Jovian for his goodness ; while the population of the country wished them well, and came to meet these kings , gave thanks to Jovian in the presence of their king Sapor, and the nobles and chiefs of Persia ; so that even through this , the friendliness between Jovian and the Persians grew stronger. When they arrived at the frontier they found Nisibis stripped of its inhabitants , for all its people had gone to Edessa as soon as they learnt that the fortress was given to the Persians , and that the two kings had made a new contract on oath for the peace of the realms . They prepared a document on the frontier regarding Nisibis and the peace of the churches in Persia , to last for a hundred years according to the conditions which the kings had made. Nisibis was surrendered to the Persians , devoid of its inhabitants , in the month of August (Ab) in the year 674, according to the Greek reckoning . Jovian was satisfied in his mind that, by making peace between the two powerful governments , he would be able by his skill to rescue his troops without trouble and harm from the fetters with which they had found themselves bound . He had not yet set foot upon the territory of his kingdom , when the news of the salvation of the churches was sped throughout all the lands of the Romans ; for his decree was proclaimed to the extreme parts of his realm, that the churches were to be opened , and the welfare of their children increased , that the holy priests who were expelled from their cities owing to the firmness of their convictions should return with honour to their churches with the holy assembly of God . He authorized the bishops of the churches in writing, that they should affix the signet seals upon the treasuries of the idols, and upon the houses of false instruction , until he returned in peace to his kingdom . He restored to the churches the treasures which Julian in his madness had taken from them. The faith of the Christian king is to be admired ; for before he entered into his realm of power , and was willing to work in his kingdom for his Church , God was his first care ; and this he helped on by his letters , confirming it , and putting it above all else ; its horn was strengthened , and became exalted over all the cults . It set its heel on the neck of its calumniators .

The news of the arrival of the Christian king spread fear over all the erring crowds , especially on the people of the crucifiers . When they saw that the others had succeeded , and that their horn was lifted up, they died through the others' joy, and their horn was humbled , their spirit fallen , and in them was accomplished that which is spoken in the Psalms , ' they were astonished suddenly,' thanks to the All-good who judged with mercy, though He did not omit to punish us , but looked upon the humbling of His Church ; He removed the wicked king from life ; and wrought salvation for it by the hands of a Christian king. The blessed legions of the Romans , true Christians , who were sent to Edessa , when they learnt that Jovian was going to the frontiers , clothed themselves in white, and brought gifts. They went to meet him to please him. When the wise man saw them , he rejoiced in them immensely, and received them affectionately ; and as friends and relatives he showed them honour and presented them with gifts, and made them important in his kingdom. For he had been informed of the faith of the Edessenians, how they had delivered themselves over to death in confirmation of Him whom they served. Jovian loved them in his heart, and wished to do them good according to the worthiness of the trials of their faith ; for he had determined to enter into his capital by way of the desert , so as not to put to trouble the provinces in his journey up. He wrote letters of consolation and peace to the Edessenians , thanking their city. He extolled and blessed their faith . He promised them in his letters by oath, saying: ' If God give me the time to settle myself in repose upon the throne of my kingdom, I shall remember your city and not forget it. I will magnify it , and make it powerful, more than all the cities of my realm . I will give you splendid benefits according to the merit of your actions ; for it is not right that we should rob you of the reward of your Confession of Faith , O ye, who delivered yourselves over to death in confirmation of your Master ; for Christ will then show you the hope of your souls . It was my desire to come to you, had I been able . Matters of necessity have prevented me from doing so, as I would not put a charge on the city with the three armies that are with me. The Lord willing, and He keep us in peace in our realm , I shall without delay discharge the advice and promises made in writing to your city . Be firm in spirit, and constant in your faith ! '

