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by not worshipping or something else was not an idolater; for Adam was a prophet and knew that the Father said to the Son, "Let us make man." What then was he, having neither circumcision nor worshipping idols, but that he was shown to be hinting at the character of Christianity? So also it must be understood in the case of Abel and of Seth and of Enos and of Enoch and of Methuselah and of Noah and of Eber, up to Abraham. And at that time piety and impiety were at work, faith and unbelief; faith holding the image of Christianity, but unbelief holding the character of impiety and transgression, contrary to the law of nature, until the aforementioned time. In the fifth generation, then, after the flood, as men were just then multiplying from the three sons of Noah, in succession the children of children and their children became seventy-two in number, founders and heads in the world. And extending and proceeding forward from Mount Lubar and the borders of Armenia, that is, the country of Ararat, they came to be in the plain of Shinar, where somewhere * they chose; and this Shinar now lies in the country of Persia; but it formerly belonged to the Assyrians. There, then, having come together, they take counsel with one another to build a tower and a city; and having inclined from the region toward 1.176 Europe to Asia, they were all named Scythians, according to the appellation of the time. And they build the tower and construct Babylon. And God was not pleased with the work of their folly; for he scattered their languages and from one divided them into seventy-two, according to the number of the men found at that time, whence these are also called Meropes because of their divided speech, and a blast of winds overthrew the tower. At any rate, they were divided over all the earth, to the right and to the left, some returning to where they had come from, others having proceeded to the regions of the east, and others having occupied Libya; so that if anyone should wish to grasp the details about these, he would find how each of those who had gone forth obtained his lot according to each particular fatherland, as Mistrem succeeded to the lot of Egypt, Chus to Ethiopia, Psus to the Axumite parts, Regma and Sabacatha and† Thōÿan and † Loud to the parts toward the country of the Garamantes. And lest I make the composition of the preface here too long, I will come again to the subject at hand and take up the sequence again according to the succession. ˉΓ. Hellenism. Between Eber and Peleg, then, and the building of the tower and of the first city founded after the flood, a beginning of council, assembly, and tyranny finally takes place upon this very building. 1.177 For Nimrod, son of Chus the Ethiopian, from whom Assur was born, reigns. His kingdom was in Orech and in Arphal and Calneh; and he also founds Theiras and Thobel and Lobon in the country of the Assyrians. The sons of the Hellenes say this is Zoroaster, who, having advanced to the eastern parts, becomes the founder of the Bactrians. From here the lawless things throughout the land were distributed; for he became the inventor of evil teaching, astrology and magic, as some say concerning this Zoroaster; however, as accuracy has it, this was the time of Nimrod the giant, but both were very far apart from each other in time, both Nimrod and Zoroaster. And Peleg begets Ragau, Ragau Seruch, which is interpreted "provocation," from whom idolatry and Hellenism began among men, as the knowledge that has come down to us holds. not yet in carved images and in reliefs of stone or wood or made of silver or gold or any other material, but only through colors and pictures did the mind of man invent wickedness for itself and

