22. Hear, my beloved, these names of martyrs, of confessors, and of the persecuted. Abel was murdered, and his blood cried out from the earth. Jacob was persecuted, and fled and became an exile. Joseph was persecuted, and sold and cast into the pit. Moses was persecuted, and fled to Midian. Joshua the son of Nun was persecuted, and made war. Jephthah and Samson and Gideon and Barak, these also were persecuted. These are they of whom the blessed Apostle said:--Time fails me to narrate their victories. [1159] David also was persecuted at the hands of Saul, and he walked in the mountains and in dens, and in caves. [1160] Samuel also was persecuted, and mourned over Saul. Furthermore Hezekiah was persecuted, and bound up in affliction. Elijah was persecuted, and walked in the desert. Elisha was persecuted and became an exile; and Micaiah was persecuted, and cast into prison. Jeremiah was persecuted, and they cast him into the pit of mire. Daniel was persecuted, and cast into the pit of lions. Hananiah also and his brethren were persecuted, and cast into the furnace of fire. Mordecai and Esther and the children of their people were persecuted, at the hands of Haman. Judas Maccabæus and his brethren were persecuted, and they also endured reproach. The seven brethren, sons of the blessed woman, endured torments by bitter scourgings, [1161] and were confessors and true martyrs, and Eleazar, aged and advanced in years as he was, proved a noble example and made (his) confession and became a true martyr. [1162]
23. Great and excellent is the martyrdom of Jesus. He surpassed in affliction and in confession all who were before or after. And after Him was the faithful martyr Stephen whom the Jews stoned. Simon (Peter) also and Paul were perfect martyrs. And James and John walked in the footsteps of their Master Christ. Also (others) of the apostles thereafter in divers places confessed and proved true martyrs. And also concerning our brethren who are in the West, in the days of Diocletian there came great affliction and persecution to the whole Church of God, which was in all their region. The Churches were overthrown and uprooted, and many confessors and martyrs made confession. And (the Lord) turned in mercy to them after they were persecuted. And also in our days these things happened to us also on account of our sins; but also that what is written might be fulfilled, even as our Redeemer said:--These things are to be. [1163] The Apostle also said:--Also over us is set this cloud of confession; [1164] which (is) our honour, wherein many confess and are slain.
[1088] Matt. xvii. 19; xxi. 22.
[1089] Lev. xxvi. 44.
[1090] Is. xliii. 2, 3.
[1091] Ezek. xvi. 55.
[1092] Ezek. xvi. 48.
[1093] Ezek. xvi. 52.
[1094] Deut. xxxii. 32.
[1095] Is. i. 10.
[1096] Is. lix. 5.
[1097] Is. v. 2.
[1098] Jer. vi. 30.
[1099] Dan. ix. 27.
[1100] Ezek. xvi. 49.
[1101] Gen. xviii. 14.
[1102] I.e., a.d. 344, in which year this was written. Cp. Dem. XXII. 25.
[1103] Dan. ix. 27.
[1104] Ezek. xvi. 55.
[1105] Deut. xxix. 23.
[1106] Jer. xxv. 15-27; xlviii. 47; xlix. 6, 39.
[1107] Is. xxiii. 15, 16, 17.
[1108] Jer. li. 64.
[1109] Amos v. 1-2.
[1110] Is. liv. 9.
[1111] Rather, the Canaanites.
[1112] Judges iv. 2.
[1113] Judges iii. 12.
[1114] Judges xi. 5.
[1115] Judges xiii. 1-24.
[1116] 1 Sam. iv. 1, sq.
[1117] 1 Kings xx. 11.
[1118] 2 Kings xviii. 9, 13; xxv. 1, sq.
[1119] Jer. ii. 30.
[1120] Hos. vi. 5.
[1121] Jer. vi. 7, 8.
[1122] Jer. ii. 10-13.
[1123] Is. xxxiv. 4.
[1124] Matt. xxi. 38.
[1125] Phil. ii. 9.
[1126] Ex. iv. 10.
[1127] Matt. ii. 20.