When the Edessenians learnt from the writings of the king that it was his intention to pass through their city later, they were extremely troubled . They were in great grief; as they had longed for his arrival, and desired to get a sight of him. They sent in advance five distinguished persons of the city to beg him to come to Edessa, so that at his hands the sacrifice might be offered to God that was vowed on his behalf while stationed in the land of his enemies. When these who had been sent to him arrived , Jovian was pleased with them, received them with great respect, and kept them by him. He praised them before the chief men of his realm , and said : ' I have not in my government a city as dear to me as Edessa , or one which has found such favour and mercy in my sight like it by reason of its firm faith.' The men who were sent to him said : ' Now, my lord the king, if indeed our city has found favour and compassion in the eyes of your ruling power , let not the glory and hope of the Christian city be in vain by your returning and passing her by. Day by day she looks forward in hope that you will brighten her countenance by your visit, that she may find glory through you among the pagan cities which are around her. If the wicked king , when he saw Ḥaran taken by his paganism , and sunk in his folly, turned from his way and went to the city of the demented , in which he held festivals to his idols and a marriage-feast to his fallen ones (the city of these fallen gloried in the mad king for a time) , how much more to -day should the Christian city receive glory ; the faithful city stamped with your likeness and immersed in your faith, ever looking forward to your coming and celebrating the feasts of rejoicing at the peace given to the churches ; that you should there offer sacraments and sacrifices of thanksgiving to the Lord who has given you the crown , and who , by your hands , has caused peace to dwell in the churches ! In order that you may know, lord king, how deeply the populace of our city is attached to you by love divine , let Your Divinity ask the Roman Christians who are with you how much our city desires to see you. Truly, more than a blind man who longs for the light is the population of Edessa athirst and longing for the day when she shall receive the radiance of your royal person. Continual power is offered up to God in our churches for the peace of your kingdom , that your years may be prolonged in your realm , and for the orthodoxy of your faith. It is most surprising how the young people and children of Edessa, who have left off studying their books at school , are ever ready to peruse in their houses of instruction the hymns of the church, which the savants have composed for the orthodox of our faith . When they are dismissed by their heads, they first go outside the gates of our city by the road which leads hither to the frontiers, and they bow three times to the exalted crown of your Majesty. Then they separate one from the other, and go home to their parents . Not only the children , but also the men and women , all the persons who are in our city, have no other concern or idea but this : when will your presence shine on them ? And also the people who are all anxious for your arrival ; this is all they wish for. Far be it from your consideration , lord king, to deprive them of their request ; for while rejoicing and delighting our city, you will mercifully receive the respect of your kingdom .' Jovian, being a man of feeling , on hearing this from those who were sent to him, his eyes filled with tears , and he was about to weep. He entered his tent and wept . When he with weeping had stilled the tears of his eyes, he rose and went out to them. He spoke to them pleasantly, and said : 'My original intention was to spare your city and that of all our kingdom, by passing over the land peopled by the nations, so as to be no incubus whatsoever to the cities in our realm . Now, however, that I have learnt what is your will , I will accomplish your wish, and fulfil your desire .' He sent for Arsaces , his general . He entrusted to his hands the entire force of the Romans , except twenty thousand soldiers who remained with the king. He dispatched him in advance to the capital of Constantine by the northern road which went up by the frontiers. He , with a force of horsemen left with him, set out to go to Edessa . Edessa, apprised of his arrival, was glad and delighted , and was transported with joy. All her streets were draped in white ; her porches and terraces shone with silks ; and even the gates of the city, outside and within, were crowned with curtains of all colours . In all the streets and terraces of Edessa dense cords were stretched for the great quantity of lamps and lanterns which the Edessenians had prepared, as with the pomp of great illumination should be the entry of the faithful one into their city . The proposed entry of this prudent man was highly esteemed ; as though it were the divine light which shone on them, so did the news of the arrival of the Christian king shine for them , and enchant them. They expressly took upon themselves the weight of his service ; and the clever experts in the house of Abgar were ordered to exercise great care in preparing an apartment for his use worthy of his high state . And so also outside the Eastern gate of the city by which the king would enter. For a distance of two stadia from it, they set up for him a canopy of wool and red purple with choice designs and fine work of skilful artists , above (! ) which were columns supporting the canopy . Round the base of the columns the artists put three rows of apples of gold and silver ; above, on the top of the canopy, was placed the cross of gold , which had been made with great care for king Abgar . In his days it was fixed in the royal palace . Within the canopy was placed the great chair as the king's seat , in a way that the king might there be visible to all the populace of the city . The city having been adorned and beautified , the heads of the church and officers of the city, clothed in white, went out to meet him , so that he might be received at a great distance from the city. When they came and arrived before him, and he saw that they were bright and joyous , and they glittered in their garments , he realized from their appearance that they were Edessenians . And when they approached to do obeisance to him , he bent over on his horse, and received with his hand their homage , speaking to them as to relatives and friends . He laughed with joy, and said to them : ' The request which you made to us has put you to great trouble and to no end of inconvenience ; not only yourselves but all the other cities which are passed on our way ; and this for the sake of your good wishes .' The Bishop of Edessa said to him : 'We pray the power of your royal personage and of your justice, that my lord the king say not these words . Christ who dwells within you will tell you, that more than a blind man who desires to see the light, do the cities desire the time when your reign of righteousness shall shine upon them. For all the countries of your realm are Christian in truth, even though for a time they agreed to paganism out of fear for the tyrant king, and did his will . Your Divinity can learn the truth about this from the letters which were sent to us from Antioch and other cities inhabited by us on the route of your journey. And as to a city which is receiving favour and mercy in the sight of your Majesty, they have written persuasive requests to us ; and we also , as servants enjoying the favour of their masters , bring near to you our requests and prayers on their behalf, begging that they shall not be deprived of the joy of your visit ! Really, my lord the king , not all the countries on the territory of your realm will suffice to render you thanks for your work in the cause of righteousness , and for your perfect labours in defence of your faith on behalf of the churches of God. Your sad weeping for the persecution and oppression of our