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by day to practice with weapons and train your body and to order the affairs of your subjects, both judging and writing what is necessary, and considering what must be done both in private and in public; but at night to attend to your books. And the story is that a lamp serves you for the pursuit of this knowledge, one which from some device automatically pours oil on the wick, so that not one of those about the palace might be forced to suffer in your labors and not do vioπρεφ.1.lence to his nature by fighting against sleep; so humane and gentle are you both toward your neighbors and toward all, imitating the heavenly king, your protector, who is pleased to send rain on the just and the unjust and to make theπρεφ.1.10 sun rise and to provide all other things abundantly. At any rate, on account of your great learning, as is likely, I hear that you know also the natures of stones and the powers of roots and the effects of medicines, no less than Solomon, son of David, the most wise. But rather, andπρεφ.1.11 even him you surpass in virtues; for he, having become a slave to pleasures, did not preserve until the end the piety that had been for him the cause of his blessings and wisdom; but you, most excellent one, having set your continent reason against ease, are rightly considered to be emperor not only of men, butπρεφ.1.12 also of the passions of the soul and of the body. And if I must say this also, I learn that you conquer the desire for every kind of food and drink, and that neither sweet figs, to speak poetically, nor any other of the seasonal fruits are able to capture you, except only to touch and taste them, after first blessing the Creator of all. And being accustomed in yourπρεφ.1.13 daily exercises to master thirst and stifling heat and shivering cold, you consider self-control to be your nature. For example, recently, while hastening to see the city in Pontus named after Heracles and to raise it up as it was weary with time, in the summer season you were traveling the road through Bithynia. And as the sun was burning fiercely around midday, one of your guards, seeing you covered with much sweat and dust, as if to do you a favor, ran ahead and brought you a cup glittering very brightly against the sun's rays, having put some sweet drink in it and poured cold water over it. But you, most excellent one, accepting it, praised the man for his eagerness and you were clearly going to reward him well with royal generosity not long after, but while all the soldiers were gaping at the cup and blessing him who would drink, you, O noble one, gave the drink back to him and commanded him to use it as he pleased. πρεφ.1.14 So that it seems to me that