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4.8 For when a second attack was made against us by Maximinus in the third year of our persecution, and letters of the tyrant first circulated to the effect that all the people should simply, once and for all, with the care and zeal of the city magistrates, offer sacrifice; and when heralds throughout the whole city of the Caesareans were summoning by the governor's command men, together with women and children, to the temples of the idols; and in addition to this, when military tribunes were calling each person by name from a register; and an unspeakable flood of evils was being poured out everywhere, the aforementioned man, fearlessly, with no one knowing what was about to be done by him, having eluded us who were with him in the house, and also the entire military troop around the governor, approaches Urbanus as he was pouring libations, and taking him undauntedly by the right hand, he stopped him at once from sacrificing, and very well, in the manner of an adviser, with a certain divine assistance, urged him to cease from his error; for it was not right, he said, to abandon the one and only true God and sacrifice to idols and demons. 4.9 This, as it seems, was attempted by the youth through the divine power that was leading him to this very act, which, through what was happening, all but shouted that Christians—at least those who are truly such—are so far from changing from the piety toward the God of all which they were once deemed worthy of, that not only are they placed above threats and the torments that follow them, but they speak freely even more, speaking openly with a noble and fearless tongue, and, if it were possible, to exhort even their persecutors to repent of their ignorance and to acknowledge the only true God. 4.10 At this, the man of whom we are speaking was immediately, as might be expected for such a daring act, torn like a wild beast by those around the governor, and having most bravely endured countless blows over his whole body, for the time being he is at once handed over to the prison, 4.11 where for a day and a night he was stretched with both his feet in the torture-stock, and on the following day he is brought to the judge; then, being forced to sacrifice, he shows all endurance against pains and dreadful agonies, his sides being torn not once or twice, but many times, down to the bones and the very entrails, and having received so many blows on his face and neck that, his face being swollen, he could no longer be recognized even by those who had long known him well and accurately. 4.12 But since he did not give in even to such things, the torturers, by command, covered both his feet with cloths soaked in oil and set them on fire; what agonies the blessed one endured at this, I think, surpasses all description; for the fire reached him, melting his flesh and bones, so that the moisture of his body, being melted, flowed and dripped down like wax. 4.13 But since he did not give in to these things either, his adversaries being already defeated and all but having given up in the face of his superhuman endurance, he is again confined in bonds, and on the third day is again brought before the judge, and having confessed the same purpose, although by now being half-dead, he is delivered to be drowned in the sea. 4.14 The things that immediately followed these events, if told, will likely be disbelieved by those who have not perceived them with their own eyes; but as for us, though knowing this accurately, reason does not persuade us not to deliver the truth in every way to the account of the history, since, to speak simply, all the inhabitants of Caesarea were witnesses of what happened; indeed, no age was absent from this wondrous sight. 4.15 For as soon as it seemed best to cast that truly sacred and thrice-blessed man into the middle of the sea, into the boundless depths, a sudden, extraordinary commotion and surging spread through the sea itself and all the surrounding air, so that the land and the entire city were shaken by what happened, and at the same time with this wondrous and sudden earthquake, the divine martyr's

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4.8 δευτέρας γάρ τοι καθ' ἡμῶν γενομένης ἐπαναστάσεως ὑπὸ Μαξιμίνου τρίτῳ τοῦ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἔτει διωγμοῦ γραμμάτων τε τοῦ τυράννου τοῦτο πρῶτον διαπεφοιτηκότων, ὡς ἂν πανδημεὶ πάντες ἅπαξ ἁπλῶς μετ' ἐπιμελείας καὶ σπουδῆς τῶν κατὰ πόλεις ἀρχόντων θύοιεν κηρύκων τε καθ' ὅλης τῆς Καισαρέων πόλεως ἄνδρας ἅμα γυναιξὶν καὶ τέκνοις ἐπὶ τοὺς τῶν εἰδώλων οἴκους ἐξ ἡγεμονικοῦ κελεύσματος ἀναβοωμένων καὶ πρὸς τούτοις ὀνομαστὶ χιλιάρχων ἀπ' ἀπογραφῆς ἕκαστον ἀνακαλουμένων ἀφάτῳ τε κλύδωνι κακῶν τῶν πανταχόσε συγκεχυμένων, ἀφόβως ὁ δεδηλωμένος, μηδενὸς ἐπὶ τῷ πραχθησομένῳ συνειδότος αὐτῷ ἡμᾶς τε, οἳ κατ' οἶκον αὐτῷ συνῆμεν, καὶ ἔτι πᾶν τὸ περὶ τὸν ἡγεμόνα στρατιωτικὸν στῖφος ὑποκλέψας, σπένδοντι τῷ Οὐρβανῷ πρόσεισι, καὶ τῆς δεξιᾶς ἀκαταπλήκτως αὐτὸν λαβόμενος, κατέπαυσε μὲν παραχρῆμα τοῦ θύειν, εὖ μάλα δὲ συμβουλευτικῶς μετά τινος θείου παραστήματος παρῄνει παύσασθαι τῆς πλάνης· μὴ γὰρ καλῶς ἔχειν καταλιπόντας τὸν ἕνα καὶ μόνον ἀληθῆ θεὸν εἰδώλοις καὶ δαίμοσι θύειν. 4.9 τοῦτο δ', ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐνεχειρεῖτο τῷ μειρακίῳ τῆς ἐπὶ τοῦτ' αὐτὸν προαγούσης ἐνθέου δυνάμεως μόνον οὐχὶ διὰ τοῦ γινομένου βοώσης ὡς ἄρα τοσοῦτον ἀποδέοιεν Χριστιανοί, οἵ γε ὄντως τοιοῦτοι, ἧς ἅπαξ ἠξιώθησαν εἰς τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν εὐσεβείας μεταβάλλεσθαι, ὡς μὴ μόνον ὑπεράνω καθίστασθαι τῶν ἀπειλῶν καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ ταύταις κολαστηρίων, παρρησιάζεσθαι δ' εἰς ἔτι μᾶλλον εὐγενεῖ τε καὶ ἀτρόμῳ γλώττῃ ἐλευθεροστομεῖν καί, εἰ οἷόν τε, καὶ τοὺς διώκοντας αὐτούς, μεταθεμένους τῆς ἀγνωσίας τὸν μόνον ὄντα θεὸν ἐπιγνῶναι, παρακαλεῖν. 4.10 ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ περὶ οὗ ὁ λόγος, παραχρῆμα μὲν ὅσα εἰκὸς αὐτὸν ὡς ἂν ἐπὶ τοιούτῳ τολμήματι, θηρῶν δίκην ἀγρίων πρὸς τῶν ἀμφὶ τὸν ἡγεμόνα διασπαραχθεὶς καὶ μυρίας καθ' ὅλου τοῦ σώματος πληγὰς ἀνδρειότατα ὑπομείνας, τέως μὲν αὐτίκα δεσμωτηρίῳ παραδίδοται, 4.11 ἔνθα νυχθήμερον ἄμφω τὼ πόδε ἐπὶ τοῦ βασανιστικοῦ διαταθεὶς ξύλου, τῇ ἐπιούσῃ προσάγεται τῷ δικαστῇ· εἶτα θύειν ἐκβιαζομένου, πᾶσαν ἐνδείκνυται πρὸς πόνους καὶ φρικτὰς ἀλγηδόνας καρτερίαν, τὰς πλευρὰς οὐχ ἅπαξ οὐδὲ δεύτερον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πλεονάκις ἄχρις ὀστέων καὶ αὐτῶν σπλάγχνων καταξανθεὶς πληγάς τε κατὰ προσώπου καὶ αὐχένος τοσαύτας δεξάμενος, ὡς μηδ' ὑπὸ τῶν εὖ καὶ ἀκριβῶς αὐτὸν πάλαι εἰδότων, διοιδήσαντα τὸ πρόσωπον, ἔτι γινώσκεσθαι. 4.12 ἀλλὰ γὰρ μηδὲ πρὸς τὰ τοσαῦτα ἐνδιδόντος, λίνοις ἐλαίῳ δεδευμένοις τὼ πόδε αὐτοῦ καλύψαντες, πῦρ ὑφῆπτον ἐκ προστάξεως οἱ βασανισταί· ἐφ' οἷς ὁποίας ἤνεγκεν ὁ μακάριος ἀλγηδόνας, πάντα λόγον ὑπεραίρειν μοι δοκῶ· καθίκετο γοῦν αὐτοῦ διατῆξαν τὰς σάρκας καὶ τῶν ὀστέων τὸ πῦρ, ὡς κηροῦ δίκην λείβεσθαι καὶ ἀποστάζειν ἐκτηκομένην τὴν ἰκμάδα τοῦ σώματος. 4.13 ἀλλὰ γὰρ οὐδὲ ταῦτα ἐνδούς, ἡττημένων ἤδη καὶ μόνον οὐκ ἀπειρηκότων πρὸς τὴν ὑπὲρ ἄνθρωπον καρτερίαν αὐτοῦ τῶν ἀντιπάλων, αὖθις δεσμοῖς εἴργνυται, τριταῖός τε αὖ προσαχθεὶς τῷ δικαστῇ καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ὁμολογήσας πρόθεσιν, καίτοι γε λοιπὸν ἡμιθνὴς ὑπάρχων, ὑποβρύχιος θαλάττῃ παραδίδοται. 4.14 τὰ δ' ἐπὶ τούτοις παραχρῆμα γενόμενα ῥηθέντα μὲν οὐκ ἀπεικὸς παρὰ τοῖς μὴ ὄψει παρειληφόσιν ἀπιστηθήσεσθαι, ἡμᾶς δ' οὖν, καίπερ τοῦτ' ἀκριβῶς εἰδότας, οὐχ αἱρεῖ λόγος μὴ οὐχὶ ἐκ παντὸς τἀληθὲς παραδοῦναι τῷ λόγῳ τῆς ἱστορίας, τῷ καὶ μάρτυρας εἶναι τοῦ γεγενημένου ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν ἅπαντας τοὺς τὴν Καισάρειαν οἰκοῦντας· οὐδεμία γοῦν ἡλικία τῆς παραδόξου ταύτης ἀπελείφθη θέας. 4.15 αὐτίκα γοῦν ὡς ἐδόκει μάλιστα κατὰ μέσου πελάγους ἐν ἀπείροις βυθοῖς τὸν ἱερὸν ὄντως ἐκεῖνον καὶ τρὶς μακάριον ἐμβαλεῖν, κλόνος ἀθρόως οὐχ ὁ τυχὼν καὶ βρασμὸς αὐτήν τε τὴν θάλατταν καὶ τὸ περιέχον ἅπαν διαχεῖ, ὡς καὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἅπασαν πρὸς τοῦ γενομένου σεισθῆναι, ἅμα δὲ τῷ παραδόξῳ τούτῳ καὶ ἀθρόῳ σεισμῷ τοῦ θείου μάρτυρος τὸν