people, your continual sighs for the bondage and humiliation of our existence , your constant prayers in face of the pain and dishonour to which we were subjected , these-and what further claim is necessary ? See how your faith has worked its own in the land of your enemies ! Peace was due there for the churches of Persia a hundred years ago. It has been accorded to her children owing to your wisdom ; for you have brought about reconciliation between the two powerful realms . After the conquests which your faith has made, and the splendid acknowledgements which our government pays you , you may well believe , my lord the king, that your visit to the cities of your realm is esteemed . And you will, therefore , henceforth lay this to heart, that great is the joy caused by your arrival in the various cities . ' Jovian rendered thanks to God for this . He was very averse from glory ; he hated ostentation ; he was a humble man, and his humility was natural and unassumed . See how far he carried it out ; behold an instance of his good quality of simplicity ; he restrained the pace of his horse , so that the horse which the Bishop of Edessa had mounted might be able to come up with him, and that he might converse with him, and narrate to him what God had wrought by his hands for the churches of God which were in Persia. When they had conversed, and gone on their way, the nobles and chiefs of Haran turned their faces Q2 towards him to do him homage. When he noticed that there was no ecclesiastic with them, he turned his face from them in wrath, and sent them from before him. He did not permit them to approach him to do him homage but by an interpreter . He asked them concerning the clergy of the church of Ḥaran, what cause had prevented them from coming to greet the king . With trembling and fear, they answered and confessed the truth ; they did not deny that the greater part followed the will of Julian the king ; out of fear for his commandment they had changed their country , for they were ashamed on account of their acquaintances to appear in our city . The noble-spirited , who held out and kept their faith, were cast into the ditches and sent to rugged and remote places. Their time-limit is not due for their returning to their country. Jovian was angry with them, and said to them : ' I well remember the sufferings which the people of Ḥaran inflicted upon the servants of God knowingly, when with sounds of praise and glory they petitioned the tyrant for a long time, so that by assenting to the mind of the mad king, he might enter into their calumniations , and by their exciting him against the churches, they might carry off their treasures , and the church would be void of its services. The worthy priests who had been brought up in it, because they did not renounce their firm attitude, and would not belie their faith , were cast into the ditches of evil omen by command of that miserable Julian . Now I will avenge myself on them for the crimes of which they were guilty, and I will visit their paganism upon their own heads .' He commanded that they should be put in irons, and bound in chains be hurried into Edessa , that their cause and their judgement might be heard there. The Edessenians, who were with the king, prayed him not to send them to their city. They said to the king : 'If your Majesty sends these persons to Edessa before their case and judgement be heard , they will perish horribly. They will be cast into the fire by the Edessenians ; for Edessa burns like fire with zeal against Ḥaran, that is to say, on account of the paganism of its children. Not with Julian did their paganism begin ; even in the days of the Christian kings , like a viper in its hole was paganism hidden in them, even when they could not, through fear of the Christian kings, manifest it. Now, my lord the king, if you would show a good will , let these persons be sent to the city of Constantinople ; there let their cause and their judgement be heard .' The people of Tilya, who were with the king, disputed with the Edessenians seriously ; they cried out against them before the king, saying : ' What is this favour which the Edessenians have found , that they command Your Divinity without reason ? No wonder a man is enraged when he thinks of what the Edessenians intended to do against our fortress when they drove and threw bundles of tares from their city, cruelly throwing it on to our city, hoping, Heaven forbid, that the feet of the unclean and impure people of Haran might step upon our fortress . Like blind leaders they were obstacles to their own city ; let them be sent to their own city, cast in irons and bound with chains, and there let inquiry and judgement be held upon them, so that by the punishment of these impure ones, fear and trembling may be spread over all the inhabitants of their city.' These words pleased the king, and he did as they said to him. He sent them bound to Ḥaran, until he would send them a judge to hear them. When the subject of hostility to the faith of the church came to the fore, the king greatly praised Edessa, and said : ' Even though to-day, because of the fear of our power, the faith of Christ is uniformly spread in all our possessions , yet Edessa, more than all the other cities , gave evidence of her faith . At the time when paganism prospered and was overwhelming her, and the truth of the faith was hidden through fear of the wicked king's edict ; when the cities embraced and agreed to his error, Edessa the blessed, and the city of the Lord , persisted in its faith ; and like the sun all publicly her faith shone forth , nor did she hesitate because of the threats and wrath of the tyrant . She was no longer afraid of his writs , but she belittled his letters , mocked at his paganism, and put the letter which he had sent her in the ordure of her sewers . When he became furious with his threats to destroy her, and was determined to proceed against her in his fury, she hurled insults at him in the letter which she wrote to him. As with stones, she stoned him with her insults . Indignation took hold of the madman, and he swore by his idols that he would not enter thither. The city consecrated to Christ , where His blessing dwelt , who should not bless it , and give it honour ? If it has received favour and mercy from its Creator, still more shall it be exalted and esteemed by us weak ones .' Having praised Edessa in many ways, he lifted up his eyes ; and seeing it before him he stretched out his arm , blessed it, and made the sign of the Cross to it, saying : 'May the Lord bless your bulwarks ; may He multiply and increase your inhabitants ; may your name be raised , and your faith blessed in all the corners of the world ! May the Lord give me the occasion to do you justice for your labours in the faith , to lift up your head, to make you powerful, and I will make you the first of all the cities of my realm ; and I will make you distinguished for the Lord's sake , when He shall grant me the privilege to be seated on the throne of my kingdom !' When Jovian had finished blessing Edessa , the Edessenians who were with him approached him, and begged of him to send them in advance of him. They said to Jovian : ' We have learnt , my lord the king, that several peoples are assembled in our city from all the country of Mesopotamia, that is to say, to greet you and to do homage on your arrival . If Your Divinity wills , bid your servants pass before you, to regulate the crowds of our city and to separate the men from the women, the young people from the children, the old men from the old women, also those who are pregnant and those who have children in their arms ; so that no accident whatsoever, in consequence of the large and dense crowds assembled, mar the joy to our city at the hour when your blessed arrival shall shine upon them. We have learnt of a surety that the Edessenians brought out of the gates of our city the sick who are on beds , that they may find relief from their sufferings as soon as your royal and true faith shall fall as dew upon them.'

