2

But Herod, being enraged against him, said to his nobles: "Since I have bestowed upon him the greatest honor and made him a centurion, for this reason he thinks he is something, being nothing. Strip him therefore of his cloak, and take the torque from him, and take the sword from his loins, because he has shown himself disloyal, and cast him into the inner prison, putting heavy collars around his neck and his waist, until I devise many tortures for him. And after this I will command his head to be cut off."

5 And immediately at that hour he issued such a decree, saying to his soldiers: "The infants in Bethlehem "3from two years old and under"3 up to those born today, kill them." And the soldiers went out according to the king's decree and killed all the infants. But Herod, being enraged because of the savior, that he had been mocked by the Magi, summoning the holy Longinus, sitting before the tribunal, commanded him to be brought. And as he was being brought, the king saw a golden torque around his neck and a royal cloak put on the holy man and a sword around his loins; and he roared like a lion and raged like a wild beast against his nobles, saying: "Did I not tell you, O most wicked soldiers, to take from him bo<th> the torque and the sword and the garment?"

6 And the nobles said to the king: "By your health, O king, we did according to your command, and having stripped him we thus cast him into the prison; but from where this robe came to him or who clothed him, we do not know." And Herod said to the holy Longinus: "Wretch, who has cast yourself down from glory, confess to me before the tortures who it is that clothed you in this robe." And the holy Longinus said: "As I speak in truth and do not lie, I did not receive it from any other except from the eternal king Jesus Christ." And Herod said: "Is this he who clothed you in this robe?" And the holy Longinus said: "He himself sent his angel and put this garment on me and sealed me with the seal of the eternal king Jesus Christ."

7 And Herod said to his nobles: "Since he lies greatly, thinking that the things he has have been gifted by his king, therefore taking from him the garment that is upon him, you shall burn it with fire." But the nobles approached to do what was commanded them and found nothing to touch or to take from him. "What?" said the nobles then to the king, "behold, we see the garment placed upon him as a shadow, and we are not able to take anything from him." And Herod said: "By Adrasteia who is among men, now I know that he is a magician in making the cloak invisible." And the holy Longinus said: "By the heavenly king who has now come down from the heavens, I do not know what magic is; for he himself also hates magicians and sorcerers. And how can I, being his servant, possess a heart defiled with magic and deceit? But I told you that the power of God has shone around me and this protects me."

8 But Herod, being troubled by the answers of Longinus, commanded his soldiers to scourge him with leaded whips. And the holy Longinus said: "Now I find rest suffering for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, having become his friend and being loved by him; for I was possessed by great fear because of your evil schemes." But Herod, gnashing his teeth at Longinus, says to his nobles: "Casting Longinus the disloyal soldier into the three-pronged stock, put heavy irons on him, so that being wasted away and torn apart he may grow weak in strength and become unsightly in beauty, so that all the people who knew him before, seeing him, may groan."

2

Θυμομαχήσας δὲ κατ' αὐ τοῦ ὁ Ἡρῴδης εἶπεν τοῖς μεγιστᾶσιν αὐτοῦ· «Ἐπειδὴ περιέθηκα αὐτῷ πλείστην τιμὴν καὶ ἐποίησα αὐτὸν ἑκατόνταρχον, διὰ τοῦτο οἴεται εἶναί τι, μηδὲν ὤν. Ἐκδύσατε οὖν αὐτὸν τὴν χλα μύδα, καὶ τὸν μανιάκην ἀφέλετε ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὴν σπάθην ἄρατε ἀπὸ τῆς ὀσφύος αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ἔδειξεν αὐτὸν ἀκαθοσίωτον, καὶ ἐμβά λετε αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν ἐσωτέραν φυλακήν, περιθέντες αὐτῷ κλοιὰ στι βαρὰ κατὰ τοῦ τραχήλου καὶ τῶν μέσων, μέχρις οὗ ἐπινοήσω αὐ τῷ βασάνους πολλάς. Καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο κελεύσω τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐ τοῦ ἀποτμηθῆναι.»

5 Καὶ εὐθέως τῇ ὥρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐξέθετο δόγμα τοιοῦτον, λέ γων τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ στρατιώταις· «Τὰ νήπια τὰ ἐν Βηθλεὲμ "3ἀπὸ διετοῦς καὶ κατωτέρω"3 ἕως αὐθημερινοῦ ἀνέλετε αὐτά.» Καὶ ἐξ ῆλθον οἱ στρατιῶται κατὰ τὸ δόγμα τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ ἀνεῖλον πάντα τὰ νήπια. Ὁ δὲ Ἡρῴδης, θυμομαχῶν διὰ τὸν σωτῆρα ὅτι ἐνεπαίχθη ὑπὸ τῶν Μάγων, μετακαλεσάμενος τὸν ἅγιον Λογγῖνον, προκαθίσας ἐπὶ τοῦ βήματος ἐκέλευσεν αὐτὸν ἀχθῆναι. Ἀγομένου δὲ αὐτοῦ, εἶδεν ὁ βασιλεὺς μανιάκην χρυσοῦν περὶ τὸν τράχηλον αὐ τοῦ καὶ χλαμύδα βασιλικὴν περικειμένην τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ σπάθην πε ρὶ τὴν ὀσφῦν αὐτοῦ· ἔβρυξεν δὲ ὡς λέων καὶ ἐμαίνετο ὡς θηρίον κατὰ τῶν μεγιστάνων αὐτοῦ, λέγων· «Οὐχὶ εἶπον ὑμῖν, ὦ κάκισ τοι στρατιῶται, ἄρατε ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τό<ν> τε μανιάκην καὶ τὴν σπάθην καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα;»