[1128] Miriam, Mariam, Maria, Mary, are all of them forms of the same name.
[1129] Luke vi. 28.
[1130] 1 Sam. xiii. 14.
[1131] 1 Kings xi. 12, 36; xv. 4, etc.
[1132] 2 Kings xx. 19.
[1133] John xiv. 27.
[1134] I.e., Pharaoh Nechoh,--a Rabbinical interpretation of the surname.
[1135] 2 Kings xxiii. 29.
[1136] John xii. 28.
[1137] 2 Kings xxii. 11, 13.
[1138] Matt. xxvii. 51.
[1139] Luke xxi. 23, 24.
[1140] 2 Chron. xxxv. 25; Lam. iv. 20.
[1141] Zech. xii. 12; Luke xxiii. 27, 28.
[1142] Ps. xli. 9.
[1143] Matt. xxvii. 64.
[1144] Dan. vi. 14.
[1145] Matt. xxviii. 18, 24.
[1146] Dan. ii. 49.
[1147] Matt. x. 1; Luke x. 17, 18.
[1148] Luke xix. 44.
[1149] Dan. iii. 28, 29.
[1150] Ps. xvi. 10; Acts iii. 31; xiii. 37.
[1151] Esth. vi. 11.
[1152] Matt. xxvii. 54.
[1153] Esth. vii. 10; ix. 10.
[1154] Matt. xxvii. 25.
[1155] John xv. 20, 19; xvii. 14.
[1156] Luke xxi. 16, 17.
[1157] Matt. v. 19, 20; Luke xi. 11; xxi. 14, 15.
[1158] 1 Kings xxii. 28.
[1159] Heb. xi. 32, sq.
[1160] Heb. xi. 38.
[1161] 2 Macc. vii. 1, sq.
[1162] 2 Macc. vi. 18, sq.
[1163] Matt. xxiv. 6; Luke xxi. 9.
[1164] Heb. xi. 1.
Demonstration XXII.--Of Death and the Latter Times.
1. The upright and righteous and good and wise fear not nor tremble at death, because of the great hope that is before them. And they at every time are mindful of death, their exodus, and of the last day in which the children of Adam shall be judged. They know that by the sentence of judgment death has held sway, because Adam transgressed the commandment; as the Apostle said:--Death ruled from Adam unto Moses even over those who sinned not, so that also upon all the children of Adam it passed, [1165] even as it passed upon Adam. And how did death rule from Adam unto Moses? Clearly, when God laid down the commandment for Adam, He warned him, and said:--On the day that thou shalt eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt die the death. [1166] So when he transgressed the commandment and ate of the tree, death ruled over him and over all his progeny. Even over those who had not sinned, even over them did death rule through Adam's transgression of the commandment.
2. And why did he say:--From Adam unto Moses did Death rule? And who is so ill-furnished with knowledge as to imagine that only from Adam to Moses has death had dominion? Yet let him understand from this that he said:--Upon all men it passed. Thus, upon all men it passed from Moses until the world shall end. Yet Moses preached that its kingdom is made void. For when Adam transgressed the commandment whereby the sentence of death was passed upon his progeny, Death hoped that he would bind fast all the sons of man and would be king over them for ever. But when Moses came, he proclaimed the resurrection, and Death knew that his kingdom is to be made void. For Moses said:--Reuben shall live and not die, and shall be in number. [1167] And when the Holy One called Moses from the bush he said thus to him:--I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. [1168] When Death heard this utterance, he trembled and feared and was terrified and was perturbed, and knew that he had not become king for ever over the children of Adam. From the hour that he heard God saying to Moses:--I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, Death smote his hands together, for he learned that God is King of the dead and of the living, and that it is appointed to the children of Adam to come forth from his darkness, and arise with their bodies. And observe that our Redeemer Jesus also, when He repeated this utterance to the Sadducees, when they were disputing with Him about the Resurrection of the dead, thus said:--God is not (God) of the dead, for all are alive unto Him. [1169]
3. And that God might make known to Death that his authority is not for ever over all the progeny of the world, He translated Enoch to Himself, because he was well-pleasing, and made him deathless. And again He took up Elijah to heaven, and Death had no dominion over him. And Hannah said:--The Lord maketh to die and causeth to live; He bringeth down to Sheol and raiseth up. [1170] Furthermore Moses said as from the mouth of God:--I make to die and I cause to live. [1171] Again the Prophet Isaiah also said:--Thy dead shall live, and their dead bodies shall rise again; and the sleepers of the dust shall be awakened, and shall glorify Thee. [1172] When Death heard all these things, amazement seized him, and he sat him down in mourning.