The king was pleased at the request of these men, and sent them before him to announce his arrival . With what glory and pomp and sounds of felicitation Edessa received the Christian king , we have not the time to write as it behoves, for God gave great joy to Edessa by the entry of the righteous hero . It is a matter for wonderment what God wrought during these days of feasting which Jovian set apart unto God, out of joy for the peace of the churches .

In the first days of the feast God wrought a public miracle by the hands of the Christian king. A Christian woman from the same village , named Maria , was the daughter of distinguished and renowned persons . She had been seriously ill for eight years, and because of her · grievous malady she was always praying for death . It happened that on the first day of the feast, her servants took her in an invalid's chair to carry her to the church to pray for death for herself ; behold , the king met her. The soldiers of Caesar rebuked her, and pushed her from before him . This righteous king, on seeing how she suffered from her malady, was very pained . He ordered that she should be brought to him, thinking that she was going to ask him for some gift . This sensible woman reflected within herself, and said : ' Perchance this is God's happening ! ' When the servants brought her to him, he asked her what she desired . She made a great effort to reply to the king, because of the sufferings and the pains which held check over her. With a feeble voice she prayed him, and besought him thus : ' I pray you, merciful king and full of grace , have pity on me so that I may be healed of this malady which I have ; for it is eight years since it has tormented me , and it has not yet left my frame .' The king was troubled by these words , and said to her : ' O woman, why do you speak so ironically with regard to my feeble powers, for I am a sinful man ? Had it been told me what was your desire , I would not have let you be presented before me. I am not a prophet that I can heal you from your malady, nor am I an apostle that I can restore you to health .' The woman said to him : 'King and Master, it is not healing that I request of you. I know well that my sins do not deserve that favour . But, because I have learnt from several persons concerning you, that you are a just and holy man, that your prayer is heard and received before the good God, I, afflicted one, beg of you , and I , miserable one , supplicate you to beseech God for me, that He may quickly put an end to my life, since I am wasted by sickness and suffering .' This wise man , full of kindness, was troubled for her sake, and he encouraged her, and said to her : ' Go , woman, hope in God, do not despair on account of your malady ; for it is in the power of God to visit you speedily with His mercies .' He consoled her, and sent her from before him. He entered into the house of God , afflicting himself, and taking to heart the pains of the sick woman . He gave orders that in front of the steps of the sanctuary they should spread for him a hair-blanket. The servants did as he had commanded them . The righteous king approached in sadness to apply himself to prayer on behalf of the woman who was sick. He inclined himself, and put his head between his knees. Devoutly did he pray unto God. When it was time for the reading of the Scriptures, the row of bishops were waiting for the king to rise from his prayer, that they might then enter their seats in the stalls. The king was long at his prayer, and the bishops waited in astonishment, asking one another what was now troubling the king ? One of the bishops , named John , who happened to meet the king when he entered the church, answered his comrades , and said to them : ' A sick woman , who has been tormented with a malady for eight years, begged of him when he entered the church to pray to God on her behalf, that she might be released from her sickness . That is the supplication of the king, my brothers ; I tell you the truth.' When the bishops , his companions who were nine, learnt from the bishop John the cause of the sadness of the king, they were much astonished, and admired the consideration of this Christian man. They were surprised, and said : ' If in the case of this king, a layman , who is not obliged to pay heed to the sick and suffering, all this humility which he evinced before God was on behalf of the malady of this feeble woman , how much more does it devolve upon us to take upon ourselves the charge of the flock which has been entrusted to us ; that we should pray without ceasing , and supplicate ungrudgingly for the sick and oppressed, and those suffering from divers maladies .' The bishops exchanged ideas with each other . They did not go up to the stall on that day ; they were bowed in prayer until the moment of the reading of the Gospel of our Redeemer. It was known to all those assembled in the church , that this supplication had been wholly because of the malady of Maria ; all , filled with sadness , joined in prayer to God to give her relief. When the time arrived for the priest to go before the altar and to consecrate, Jovian poured forth his soul before God on the hairblanket on which he was ; in sorrow he prayed and supplicated God for that woman, that rest might be granted her from her malady. When he rose from his prayer, and took the communion , and the service began, he presented gifts to the churches , according to the power of the king, and also to the crowds of the city assembled in the church , in the outer and inner courts . He gave them gifts not to be despised , that they might rejoice and take pleasure in the feast of the peace of the churches . When he was about to leave the church , the crowds of the church lifted up their voices in praise of the king, the believer . For a long time they praised him and extolled his faith . On going out, in front of the door of the church the sick woman came face to face with him, and she besought him amid tears and groans . When he saw her, he was not angry with her ; but he made a sign, and calmed the multitudes of the city , that he might give a hearing to her prayer. She besought him, and said : ' I pray you, lord, pride and glory of the church , I would not be left out in sharing the joy which is taking place in your realm. But I also would rejoice and take pleasure in the marriage-feast of the church in which the cities and the villages of your realm rejoice.' Jovian said to her : ' Believe me , woman, if you had only known how much I have suffered on your behalf, you would not have loaded me with your requests . For you must understand in reason that what you ask is in the hands of God , and not of man . My daughter, as far as it lies in the power of a suffering mortal, I have prayed for you to God ; and now it is for the Godhead to visit you with His mercy, if He will . He alone has abundant mercies for His creatures ; and it is from Him that help flows to those in need. Pray unto Him, and ask Him to help you .' The woman said to him : ' I pray you, my lord , it is also in your power as in God's to visit a suffering wretch.' That true Christian thought that she was asking him for alms , and offered her gifts to the full ; but she would not accept them from him . She said unto him : ' My lord , this is not what I was looking for ; I have no need of it. I have in truth but one request of thee , namely, release from my sufferings .' Jovian said to her : ' O woman, I have told you once , that that which you have asked of me is placed in the hands of God.' The woman replied : 'I see, my Master, that the hand of the Lord is with you ; that in your right hand there is concealed a power, giving healing to the suffering. Why then, my lord and king, do you withhold from me restoration to health ? Simply stretch forth your hand to me, and I shall be healed of my malady.'

