We have come to you, men, from the hearth of the emperor to the hearth of the all-great Emperor, the maker of the universe, through whom victory is innate to our master. There the patron of honors, having seated himself in the theater of words, graciously lent his mind to us; but here we can see the patron of sacred things. And may he too be gracious. But let no one who hears these things revile my words; for someone might likely say, "My friend, how utterly you speak superfluous nonsense. Do you ask this man to be gracious to your words, this house of good things, who is clothed in all graciousness? You suffer the same fate as one would reasonably suffer if he were to beg insistently for the sun to rise by day, for the light to shine, and for words to be words." But I would not declare these things to be so. But looking toward the goal, which is all-great and has no hyperbole, I fear the contest. Yet I begin again to take courage from those things I feared before. For if there were some hope of matching the all-beautiful temple with a powerful speech, it would be dangerous to strip for wrestling matches in which victory is precarious. But since we all know that no speech could ever appear that keeps pace with the deeds of the emperor, and since the greatest of these deeds is the foundation of this temple, we must not, out of fear for foregone conclusions, remain timid, but must stir all our enthusiasm, as much as one has strength. A man's frankness of speech has some merit. For if our master had not boldly and with great spirit created the temple, surpassing the vision of all hope, the city would not have advanced to such great cheerfulness and blessed luxury. What then is unseemly if fitting frankness of speech and impunity for words should now appear? For what they, in their weakness, might pass over, it is possible for the eyes to grasp. And the judge of these things is not some bean-eating Attic, but pious and forgiving men, in whom both God and the emperor rejoice, men who order the cities, who hold the reins of all things, both of words and of deeds. Must the verses then, having been led by demagoguery into frankness, proceed to them? "This must be done," I myself will answer, appearing like an echo of my own words. Therefore I return to the great emperor. Description of the Great Church, by Paul the Silentiary, son of Cyrus.

Today the clash of shields does not carry me, nor do I hasten to a western or a Libyan victory, nor do I strike up a clattering rhythm for trophies from the slaying of tyrants; let the glories of Median-slaying deeds remain unshouted today. Come hither, Peace, ever-blessed, nurse of cities, whom our well-helmeted emperor has embraced more than Victory; having gloried in the contests of our city's guardians, let us sing with sacred hymns of a house superior to every most-glorious contest, a house for which alone all the fame of the high-roofed, wondrous work has bowed down. But you, bountiful Rome, crown for me the life-giving emperor, covered profusely with pure hymns, not because he has fitted your yoke-bond to the nations of the earth, not because he has stretched out the mighty measures of your thrones to the farthest ends along the ocean shores, but because, having raised a boundless temple about your arm, he has made you more radiant than your mother on the Tiber. Give way to me, Capitoline glories of Rome, give way, you legends; my emperor has surpassed that wonder by as much as the great God is better than an idol. From there I wish, with honey-voiced choirs, golden-robed Anthousa, to sing of your scepter-bearer. For the emperor not only, arming his hand in armor, subdued the countless barbarian with his shield-piercing spear, so that he might bend his untamed neck to your reins and cower before the yoke of your law; but also black Envy himself, shrieking insolently, cowered before the bow of the city-protecting emperor, and rent asunder by successive shafts he crashed, and falling, he sank deep into the dust. And you too, ancient-born Latin Rome, come, singing a harmonious song with new-blooming Rome; come, laughing aloud, because you see your child surpassing her mother, since this is the grace of parents. Men, whose care it is to honor the god-fearing ordinances, come, having cast off misty grief, clothe yourselves rejoicing in snow-white

Ἥκομεν ἐς ὑμᾶς, ἄνδρες, ἐκ τῆς ἑστίας τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως ἐς βασιλέως ἐστίαν τοῦ παμμεγίστου, τοῦ ποητοῦ τῶν ὅλων, δι' ὃν τὸ νικᾶν συμφυὲς τῶι δεσπότηι. ἐκεῖ μὲν ἡμῖν τῶν γερῶν ὁ προστάτης καθεὶς ἑαυτὸν εἰς θέατρον ἐκ λόγων τὸν νοῦν παρέσχεν εὐμενῶς, ἐνταῦθα δὲ ὁρᾶν πάρεστι τῶν ἱερῶν τὸν προστάτην· ἔστω δὲ καὐτὸς εὐμενής. τούτων γε μὲν μηδεὶς ἀκούσας λοιδορείσθω τοῖς λόγοις· εἴποι γὰρ εἰκὸς ἄν τις "ὦ τάν, ὡς πάνυ ληρεῖς περιττά. τοῦτον αἰτεῖς εὐμενῆ λόγοις γενέσθαι, τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὴν οἰκίαν, τὸν πᾶσαν εὐμένειαν ἠμφιεσμένον; τουτὶ πέπονθας ὅπερ ἂν εἰκότως πάθοι, εἴ τις δέοιτο λιπαρῶς ἐγκείμενος τὸν ἥλιον μὲν ἀνατέλλειν ἐν ἡμέραι, τὸ φῶς δὲ λάμπειν, τοὺς λόγους δ' εἶναι λόγους." ἐγὼ δὲ ταῦτα τοῦτον εἶναι τὸν τρόπον οὐκ ἂν ἀποφαίην· πρὸς δὲ τὸν σκοπὸν βλέπων, ὃς παμμέγιστος οὐκ ἔχων θ' ὑπερβολήν, δέδοικα τὴν ἀγωνίαν. θαρρεῖν δ' ὅμως ἐξ ὧν ἐδεδίειν πρότερον αὖθις ἄρχομαι. εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἐλπὶς ἦν τις εὐσθενεῖ λόγωι συνεξισοῦσθαι τῶι νεὼι τῶι παγκάλωι, σφαλερὸν ὑπῆρχεν ἐπαποδύεσθαι πάλαις, ἐν αἷς τὸ νικᾶν παρακεκινδυνευμένον. ἐπεὶ δὲ πάντες ἴσμεν, ὡς οὐκ ἄν ποτε λόγος φανείη συντρέχων ταῖς πράξεσιν ταῖς τοῦ βασιλέως, ἔστι δ' αὖ τῶν πράξεων τὸ παμμέγιστον ἡ κτίσις τούτου νεώ, οὐ χρὴ δεδοικότας ἐπὶ προδιεγνωσμένοις μένειν ἀτόλμους, ἀλλὰ τὴν προθυμίαν κινεῖν ἅπασαν, ὡς ἔχει τις ἰσχύος. ἔχει τι χρηστὸν ἀνδρὸς ἡ παρρησία. εἰ μὴ γὰρ εὐτόλμως τε καὶ φρονῶν μέγα ἐδημιούργει τὸν νεὼν ὁ δεσπότης πάσης ὑπερβὰς ἐλπίδος θεωρίαν, οὐκ ἂν προῆλθεν εἰς τοσαύτην ἡ πόλις εὐθυμίαν τε καὶ τρυφὴν εὐδαίμονα. τί οὖν ἀπεικὸς πρόσφορον παρρησίαν τὰ νῦν φανῆναι καὶ λόγων ἀζημίαν; ἃ γὰρ ἂν παραδράμωσιν ἠσθενηκότες, ἔξεστι ταῦτα προσλαβεῖν τοῖς ὄμμασιν. κρίνει δὲ τούτους οὐ κυαμοτρὼξ Ἀττικός, ἀλλ' ἄνδρες εὐσεβεῖς τε καὶ συγγνώμονες, οἶς καὶ τὸ θεῖον καὶ βασιλεὺς ἐφήδεται, οἱ τὰς πόλεις τάττοντες, οἱ τὰς ἡνίας ὅλων ἔχοντες καὶ λόγων καὶ πραγμάτων. ἆρ' οὖν ἐπ' αὐτοὺς χρὴ βαδίζειν τοὺς στίχους ἐκδημαγωγηθέντας εἰς παρρησίαν; χρὴ τοῦτο πράττειν, αὐτὸς ἀντιφθέγξομαι ὥσπερ τις ἠχὼ τῶν ἐμῶν φανεὶς λόγων. οὐκοῦν ἐπάνειμι πρὸς βασιλέα τὸν μέγαν. Παύλου Σιλεντιαρίου, υἱοῦ Κύρου, ἔκφρασις τῆς μεγάλης ἐκκλησίας.