Alexander the son of Philip has rightly been surpassed by your virtues; of whom it is said by those who admire his deeds that as he was marching with the Macedonians through a waterless place, a diligent soldier found water, drewπρεφ.1.15 it up and brought it to him; but that he did not drink, but poured out the drink. To speak concisely, then, it is possible to call you more kingly than the kings before you, in the proper sense, according to Homer; for we have heard of some who possessed nothing worthy of admiration, and of others who dignified their reign with barely one or two virtues; but you, most excellent one, having gathered all the virtues together, have surpassed all in piety and humanity and courage and temperance and justice and generosityπρεφ.1.16 and magnanimity, with a fitting royal dignity. And all time boasts of your reign alone among all that have ever been as bloodless and pure of slaughter. You command your subjects to be instructed in serious matters with pleasure, andπρεφ.1.17 with goodwill and respect to show their devotion to you and to the common good. So that, for all these reasons, it seems necessary for me, as I am writing an ecclesiastical history, to address it to you. For to whom could I more appropriately do this, being about to narrate the virtue of many and divinely inspired men and the events concerning the universal church, and the many enemies it encountered before it came to port in the harbors of you and yourπρεφ.1.18 fathers. Come then, O you who know all things and possess every virtue and especially piety, which the divine word says is the beginning of wisdom,

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μὲν τὰ περὶ τὰ ὅπλα καὶ τὸ σῶμα ἀσκεῖν καὶ τὰ τῶν ἀρχομένων διατάττειν πράγματα, δικάζοντά τε καὶ ἃ χρὴ γράφοντα, ἰδίᾳ τε καὶ κοινῇ τὰ πρακτέα διασκοποῦντα· νύκτωρ δὲ τὰς βίβλους περιέπειν. διακονεῖν δέ σοι λόγος πρὸς τὴν τούτων εἴδησιν λύχνον ἐκ μηχανῆς τινος αὐτομάτως τῇ θρυαλλίδι ἐπιχέοντα τὸ ἔλαιον, ὡς ἂν μηδὲ εἷς τῶν περὶ τὰ βασίλεια ἐν τοῖς σοῖς πόνοις ταλαιπωρεῖν ἀναγκάζηται καὶ τὴν φύσιν βιάπρεφ.1. ζηται πρὸς τὸν ὕπνον μαχόμενος· οὕτω τις φιλάνθρωπος καὶ πρᾶος καὶ πρὸς τοὺς πέλας καὶ πρὸς πάντας ὑπάρχεις, τὸν οὐράνιον βασιλέα τὸν σὸν προστάτην μιμούμενος, ᾧ φίλον ἐστὶν ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους ὕειν καὶ τὸν πρεφ.1.10 ἥλιον ἀνατέλλειν καὶ τἆλλα ἀφθόνως παρέχειν. ὑπὸ γοῦν πολυμαθείας, ὡς εἰκός, ἀκούω σε καὶ λίθων εἰδέναι φύσεις καὶ δυνάμεις ῥιζῶν καὶ ἐνεργείας ἰαμάτων, οὐχ ἧττον ἢ Σολομὼν ὁ ∆αβὶδ ὁ σοφώτατος. μᾶλλον δὲ κἀπρεφ.1.11 κείνου πλεονεκτεῖς ταῖς ἀρεταῖς· ὁ μὲν γὰρ δοῦλος γενόμενος τῶν ἡδονῶν οὐ μέχρι τέλους τὴν εὐσέβειαν διεφύλαξε τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τῆς σοφίας αὐτῷ γενομένην· σὺ δέ, ὦ κράτιστε, τὸν ἐγκρατῆ λογισμὸν ἀντιτάξας τῇ ῥᾳστώνῃ, εἰκότως νομίζῃ μὴ μόνον ἀνθρώπων αὐτοκράτωρ εἶναι, ἀλλὰ πρεφ.1.12 καὶ τῶν παθῶν τῆς ψυχῆς καὶ τοῦ σώματος. εἰ δὲ δεῖ καὶ ταῦτα λέγειν, πυνθάνομαί σε καὶ παντὸς ὄψου καὶ ποτοῦ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν νικᾶν, καὶ μήτε σῦκα γλυκερά, ποιητικῶς εἰπεῖν, μήτ' ἄλλο τι τῶν ὡραίων ἑλεῖν σε δύνασθαι, πλὴν ὅσον ἐπιψαῦσαι καὶ μόνον ἀπογεύσασθαι, πρότερον εὐλογήσαντα τὸν πάντων δημιουργόν. δίψους δὲ καὶ πνίγους καὶ ῥίγους κρατεῖν ἐθισθεὶς ἐν πρεφ.1.13 ταῖς καθ' ἡμέραν ἀσκήσεσι, φύσιν ἔχειν νομίζῃ τὴν ἐγκράτειαν. πρώην γέ τοι τὴν ἐν Πόντῳ πόλιν ῾Ηρακλέος ἐπώνυμον σπεύδων ἰδεῖν καὶ ἐγεῖραι τῷ χρόνῳ κάμνουσαν, ὥρᾳ θέρους τὴν διὰ Βιθυνῶν ᾔεις ὁδόν. τοῦ δὲ ἡλίου σφόδρα φλέγοντος περὶ μέσην ἡμέραν ἰδὼν σέ τις τῶν δορυφόρων ἱδρῶτι πολλῷ καὶ κονιορτῷ πεφυρμένον, ὡς δὴ χαριούμενος φθάσας προσεκόμισέ σοι φιάλην εὖ μάλα λαμπρῶς πρὸς τὰς ἀκτῖνας ἀντιστίλβουσαν, ἡδὺν αὐτῇ τινα πότον ἐμβαλὼν καὶ ψυχρὸν ὕδωρ ἐπιχέας. σὺ δέ, ὦ κράτιστε, προσδεξάμενος ἐπῄνεσας μὲν τῆς προθυμίας τὸν ἄνδρα καὶ δῆλος ἦσθα μετ' οὐ πολὺ τοῦτον φιλοτιμίᾳ βασιλικῇ καλῶς ποιήσων, πάντων δὲ τῶν στρατιωτῶν πρὸς τὴν φιάλην κεχηνότων καὶ μακαριούντων ὃς πίεται, πάλιν αὐτῷ, ὦ γενναῖε, τὸ ποτὸν ἀπέδωκας καὶ ὅπῃ φίλον αὐτῷ κεχρῆσθαι ἐκέλευσας. πρεφ.1.14 ὥστε μοι δοκεῖ εἰκότως ταῖς σαῖς ἀρεταῖς νενικῆσθαι καὶ ᾿Αλέξανδρον τὸν Φιλίππου· ᾧ λέγεται παρὰ τῶν τὰ ἐκείνου θαυμαζόντων δι' ἀνύδρου τόπου βαδίζοντι μετὰ τῶν Μακεδόνων ἐπιμελῆ στρατιώτην ὕδωρ εὑρόντα ἀρύπρεφ.1.15 σασθαι καὶ προσκομίσαι· τὸν δὲ μὴ πιεῖν, ἀλλ' ἐκχέαι τὸ πόμα. συνελόντα οὖν εἰπεῖν, τῶν πρὸ σοῦ βασιλέων βασιλεύτερόν σε κυρίως καλεῖν ἔστι κατὰ τὸν ῞Ομηρον· τοὺς μὲν γὰρ οὐδὲν οἷον ἄγασθαι κεκτημένους παρειλήφαμεν, τοὺς δὲ ἐπὶ ἑνὶ μόλις ἢ δύο τὴν βασιλείαν σεμνύναντας· σὺ δέ, ὦ κράτιστε, πάσας ὁμοῦ συλλαβὼν τὰς ἀρετάς, πάντας ὑπερεβάλου εὐσεβείᾳ καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ καὶ ἀνδρείᾳ καὶ σωφροσύνῃ καὶ δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ φιλοτιμίᾳ πρεφ.1.16 καὶ μεγαλοψυχίᾳ βασιλικῇ πρεπούσῃ ἀξίᾳ. ἀναίμακτον δὲ καὶ καθαρὰν φόνου πάντων τῶν πώποτε γενομένων μόνην τὴν σὴν ἡγεμονίαν ὁ πᾶς αἰὼν αὐχεῖ. ἡδονῇ δὲ τὰ σπουδαῖα τοὺς ὑπηκόους κελεύεις παιδεύεσθαι, εὐνοίᾳ πρεφ.1.17 τε καὶ αἰδοῖ τὴν περὶ σὲ σπουδὴν καὶ τὰ κοινὰ ἐνδείκνυσθαι. ὥστε μοι πάντων ἕνεκεν ἀναγκαῖον καταφαίνεται ἐκκλησιαστικὴν ἱστορίαν συγγράφοντι, σοὶ προσφωνῆσαι. τίνι γὰρ μᾶλλον οἰκειότερον τοῦτο ποιήσω, πολλῶν καὶ θεσπεσίων ἀνδρῶν ἀρετὴν ἀφηγεῖσθαι μέλλων καὶ τὰ συμβάντα περὶ τὴν καθόλου ἐκκλησίαν, ὅσοις τε ἐχθροῖς ὑπαντήσασα εἰς τοὺς σοὺς καὶ τῶν σῶν πρεφ.1.18 πατέρων λιμένας κατῆρεν. ἄγε οὖν, ὦ πάντα εἰδὼς καὶ πᾶσαν ἀρετὴν ἔχων καὶ μάλιστα τὴν εὐσέβειαν, ἣν ἀρχὴν εἶναι σοφίας θεῖός ἐστι λόγος,