The bishops were astounded, and marvelled at the faith of the woman. They begged the king not to refuse the request of the believer. They said to him : ' My lord the king, you must not treat this matter as a joke ; it is perhaps an act of the Lord , that it may be known publicly to all the world that the hand of the Lord is with you to heal.' Jovian said to them: 'Why then, my brethren , have you rightly and like trusted stewards received the gift of healing , and have been accredited with the keys of the places on high and those beneath, if you for the time being put this gift of your trust upon the shoulders of a feeble and miserable man , for I alone am aware of my faults, and sorrow for my failings ? The bishops replied to him : ' Heaven guard your righteous Majesty , that no tittle of the defilement of sin touch you ; since your faith being pure and your justice clean, you will be able to appear with frank countenance before the Lord at the revelation of His coming, when the Church shall confess before her Master, that you have been a tower of strength in her trials. You besprinkled her with the blessed dew of your sacred counsels ; you tempered from off her the anger of the tyrant ; and prayers are continually being offered to God by the mouths of her children on your behalf , that He may prolong your life on your royal throne for the sake of her peace and that of her children.' Jovian gave thanks and praise to God for these happenings , that by his hands He had brought salvation to His church . That woman did not cease to load him with her requests . He, true Christian , was not angered at her prayer ; but by his pleasant words he consoled her , and said to her : ' Why then, O woman , do you trouble yourself uselessly, in asking of me that which is beyond me ? My daughter , call upon God to send you healing for your grief, for all things difficult are easy unto Him. ' The woman answered him : ' Is it difficult for you, my lord , to stretch forth your hand unto me , miserable one ; is it possible that my illness is a veritable abomination to you ? You withdraw from my side , so as not to approach me . The Christ that dwells in you did not shrink back at the illness of the woman in pain who approached Him . If that pure and sincere One, Saint of saints , did not recoil from the afflicted woman , you , my lord king, is it right for you to keep your servant at arm's length ? Heaven forbid that you should do this , for you are a man of pity .' Then Jovian was troubled by the words of the woman ; and , excited by the warmth of her faith , he approached her and held out his hand to her, saying : ' My daughter, may the hidden right hand that gave us revelation , and brought healing to the sick, visit you in mercy through my feeble hands ! May it give you healing ! ' At the very words of the good man she recovered from her malady, and stood up . Her colour changed ; she was completely healed , as if she had never been sick. She gave thanks and glory to God, who visited her with His mercies . She knelt and prostrated herself before the Christian king . She kissed his feet, weeping ; but he thrust her from his feet, saying : 'My daughter, offer thanks unto God , for it is He who has visited you with His mercy, not I.' Then the Edessenians lifted up their voices to bless him ; they roused themselves to give him praise . Sounds of glorification of all kinds were shouted forth to him by the crowds of the city, so much so that the Edessenians would scarcely allow him to reach his camp that day . The true man was angry at the sounds of vainglory which were given him. He feared that it might be but the transient glory which dies and passes away, devoid of the eternal glory for which he was waiting.

God worked several other marvels by the hands of this true Christian ; but the time is too short to extend them all in this narrative . That which we have more or less chronicled is as a memorial to the children of sin, in order that they may learn some part of the story , how the hand of the Lord accompanied Jovian in all his doings , he being a man who burned with the love of God with all his heart and with all his soul . He kept His commandments , and acted agreeably to His will , doing what was good before Him all his days . He walked in the ways of Constantine , and did not turn from them either to the right or to the left . He exalted and did honour to the Church ; and restored to it the treasures which Julian , the wicked , had taken from it . He exempted from taxes the saintly covenanters of God . He wrote letters of peace , of reconciliation and pardon , of esteem and reverence , to all the churches of his realm. He wrote letters even to the other governments concerning the peace of the churches and the release of the Christians. He purified the realm of the Romans from the defilement of the sacrifices of paganism. He overthrew their tables , and destroyed their altars . He hounded out the misleading teachings , and laid their houses of assembly in ruins . He removed their treasures to the treasuries of the church. He put heavy taxes upon the people of the crucifiers ; and commanded that the chiefs of Rome, who had been persecuted for the Lord's sake, be given double for their possessions of that which their governors had taken from them . These true Christians would not take more than that to which they were entitled. Jovian sent and had them brought with great honour from Rome, as though they were men of higher station than himself. He paid them respect, and kissed their hands and feet at the joints . They prayed him not to tarnish their work for the faith by some evanescent honours. Jovian did not assent to their requests, but compulsorily, though they did not wish it , he made them chiefs of his Senate. Jovian loved to walk in the right ways of the Lord, to act with justice and fairness during the whole of his reign . He reigned eight months after he sat upon the throne of Constantine in the city of Byzantium . The kingdom was established in his hands ; his reputation was exalted in all the country ; peace reigned in the churches during his days as in the days of Constantine, and when his spirit rejoiced and his soul delighted itself in the salvation which God wrought by his hands for the churches, he asked God in prayer, and said : ' I pray Thee, Lord, mighty God of my fathers , if I have favour in Thy sight, now that my eyes have seen the salvation of our Church , gather in the days of Thy servant in peace . Shelter under the wings of Thy mercy Thy Church after me ; for God is always near unto those who worship Him ; He listens to their prayers , and carries out their will. Hear the prayer of the just king , and consent to the request of the Christian king .' On the bed of repose, his death occurred in the year 675, according to the Greek reckoning . The just man died ; and was buried with dignity , such as the conduct of his life deserved .

I , feeble servant of Jesus Christ, Apolloris , the confidant ofJovian the king, prepared these documents for the distinguished and beloved one of God , Mar Abdel, chief of the convent of Sndrun Meḥuza , that wise man and lover of knowledge, who requested us by his servant to write for him the history , the sequence , and the methods of the war which took place in our days . He asked us to begin our history with the sad death of Constantine , the believer, as far as the days of Jovian, restorer of the churches . We have carried out the will, according to request, of the illustrious priest , who observed such honourable conduct . We have written these accounts, one after the other, in form and order as they occurred and took place ; we have neither exaggerated nor diminished in that which has happened before . We have been witnesses of the events . We have refrained from repeating the story of those things which had been done wrongly and wickedly in Ḥmatz , that is to say, by the machinations of Julian , the tyrant , during those few days when he interrupted his journey and went there . He did this, having heard of the fine edifice of the church, which Constantine , lover of Christ, had constructed in this city ; may his remembrance be for a blessing for ever. Amen !

The pagans having boasted in their zeal of the great temple which they had built for their idols in the heights of their city, Julian , the madman, was himself seized with zeal to go to the city of the Ḥamazians to stretch forth his hand against the edifice of the church, and to destroy it. When he entered and saw it , he was struck with its beautiful construction. He blessed the builder ; and thought it a pity to destroy it . He conceived the idea of turning it into a house of worship for his idols. He brought thither his sacrifices, and carried out there the mysteries of his paganism ; he closed it , and sealed it with his signét . He returned again to Antioch , having resumed the route of his journey . It was also my wish, O man of God, to insert in this history a record of the conversion of Astina the queen , which has considerable interest for the penitent ; but as the business of the King of Kings is already pressing for some time, I have on this account written in haste little out of much for you, my dear one , that you may peruse it until we have fair time to take up afresh the thread of the story of the astounding conversion of this daughter of the pagans , -the vine, noxious as it intoxicates , that from amid simple briers put forth the beautiful flowers of penitence , at the pleasant breath of whose scent the celestials marvelled and rejoiced , and the perfume of whose conversion even Jovian tasted at a distance . Having heard that Sapor threatened her, he returned immediately from Edessa to Nisibis that , by the subtlety of his good counsels , he might help the penitence of the daughter of the pagans. The Christian king had the power to turn the evil design which Sapor had against Astina . Up to this point he could by his knowledge influence Sapor to a kindly frame of mind , so as to leave Astina to reign in freedom ; he , indeed , was the good shepherd who was always busy with his flock . He rejoiced in the salvation of the lost, and sought the penitence of sinners. Glory, praise and adoration , song and exaltation , now and for evermore , world without end . Amen ! Amen !

APPENDIX

ܤ appendix

(There is a lacuna here in the text of the space of five lines. )

-'Is it that I desire power ? I am a philosopher ; I will not even remain in the capital. I will go to Athens , whence I came .' When the king heard this, he was beside himself, and said : 'Whoever shall bring the business of Alotra before me is the enemy of my kingdom . ' No one dared to speak further of this matter .

One day during evening prayer, worried by her maladies and pains , Alotra threw herself down at the base of a column of the church , and went to sleep . When the service was over, and all had departed , her servants sought her, but did not find her. Towards the third hour of the night she awoke from her sleep . Looking round, and seeing that there was no one , she rose up, and went about all alone . As she was bemoaning herself while walking up the street, called the ' Street of gold ' , a demon spoke to her, and said : ' What ails you, Alotra , daughter of Licnus , my friend ? Julian has not given to you what he has taken from you. ' She answered : ' No , Sir.' She thought he was a policeman (watchman of the street) that called her. She approached him trembling with fright . He said to her: 'Because of the friendship of your father, who worshipped me and offered incense to me, and paid me sacrifices , I will return to you all that Julian has taken from you ; but go to the king, and say to him, that Julian shall come and swear to me by that image that protects the hours of the city, and I will take him, and he will not be able to save himself from my hands , until he has returned to you everything that he has taken from you .'

She went rejoicing to the queen in the morning , and spoke to her of it , and the queen narrated it to the king . When the king heard it, he spoke to her, and said: ' Do not tell me any more of this , but tell it to Samderun, the advocate. The king was astonished and marvelled at this business ; he sent for Alotra, and she came before him ; she threw herself at his feet, and did obeisance , weeping pitifully. She prayed him, and said : ' Compassionate me , my Master. I am not a stranger to you . You are my true brother. My parents confided me to your care . I have no other refuge, my Master, if it is not your Highness . I am your sister in affection, and of your kith and kin in body. It is not God -fearing that you neglect my youth. I have no other left as heir ; no family connexions or near relatives . See, my lord the king, my parents governed the kingdom . Watch, do not turn your face from me because of my father who was a tyrant ; but for my mother's sake , who was the sister of your father, have pity on me ; for it was not the fortune of one of his chiefs that Julian grasped and took, but the throne and the crown ; he had his eyes upon the kingdom. He was aiming high, to be king over you . ' When the king heard this from Alotra, he murmured within himself, and said to her : ' Now what is it that I should do to you ? ' She said to him : ' Let him swear to me by the image that guards the hours of the city, and I shall never have another word to say to him. ' When the king told the Senate that which the demon said to Alotra, they were in great surprise ; and when Julian heard of it, he told Magnus , his magician and friend . He took him at night-time and went to the clock- tower. As they entered the gate, that demon began to howl and say: 'Where are you entering, Julian, robber, snatcher, and liar ? Beware of the God whom you have belied . You have sworn by the Holy Cross and by the Communion, and it is for this you have spoken the lie ; but men have not acquiesced in your falsehoods . If I pronounce the great Name of God in all this city touching your false dealings , I will make a laughing- stock of you throughout all the earth . You have been longing after the fortune of Licnus , my friend ; and with the fortune that was given to him you wish to enrich yourself. Woe to thee, thou art fallen into my hands ! It is not the bright radiance of God ; you will not escape safe and sound. ' When Julian heard this , he was in great fear .