6 Καὶ εἶπαν οἱ μεγιστᾶνες πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα· «Μὰ τὴν σὴν ὑγίειαν, βασιλεῦ, κατὰ τὸ σὸν πρόσταγμα ἐποιήσαμεν, καὶ ἀπο δύσαντες αὐτὸν οὕτως ἐβάλομεν εἰς τὴν φυλακήν· πόθεν δὲ αὐτῷ ἡ στολὴ αὕτη ἢ τίς ὁ ἐνδύσας αὐτόν, ἡμεῖς οὐκ οἴδαμεν.» Ὁ δὲ Ἡ ρῴδης εἶπεν πρὸς τὸν ἅγιον Λογγῖνον· «Ἄθλιε, ὁ ἑαυτὸν ἀπὸ δό ξης καταβαλών, ὁμολόγησόν μοι πρὸ βασάνων τίς ἐστιν ὁ ἐνδύσας σε τὴν στολὴν ταύτην.» Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος Λογγῖνος εἶπεν· «Ὡς ἐπ' ἀληθείας λέγω καὶ οὐ ψεύδομαι, οὐκ ἔλαβον παρ' ἑτέρου τινὸς εἰ μὴ παρὰ τοῦ αἰωνίου βασιλέως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.» Εἶπεν δὲ ὁ Ἡρῴδης· «Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐνδύσας σε τὴν στολὴν ταύτην;» Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος Λογγῖνος εἶπεν· «Αὐτὸς ἀπέστειλεν τὸν ἄγγελον αὐτοῦ καὶ πε ριέθηκέν μοι τὴν ἐσθῆτα ταύτην καὶ ἐσφραγίσατό με τῇ σφραγῖδι τοῦ αἰωνίου βασιλέως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.»

7 Ὁ δὲ Ἡρῴδης εἶπεν τοῖς μεγιστᾶσιν αὐτοῦ· «Ἐπειδὴ μάλα ψεύδεται, οἰόμενος παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως αὐτοῦ δεδωρῆσθαι τὰ προσόντα αὐτῷ, ἐπάραντες οὖν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐσθῆτα τὴν πε ρικειμένην αὐτῷ πυρὶ κατακαύσετε.» Οἱ δὲ μεγιστᾶνες προσ ῆλθον ποιῆσαι τὸ προσταχθὲν αὐτοῖς καὶ οὐδὲν ηὕρισκον ψηλα φῆσαι ἢ ἀφελεῖν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ. «Τί», εἶπαν οὖν οἱ μεγιστᾶνες πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, «ἰδοὺ ὡς σκιὰν ὁρῶμεν περιβεβλῆσθαι αὐτῷ τὴν ἐσθῆτα, καὶ οὐ δυνάμεθα ἆραί τι ἀπ' αὐτοῦ.» Εἶπεν δὲ Ἡρῴδης· «Μὰ τὴν Ἀδραστείαν τὴν ἐν ἀνθρώποις, νῦν ἐπίσταμαι ὅτι μά γος ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ τὸ περιβόλαιον ἀφανὲς καθιστᾶν.» Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος Λογγῖνος εἶπεν· «Μὰ τὸν ἐπουράνιον βασιλέα τὸν κατελθόντα νῦν ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, τί ἐστιν μαγεία οὐκ οἶδα· καὶ γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς μισεῖ τοὺς μάγους καὶ τοὺς φαρμάκους. Καὶ πῶς ἐγώ, δοῦλος αὐτοῦ ὤν, δύναμαι κεκτῆσθαι καρδίαν ῥυπαρὰν μαγείας καὶ δόλου; Ἀλλὰ εἶπόν σοι ὅτι δύναμις θεοῦ περιήστραψέν με καὶ αὕτη με φυλάττει.»

8 Ὁ δὲ Ἡρῴδης, ταραχθεὶς ἐπὶ ταῖς ἀποκρίσεσιν Λογγίνου, προσέταξεν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ στρατιώταις πλουμβατίζεσθαι αὐτόν. Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος Λογγῖνος εἶπεν· «Νῦν ἀναπέπαυμαι πάσχων ὑπὲρ τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, αὐτοῦ φίλος γενόμενος καὶ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἀγαπηθείς· πολλῷ γὰρ φόβῳ ἤμην κατ εχόμενος διὰ τὰς κακομηχανίας σου.» Ὁ δὲ Ἡρῴδης βρύξας τοὺς ὀδόντας κατὰ τοῦ Λογγίνου λέγει τοῖς μεγιστᾶσιν αὐτοῦ· «Λογγῖνον τὸν ἀκαθοσίωτον στρατιώτην εἰς τρία κεντήματα βαλόντες τοῦ ξύλου, περίθετε αὐτῷ σίδηρα βαρέα, ὅπως τηκό μενος καὶ διασπώμενος ἀτονήσῃ τῇ δυνάμει καὶ τῷ κάλλει δυσ ειδὴς γένηται, ἵνα ἰδόντες αὐτὸν στενάξωσιν πάντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι οἱ γνωρίζοντες αὐτὸν τὸ πρῶτον.»