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μὴ προσκυνῶν ἢ ἄλλο τι οὐκ ἦν εἰδωλολάτρης· προφήτης γὰρ ἦν ὁ Ἀδὰμ καὶ ᾔδει ὅτι ὁ πατὴρ εἶπε τῷ υἱῷ «ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον». τί οὖν ἦν, μήτε περιτομὴν ἔχων μήτε εἴδωλα σέβων, ἀλλ' ὅτι τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ τὸν χαρακτῆρα ὑποφαίνων ἐδείκνυτο; οὕτως καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἄβελ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Σὴθ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἐνὼς καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἐνὼχ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Μαθουσάλα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Νῶε καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Ἔβερ ἄχρι τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ διαληπτέον. ἐνήργει δὲ τότε εὐσέβειά τε καὶ ἀσέβεια, πίστις καὶ ἀπιστία· πίστις μὲν ἐπέχουσα τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ τὴν εἰκόνα, ἀπιστία δὲ ἐπέχουσα ἀσεβείας τὸν χαρακτῆρα καὶ παρανομίας, ἐναντία τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν νόμου, ἕως τοῦ προδεδηλωμένου χρόνου. πέμπτῃ τοίνυν γενεᾷ μετὰ τὸν κατακλυσμόν, πληθυνόντων ἄρτι τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀπὸ τῶν τριῶν υἱῶν τοῦ Νῶε, κατὰ διαδοχὴν παίδων παῖδες καὶ τούτων παῖδες γεγόνασιν ἑβδομήκοντα δύο τὸν ἀριθμὸν ἐν κόσμῳ ἀρχηγέται καὶ κεφαλαιωταί. ἐπεκτεινόμενοι δὲ καὶ πρόσω βαίνοντες ἀπὸ τοῦ Λουβὰρ ὄρους καὶ ὁρίων τῆς Ἀρμενίας τουτέστιν Ἀραρὰτ τῆς χώρας γίνονται ἐν πεδίῳ Σεναάρ, ἔνθα που * ἐπελέξαντο· κεῖται δὲ αὕτη ἡ Σεναὰρ νυνὶ ἐν χώρᾳ τῇ Περσίδι· ἦν δὲ πάλαι Ἀσσυρίων. ἐκεῖσε τοίνυν συνδυάσαντες συμβούλιον λαμβάνουσι μετ' ἀλλήλων πύργον καὶ πόλιν οἰκοδομῆσαι· ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ κλίματος τοῦ πρὸς 1.176 Εὐρώπην εἰς Ἀσίαν κεκλικότες ἐπωνομάσθησαν πάντες κατὰ τὴν τοῦ χρόνου ἐπίκλησιν Σκύθαι. κτίζουσι δὲ τὴν πυργοποιίαν καὶ οἰκοδομοῦσι τὴν Βαβυλῶνα. καὶ οὐκ ηὐδόκησεν ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ τῷ ἔργῳ τῆς αὐτῶν ἀνοίας· διεσκέδασε γὰρ αὐτῶν τὰς γλώττας καὶ ἀπὸ μιᾶς εἰς ἑβδομήκοντα δύο διένειμεν κατὰ τὸν τῶν τότε ἀνδρῶν ἀριθμὸν εὑρεθέντων, ὅθεν καὶ Μέροπες οὗτοι κέκληνται διὰ τὴν μεμερισμένην φωνήν, καὶ τὸν πύργον ἀνέμων βολὴ κατέστρεψεν. ἐμερίσθησαν γοῦν ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν δεξιά τε καὶ εὐώνυμα, οἱ μὲν παλίνορσοι ὅθεν ἐκβεβήκασιν, ἄλλοι δὲ ἐπὶ τὰ πρόσω τῆς ἀνατολῆς κεχωρηκότες, ἕτεροι δὲ τὴν Λιβύην κατειλήφασιν· ὡς καὶ περὶ τούτων τὴν ἀκρίβειαν εἴ τις ἐθέλοι καταλαβέσθαι, εὕροι ἂν ἕκαστον τῶν προκεχωρηκότων καθ' ἑκάστην τινὰ πατρίδα πῶς εἴληχε τὸν κλῆρον, ὡς ὁ Μιστρὲμ μὲν διαδέχεται τὸν τῆς Αἰγύπτου κλῆρον, Χοὺς δὲ τὴν Αἰθιοπίδα, Ψοῦς τὰ Ἀξωμιτικὰ μέρη, Ῥέγμα καὶ Σαβακαθὰ καὶ† Θωϋὰν καὶ † Λοὺδ τὰ πρὸς τῇ Γαραμῶν χώρᾳ. καὶ ἵνα μὴ εἰς πολὺ πλάτος ποιήσωμαι τὴν ἐνταῦθα σύνταξιν τοῦ προοιμίου, ἐλεύσομαι πάλιν ἐπὶ τὸ προκείμενον καὶ κατὰ τὴν διαδοχὴν αὖθις ἐπιλήψομαι τῆς ἀκολουθίας. ˉΓ. Ἑλληνισμός. Μεταξὺ γοῦν τοῦ Ἔβερ καὶ τοῦ Φαλὲκ καὶ τῆς πυργοποιίας καὶ πρώτης πόλεως μετὰ τὸν κατακλυσμὸν κτισθείσης ἐπ' αὐτῇ τῇ οἰκοδομῇ ἀρχὴ λοιπὸν συμβουλίας ἀθροισμοῦ καὶ τυραννίδος γίνεται. 1.177 Νεβρὼδ γὰρ βασιλεύει υἱὸς τοῦ Χοὺς τοῦ Αἰθίοπος, ἐξ οὗ Ἀσοὺρ γεγέννηται. τούτου ἡ βασιλεία ἐν Ὀρὲχ γεγένηται καὶ ἐν Ἀρφὰλ καὶ Χαλάννῃ· κτίζει δὲ καὶ τὴν Θειρὰς καὶ τὴν Θοβὲλ καὶ Λόβον ἐν τῇ Ἀσσυρίων χώρᾳ. τοῦτόν φασι παῖδες Ἑλλήνων εἶναι τὸν Ζωροάστρην, ὃς πρόσω χωρήσας ἐπὶ τὰ ἀνατολικὰ μέρη οἰκιστὴς γίνεται Βάκτρων. ἐντεῦθεν τὰ κατὰ τὴν γῆν παράνομα διανενέμηται· ἐφευρετὴς γὰρ οὗτος γεγένηται κακῆς διδαχῆς, ἀστρολογίας καὶ μαγείας, ὥς τινές φασι περὶ τούτου τοῦ Ζωροάστρου· πλήν, ὡς ἡ ἀκρίβεια περιέχει, τοῦ Νεβρὼδ τοῦ γίγαντος οὗτος ἦν ὁ χρόνος, πολὺ δὲ ἀλλήλων τῷ χρόνῳ διεστήκασιν ἄμφω, ὅ τε Νεβρὼδ καὶ ὁ Ζωροάστρης. Φαλὲκ δὲ γεννᾷ τὸν Ῥαγαῦ, Ῥαγαῦ τὸν Σεροὺχ τὸν ἑρμηνευόμενον ἐρεθισμόν, ἀφ' οὗ ἤρξατο εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἡ εἰδωλολατρεία τε καὶ ὁ Ἑλληνισμός, ὡς ἡ ἐλθοῦσα εἰς ἡμᾶς γνῶσις περιέχει. οὔπω δὲ ἐν ξοάνοις καὶ ἐν τορείαις λίθων ἢ ξύλων ἢ ἀργυροτεύκτων ἢ ἐκ χρυσοῦ ἢ ἄλλης τινὸς ὕλης πεποιημέναις, μόνον δὲ διὰ χρωμάτων καὶ εἰκόνων ἡ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου διάνοια ἑαυτῇ ἐφηύρατο τὴν κακίαν καὶ