Magnus , the magician , calmed that demon, and said : R 'My lord, let not your Highness be disturbed for him . All that you command him he will do, provided that it be not published and mocked at , because he is not a simple man . ' That demon said to Magnus, the magician : ' I will not give the fortune of Licnus , who offered me sacrifices, to another who does not pay me with sacrifices , nor offer me incense. If Julian wishes to listen to me in that which I shall say to him, I will make him master of all the earth , and the kingdom of all the territory of the Romans shall be given to him. From one corner of the world to the other his name shall be preached . His kingdom shall be in the ascendant and conquer for a hundred years , when once his leadership takes hold of all the kingdoms . But if he wishes that anything that he has done be not divulged and published , and that he be not made a laughing- stock, so that the Christians burn his body as they have done in the case of his brother, then let him at once throw frankincense before me .' Magnus, the magician , said to Lulinus (Julian ) : ‘ See now, my brother, which of the two alternatives are you ready to adopt ? ' Julian answered him : ' Two great misfortunes have come upon me. If I am exposed , I shall be laughed at , and I shall have a bad reputation in all the land . A man learned in the sciences , and named philosopher, and who in all the learned assemblies was wont to receive, as it is fitting for philosophers , gifts and honours ; to whom with their wives and children men rendered homage as to a king,—and then after this great reputation , that it should be proclaimed in the capital which contains people from all countries that Julian, son of Aesculapius , who was called a philosopher, for the love of gold , robbery was found in him ; that he dared to belie his oaths to the Cross and the Holy Sacrament , and that he renounced God, his Creator, and became a stranger to the sacraments of the Christians , and to the sacred sign of baptism . Alas , O Julian ! to what a byword and shame did the love of gold lead him! I, therefore, much prefer to offer incense and to bring sacrifices , rather than to be mocked at, and have an evil reputation .'

Magnus , the magician, ran at once and brought the incense, gave it to Julian and he offered it to devils ; he inclined his head, and worshipped them ; that one demon said to them : ' Go in peace . After three days come to me , as I have something to say to you .' After three days , Magnus , the magician, took Julian , and brought him down to the house of the watch . Magnus , the magician , opened the book of assemblies , that in which the names of all the demons were written . The demons at once assembled from every side, and came there . When Julian saw them that they entered flying , he trembled and was seized with fear. He hastened to make the sign of the Cross on his forehead . At the same moment all took to flight . Magnus said to him : ' Julian , my friend , why have you made the sign of the Cross ? ' Julian said : 'I did not know that they would be afraid of the Cross , and take to flight , otherwise I would not have done it . ' Magnus said to him : ' If you would like to see them assembling about you , to show you the hidden things, and teach you the secrets , that you may enter into their mysteries and perfect yourself at their appearance to become a member of their pact ; that they show you the things that are hidden , and teach you the things that are treasured up ; that they make you king of kings, and subject to you all the nations and kingdoms ; that they raise you above all , and that people listen to you as servants to their masters-this sign of the Cross will never do it for you .' Magnus summoned them again ; and they came with their teacher, Satan. Julian inclined his head, and adored them . The Prince of the demons ascended , and seated himself on the throne of fantasy and trumpery, the throne of fire, with the armies of demons who were stationed before him in fear , and he lifted up his voice , and said unto them : 'You know that the kingdom and power of all this world, it is I who hold it . The kings of all the earth adored me ; they offered their sacrifices unto me ; the realms of the Babylonians , Persians , and Medes ; of Sheba , Saba, India , and Abyssinia ; of Egypt , Palestine, and all the barbarous nations situated on all the sides of the earth ; these belong to us and worship us, with their wives and their children ; and even great Rome ; there was not one people or kingdom from the beginning of the world that did not worship us , except this Constantine , deprived of his reason, and owing to his defective mind . For I have taken the trouble to go into all the corners of the earth, and have passed through all the realms of the nations , and visited them. I made peace in all the powers , and then returned hither. This Constantine renounced the worship of his ancestors . He agreed to the error of the Galileans . He called himself king , only he and his sons . When I saw that they left me, and worshipped Him who was crucified by the Jews on the wood , for the friendship I had with his ancestors , I had patience with him for a long time. But seeing that he would not turn from his error, I took away from him his life and that of his two sons also, who wished to reign after their father. As for him too , who has survived of this family in these days, I will deprive him of life, and make him without the heritage of children. I will cause Julian to arise in his realm , and I will make him Autocrat over all the earth . He alone shall be king from the East to the West . His kingdom shall endure a hundred years. To him all the kingdoms of the earth shall submit . What I have not done for his ancestors , I shall do for him. As in a bed of comfort all the forces of my service shall have comfortable rest in him. He shall be my temple , and I shall dwell in him ; nor will I leave it for ever, because I have found that he, alone, in all the kingdoms of my dominion, is anxious to carry out all my wishes . Arise , Julian, our king , prosper and succeed ! ' He rose immediately, and offered sacrifice . On the same night all the demons came to worship him. On the night of the morrow Magnus , the magician, took Julian and went outside the second wall, to the idols of Baal-zebub. They took with them Kuzu , the daughter of Magnus , the magician , who was pregnant ; they took off her clothes, and hung her up in the house of the idols by her belly until she was ripped open . They drew out of her womb alive the child, nine months old , and performed with it all kinds of superstitious rites of divination and enchantment. These workers of superstition came up from the earth , that is to say, demons from the lower world . Magnus, the magician , addressed them, and said to them : "The prince of the world and all his powers have deemed it fit to give the kingdom and the dominion to the son of your confession, Julian . Are you satisfied that he be king ? Will you help him, as you hold rule in this lower world ? ' All answered , and said : ' We will submit to him, because to him belongs all the power beneath the sky ; his power shall reign above all the powers , and that will endure a hundred years . His power shall be victorious .' After they had practised divination and enchantment with that child, they restored it to the womb of its mother, and brought her down from the cord upon which she was hanging. They placed her on the altar, and put on her frankincense . Julian approached , and lit the fire with the wood of laurel which was placed upon the altar. He lifted up his voice, and said : ' ORuler of this world, mighty power too of the chief demons and devils , those above the earth and those beneath : I pray you to receive the new and first sacrifice of Julian your new king, for the peace of the realm , for the repose of his government, and for the preservation of his life, for the term of a hundred years during which you have assigned unto him the kingdom.' At the same moment the demon entered into him, and dwelt in him as in a temple of idols . It was then that the Spirit of God departed from him, as He departed from Saul ; and the spirit of Satan ruled in him , and became master over him. From that hour everything that he did seemed to be done as through the machinations of demons . On the night when Julian sacrificed to demons , this vision appeared to one of the saints . He saw Julian standing in the thermal baths of Athens . He was perspiring, and his sweat smelt like perfumes . The angel of God , who held a sponge of fire in his hand , was wiping this perspiration from off his whole body. He who was worthy to see him in this condition said to the angel : ' Why do you wipe from him this pleasant odour ? ' And he replied : ‘ I am wiping from him the holy consecration which he put on in baptism. ' The saint said to him : 'Why, my master ? ' And the angel answered him : ' Because the Spirit of God has departed from him .' He who had been the witness of this vision kept silence , and said nothing to any one.