Σήμερον οὐ σακέων με φέρει κτύπος, οὐδ' ἐπὶ νίκην ἕσπερον ἠὲ Λίβυσσαν ἐπείγομαι, οὐδὲ τροπαίοις ἀμφὶ τυραννοφόνοις καναχήποδα ῥυθμὸν ἀράσσω· Μηδοφόνων ἀβόητα μένοι κλέα σήμερον ἔργων. Εἰρήνη πολύολβε, τιθηνήτειρα πολήων, ἣν πλέον εὐπήληκος ἄναξ ἠγκάσσατο Νίκης, δεῦρο· πολισσούχοισιν ἐπαυχήσαντες ἀέθλοις παντὸς ὑπερκύδαντος ὑπέρτερον οἶκον ἀγῶνος εὐιέροις ὕμνοισιν ἀείσομεν, ὧι ὑπὸ μούνωι πᾶν κλέος ὑψορόφοιο κατώκλασε θέσκελον ἔργου. Ἀλλὰ σύ μοι βασιλῆα φερέσβιον, ὄμπνια Ῥώμη, στέψον ἀκηρασίοισι χύδην καταειμένον ὕμνοις, οὐχ ὅτι σὸν ζυγόδεσμον ἐφήρμοσεν ἔθνεσι γαίης, οὐχ ὅτι σῶν ἐτάνυσσεν ὑπέρβια μέτρα θοώκων τέλσα παρ' ἐσχατόωντα κατ' ὠκεανιτίδας ἀκτάς, ἀλλ' ὅτι σὸν περὶ πῆχυν ἀπείρονα νηὸν ἐγείρας Θυμβριάδος ποίησε φαεινοτέρην σε τεκούσης. εἴξατέ μοι, Ῥώμης Καπετωλίδες, εἴξατε, φῆμαι· τόσσον ἐμὸς βασιλεὺς ὑπερήλατο θάμβος ἐκεῖνο, ὁππόσον εἰδώλοιο θεὸς μέγας ἐστὶν ἀρείων. ἔνθεν ἐγὼν ἐθέλω σε μελιφθόγγοισι χορείαις, χρυσοχίτων Ἀνθοῦσα, τεὸν σκηπτοῦχον ἀείδειν. καὶ γὰρ ἄναξ οὐ μοῦνον ἐν ἔντεσι χεῖρα κορύσσων ῥινοτόρωι δούλωσεν ἀπείρονα βάρβαρον αἰχμῆι, ὄφρα τεοῖς ἀδμῆτα λόφον κλίνειε λεπάδνοις καὶ θέμιδος πτήξειε τεῆς ζυγόν· ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς τετριγὼς ὑπέροπλα μέλας Φθόνος ὤκλασε τόξωι ἀστυόχου βασιλῆος, ἐπασσυτέροις δὲ βελέμνοις ῥωγαλέος δούπησε, πεσὼν δ' ἐβάθυνε κονίην. καὶ σὺ δὲ πρεσβυγένεθλε Λατινιὰς ἔρχεο Ῥώμη, σύνθροον ἀείδουσα μέλος νεοθηλέϊ Ῥώμηι· ἔρχεο καγχαλόωσα, τεὴν ὅτι παῖδα δοκεύεις μητρὸς ὑπερτέλλουσαν, ἐπεὶ χάρις ἥδε τοκήων. Ἀνέρες, οἷσι μέμηλε θεουδέα θεσμὰ γεραίρειν, δεῦρό μοι ἀχλυόεσσαν ἀπορρίψαντες ἀνίην χιονέους ἕσσασθε γεγηθότες