4. And when Jesus, the slayer of Death, came, and clothed Himself in a Body from the seed of Adam, and was crucified in His Body, and tasted death; and when (Death) perceived thereby that He had come down unto him, he was shaken from his place and was agitated when he saw Jesus; and he closed his gates and was not willing to receive Him. Then He burst his gates, and entered into him, and began to despoil all his possessions. But when the dead saw light in the darkness, they lifted up their heads from the bondage of death, and looked forth, and saw the splendour of the King Messiah. Then the powers of the darkness of Death sat in mourning, for he was degraded from his authority. Death tasted the medicine that was deadly to him, and his hands dropped down, and he learned that the dead shall live and escape from his sway. And when He had afflicted Death by the despoiling of his possessions, he wailed and cried aloud in bitterness and said, "Go forth from my realm and enter it not. Who then is this that comes in alive into my realm?" And while Death was crying out in terror (for he saw that his darkness was beginning to be done away, and some of the righteous who were sleeping arose to ascend with Him), then He made known to him that when He shall come in the fulness of time, He will bring forth all the prisoners from his power, and they shall go forth to see the light. Then when Jesus had fulfilled His ministry amongst the dead, Death sent Him forth from his realm, and suffered Him not to remain there. And to devour Him like all the dead, he counted it not pleasure. He had no power over the Holy One, nor was He given over to corruption.
5. And when he had eagerly sent Him forth and He had come forth from his realm, He left with him, as a poison, the promise of life; that by little and little his power should be done away. Even as when a man has taken a poison in the food which is given for (the support of) life, when he perceives in himself that he has received poison in the food, then he casts up again from his belly the food in which poison was mingled; but the drug leaves its power in his limbs, so that by little and little the structure of his body is dissolved and corrupted. So Jesus dead was the bringer to nought of Death; for through Him life is made to reign, and through Him Death is abolished, to whom it is said:--O Death, where is thy victory? [1173]
6. Therefore, ye children of Adam, all ye over whom Death has ruled, be mindful of Death and remember life; and transgress not the commandment as your first father did. O Kings, crowned with the diadem, remember Death, which will take away the diadems that are set upon your heads, and he shall be king over you till the time, when ye shall rise again for the judgment. O ye haughty and uplifted and proud, remember Death, which shall destroy your haughtiness, and dissolve the limbs, and separate the joints, and the body and its forms shall be given over to corruption. The lofty ones shall be brought low by Death, and the fierce and stern ones shall be buried away in his darkness. He shall take away all the pride, and they shall corrupt away and become dust, until the judgment. O ye rich, remember Death; for when the time shall come and ye shall draw nigh to him there, ye shall not use your wealth and possessions. He will not place dainty viands before you, nor will he prepare for you a rich banquet. There the body of the gluttons who used to live delicately shall be corrupted. They shall cease from their luxury and shall not remember it. There the worm shall consume their bodies, and they shall clothe themselves in darkness over their fair apparel. They remember not the ending of this world, that Death shall confound them when they descend to him. So they shall sit in oppression and in the shadow of death, and shall not remember this world, until the end shall be and they shall rise again for the judgment. O ye rapacious and extortioners and plunderers of your fellows, remember Death, and multiply not your sins; for in that place sinners repent not; and he who has plundered his fellows' goods shall not possess his own, but shall go to the place where man shall make no use of wealth. And he shall come to nought and pass away from his honour, but his sins shall be laid up against the day of judgment.