After several days the king pressed him to swear to Alotra by that idol which guards the hours . He said : ' It is enough for me. I have sworn twice by the Sacrament of the Christians, and by the Cross which they adore. If she insists, I will swear a thousand times by the Communion which the Christians have, and by the Cross which they worship ; but by the figure which is on high I will not swear.' The whole assembly of the Senate rose up against the king, and said to him : ' It is not God-fearing for a Christian man to forsake God, and devote himself to swearing by idols which the pagans worship. ' The servants of the royal house had no idea that Julian had renounced God, and brought sacrifices to demons. The king kept quiet , and made no reply. Then Alotra approached again , and besought the king. He was angry with her ; and she at once entered the queen's presence ; and daily she importuned for that which Julian had taken from her. At that time the war of the Barbarians was stirred up against the king. Because the Romans had no general , the king named Julian general for the war over all the armies of the Romans . When going to war against the enemies of the king, he sent for Magnus, the magician. He practised his enchantments , asking : 'Victory or not ?' He was told by the demons to make a feast, and to offer sacrifices to Hadarius and to Deus , to Hormuzd and to Serapis, and to Baal-shemin ; and they will also offer on your behalf. When he had brought the sacrifices in secret , he set out for the war, and conquered the Barbarians . Immediately his heart was exalted in pride, and he left God, his Creator. In those days when Julian was in the high countries , the son of Constantine , the just , departed from this world. Then Julian revealed his paganism , and raised persecution against us . From the start, holy persons saw with the clear vision of the spirit, men expert in knowledge , that which was in store for him. One of the saints had seen him, while yet a little child , asleep on the couch, with the venomous serpent, called a viper, wound about his head like a crown ; and he at once thought within himself: "This child will be an accursed creature ! ' And also when he would read from the Epistles , those who were near him observed how amazed and intent he was and how his colour changed . (Something missing in the MS.)

-" Turning the wheels ' , he would, for instance, say, ‘ all the days of my life , more than all those who have been before me, I will magnify your feasts , and I will be to you a sincere friend and brother. ' In his sleep he put out his hand, and gave it to the devil, saying : 'You be our master, and I your pupil . If I renounce you , may God renounce me. You be for me, and I will be for you always .' At the same time he kissed his right hand . When Basilius roused him, he inquired : ' To whom were you speaking in your sleep ? To whom did you give your right hand ? and with whom have you made a covenant ? Who was it that was speaking to you ? ' After a long time , when he had remembered his vision , he lied to Basilius , saying laughingly : ' You and Gregory are my brothers until the end . It was to you both that I gave my right hand , and to whom I was speaking . ' Tion , the philosopher, he who received Julian at baptism , said to him several times before us all : ' If my dreams do not deceive me , judging from the visions which I see concerning you, you will die a wretched death ; for God has decreed against you a sentence without mercy. Take heed to yourself ; for I myself think that your portion will be with the devil.' One day when all the sages and philosophers of Athens were seated, and Julian and all their pupils were standing before them , the philosopher Tion said to Julian : ' See, there is no person in this assembly who is of the royal blood except you . Behold , if the occasion arise , you will be king. Do no harm to any one in this assembly ; but may your eyes be upon them for good . Tell me then, should the occasion arise that you become king, what are you going to do to me who received you from the waters of baptism , and taught you knowledge ? ' Julian said to him in a joke : ' I would crucify you high above the great public baths , and I would have your body burnt therein . And as for Sosipater, I would have his skin stripped from him alive .' All laughed . Whereupon Tion , his teacher, said to them : ' Laugh not, my brothers ; pray rather that not one of you may attain the age of fourteen years , according to Athenian reckoning, because in that year there will be great persecution . Some one present in this assembly will renounce God, and worship idols ; and then he will bring about persecution among those who confess Christ.' It is because not every one knows how the fall of Julian took place, that I have taken pains to write for the children of the Holy Church the whole grim account of the paganism of Julian, the transgressor, and how the history of Julian , the pagan, ended . They will not be contaminated by his putrid filthiness , nor will the fire of his desire set them ablaze .

PRINTED IN ENGLAND AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS , OXFORD BY JOHN JOHNSON, PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY