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for women to be married to one man and to live chastely. 8. And after the death of Hephaestus, his son Helios reigned over the Egyptians for 4377 days, which is 12 years and 7 days. For at that time neither the Egyptians nor any others knew how to calculate a year, but some calculated the cycles of the moon as years, and others the cycles of the days; for the numbers of the 12 months were devised after this, from the time it was decreed that men should be subject to kings. This king of Egypt, Helios, having caught a woman committing adultery, punished her, upholding the legislation of his father; and this is what Homer says poetically, that Helios exposed Aphrodite having intercourse with Ares at night. For he called the desire for fornication, which was exposed by king Helios, "Aphrodite." But the most wise chronographer Palaephatus wrote down the truth. 9. After the death of Helios, Sosis reigned. After this, two others, and after them Thoules, who having taken over all the land as far as the ocean, came into Africa to the oracle; and having sacrificed he inquired, saying: "Who before my reign was able to subjugate all things, or who after me?" And this oracle was given to him: First God, then the Word and the Spirit with them. These are all co-natural and truly proceeding into one, whose power is eternal. 10. After him Sostris, from the tribe of Ham, reigned over the Egyptians, in whose time the Scythians were resettled in Persia. In the times of Sostris was Hermes Trismegistus the Egyptian, a man formidable in wisdom, who declared that there are three greatest powers, the name of the ineffable creator, and he said that there is one divinity; for which reason he was also called Trismegistus by the Egyptians. And these words are found in his discourses to Asclepius: 11. "There was an intellectual light before an intellectual light, and there was always a luminous mind of mind; and there was nothing else but its oneness; always being in itself, it always contains all things by its own mind and light and spirit. Besides this there is no god, no angel, no demon, nor any other being; for it is the creator and father and god of all, and all things are under it and in it. For its word, being all-perfect and fruitful and creative, having fallen upon a fruitful nature in fruitful water, made the water pregnant." (12) And having said these things he prayed, saying: "I adjure you, heaven, the wise work of the great god, I adjure you, the voice of the father, which he first uttered when he established the whole world; I adjure you by his only-begotten Word and by the Spirit which contains all things: be merciful, be merciful, be merciful;" so then even Hermes Trismegistus, although ignorant of the future, confessed a consubstantial trinity. 13. After Sostris, Pharao, who is also Karacho, reigned over the Egyptians, from whom the rulers of the Egyptians received the title Pharaoh. 14. And at the time when Inachus, descended from the tribe of Japheth, reigned over the Argives in the western parts, he also founded a city in the name of the moon, Io; for so the Argives called the moon; and he took to wife Melia, from whom he had two sons and a daughter Io, whom Picus, who is also Zeus, seized, and from her he had a daughter Libya. So Io, grieved at her violation, left her parents, her brothers, and her daughter Libya, and fled to Egypt, and from there went to Syria to the mountain called Silpion, on which Seleucus Nicator founded a city and called it Antioch in the name of his son, and there she died. And her brothers, having gone in search of her and finding her dead, built a temple for her which they called Iopolis. 15. And Libya, having married a certain Poseidon, bore from him 3 children, Agenor, Belus, and Enyalius. Belus, having married Side, had two sons, Aegyptus and Danaus; from them Egypt and Sidon were named. And Agenor took Tyro; from whom the city of Tyre; and he had 4 sons and one daughter, Cadmus, Phoenix, Syrus, and Cilix, and Europa; and they obtained by lot the eponymous lands Cadmeia of Thebes, Phoenicia, Syria, Cilicia, and
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γυναιξὶ μονανδρεῖν καὶ σωφρόνως διάγειν. 8. Μετὰ δὲ τὴν τελευτὴν Ἡφαίστου ἐβασίλευσεν Αἰγυπτίων ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ Ἥλιος ἡμέραις δυοζʹ, ὡς εἶναι ἔτη ιβʹ καὶ ἡμέρας ζʹ. Οὔτε γὰρ ᾔδεισαν τότε Αἰγύπτιοι ἢ ἄλλοι τινὲς ἐνιαυτὸν ψηφίσαι, ἀλλ' ἄλλοι μὲν τὰς περιόδους τῆς σελήνης εἰς ἐνιαυτοὺς ἐψήφιζον, οἱ δὲ τὰς περιόδους τῶν ἡμερῶν· οἱ γὰρ τῶν ιβʹ μηνῶν ἀριθμοὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ἐπενοήθησαν, ἐξ ὅτου ἐπωνομάσθη τὸ ὑποτελεῖς εἶναι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν. Ὁ τοιοῦτος βασιλεὺς Αἰγύπτου Ἥλιος κατασχὼν γυναῖκα μοιχευομένην ἐτιμώρησεν αὐτὴν, στηρίζων τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ νομοθεσίαν· καὶ τοῦτό ἐστιν ὃ ποιητικῶς φησὶν Ὅμηρος, ὡς Ἥλιος ἤλεγξε τὴν Ἀφροδίτην συμμιγνυμένην νυκτὸς Ἄρεϊ. Ἀφροδίτην γὰρ ἐκάλεσε τὴν ἐπιθύμησιν τῆς πορνείας ὑπὸ Ἡλίου βασιλέως ἐλεγχθείσης. Τὸ δὲ ἀληθὲς Παλαίφατος ὁ σοφώτατος χρονογράφος συνεγράψατο. 9. Μετὰ τὴν Ἡλίου τελευτὴν ἐβασίλευσε Σῶσις. Μετὰ ταῦτα ἕτεροι δύο, καὶ μετ' αὐτοὺς Θοῦλις, ὃς παραλαβὼν πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν μετὰ (λ. ἕως) τοῦ ὠκεανοῦ ἦλθεν ἐν τῇ Ἀφρικῇ εἰς τὸ μαντεῖον· καὶ θυσιάσας ἐπυνθάνετο λέγων· «Τίς πρὸ τῆς ἐμοῦ βασιλείας ἠδυνήθη ὑποτάξαι τὰ πάντα, ἢ τίς μετ' ἐμέ;» Καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ χρησμὸς οὗτος· Πρῶτα θεὸς, μετέπειτα λόγος καὶ πνεῦμα σὺν αὐτοῖς. Ταῦτα δὲ σύμφυτα πάντα καὶ ἔντυμον εἰς ἓν ἰόντα, οὖ κράτος αἰώνιον. 10. Μετ' αὐτὸν ἐβασίλευσεν Αἰγυπτίων ἐκ τῆς φυλῆς Χὰμ Σῶστρις, ἐφ' οὗ μετῳκίσθησαν ἐν Περσίᾳ Σκύθαι. Ἐν τοῖς χρόνοις τοῦ Σώστριδος ἦν Ἑρμῆς ὁ τρισμέγιστος ὁ Αἰγύπτιος, ἀνὴρ φοβερὸς ἐν σοφίᾳ, ὃς ἔφρασε τρεῖς μεγίστας δυνάμεις εἶναι, τὸ τοῦ ἀρρήτου καὶ δημιουργοῦ ὄνομα, μίαν δὲ θειότητα εἶπεν εἶναι· διὸ καὶ ἐκλήθη ὑπὸ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων Τρισμέγιστος. Ἐμφέρονται δὲ ἐν τοῖς πρὸς Ἀσκληπιὸν λόγοις αὐτοῦ ῥήματα ταῦτα· 11. «Ἦν φῶς νοερὸν πρὸ φωτὸς νοεροῦ καὶ ἦν ἀεὶ νοῦς νοὸς φωτεινός· καὶ οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἦν ἢ ἡ τούτου ἑνότης· ἀεὶ ἐν αὑτῷ ὢν, ἀεὶ τῷ αὑτοῦ νοῒ καὶ φωτὶ καὶ πνεύματι πάντα περιέχει. Ἐκτὸς τούτου οὐ θεὸς, οὐκ ἄγγελος, οὐ δαίμων, οὐκ οὐσία τις ἄλλη· πάντων γὰρ κτίστης καὶ πατὴρ καὶ θεὸς, καὶ πάντα ὑπ' αὐτὸν καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ ἐστιν. Ὁ γὰρ λόγος αὐτοῦ παντέλειος ὢν καὶ γόνιμος καὶ δημιουργὸς, ἐν γονίμῳ φύσει πεσὼν ἐν γονίμῳ ὕδατι ἔγκυον τὸ ὕδωρ ἐποίησε.» (12) Καὶ ταῦτα εἰρηκὼς ηὔξατο λέγων· «ὁρκίζω σε, οὐρανὸν, θεοῦ μεγάλου σοφὸν ἔργον, ὁρκίζω σε φωνὴν πατρὸς, ἣν ἐφθέγξατο πρώτην, ἡνίκα τὸν πάντα κόσμον ἐστηρίξατο· ὁρκίζω σε κατὰ τοῦ μονογενοῦς αὐτοῦ λόγου καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ περιέχοντος πάντα· ἵλεως, ἵλεως, ἵλεως ἔσο·» ὥστε οὖν καὶ Ἑρμῆς ὁ τρισμέγιστος καίτοι γε ἀγνοῶν τὸ μέλλον τριάδα ὁμοούσιον ὡμολόγησε. 13. Μετὰ Σῶστριν ἐβασίλευσε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων Φαραὼ ὁ καὶ Καραχὼ, ἀφ' οὗ οἱ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων δυνάσται τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν ἔλαβον Φαραώ. 14. Καθ' ὃν δὲ χρόνον ἐβασίλευσε τῶν Ἀργείων ἐν τοῖς δυτικοῖς μέρεσιν Ἴναχος ἐκ τῆς φυλῆς Ἰάφεθ καταγόμενος, καὶ κτίζει πόλιν εἰς ὄνομα τῆς σελήνης, Ἰώ· οὕτω γὰρ τὴν σελήνην ἐκάλουν Ἀργεῖοι· καὶ ἠγάγετο γυναῖκα Μηλίαν, ἀφ' ἧς ἔσχεν υἱοὺς δύο καὶ θυγατέρα Ἰὼ, ἣν Πῖκος ὁ καὶ Ζεὺς ἥρπασε, καὶ ἐξ αὐτῆς ἔσχεν θυγατέρα Λιβύην. Ἡ τοίνυν Ἰὼ λυπηθεῖσα ἐπὶ τῇ διαφθορᾷ, ἀφεῖσα τοὺς γονεῖς, τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τὴν θυγατέρα Λιβύην, ἔφυγεν εἰς Αἴγυπτον, κἀκεῖθεν ἐπὶ τὴν Συρίαν ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὸ Σίλπιον καλούμενον ὄρος, εἰς ὅπερ Σέλευκος ὁ Νικάτωρ ἔκτισε πόλιν καὶ εἰς ὄνομα τοῦ υἱοῦ Ἀντιόχειαν ἐκάλεσε, κἀκεῖ ἐτελεύτα. Καὶ ἀπελθόντες εἰς ἀναζήτησιν αὐτῆς οἱ ἀδελφοὶ καὶ εὑρόντες θανοῦσαν ἔκτισαν αὐτῇ ἱερὸν ὅπερ ἐκάλεσαν Ἰώπολιν. 15. Ἡ δὲ Λιβύη γαμηθεῖσα Ποσειδῶνί τινι ἔτεκεν ἐξ αὐτοῦ παῖδας γʹ, Ἀγήνορα, Βῆλον καὶ Ἐνυάλιον. Ὁ Βῆλος γαμήσας Σίδην ἔσχε δύο υἱοὺς, Αἴγυπτον καὶ ∆αναόν· ἐξ οὗ Αἴγυπτος καὶ Σιδὼν ὠνομάσθησαν. Ὁ δὲ Ἀγήνωρ ἤγαγε τὴν Τυρώ· ἐξ οὗ Τύρος πόλις· καὶ ἔσχεν υἱοὺς δʹ καὶ θυγατέρα μίαν, Κάδμον, Φοίνικα, Σύρον καὶ Κίλικα καὶ Εὐρώπην· καὶ ἔλαχον τὰς ἐπωνύμους χώρας Καδμείαν τὴν Θήβης, τὴν Φοινίκην, τὴν Συρίαν, τὴν Κιλικίαν καὶ