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the inhabitants turned to more earnest supplications, having the great Jacob as their intercessor; and all those of age rebuilt with haste, paying no attention to beauty or harmony, but putting everything together at random, both stones and bricks and whatever anyone brought; and in one night the work advanced, and it gained such a height as was sufficient to hinder both the charge of the horses and the ascent of the men without ladders. Then all besought the man of God to appear on the wall and to shoot down the enemies with curses. And he was persuaded and went up and, seeing their many myriads, besought God to send upon them a cloud of gnats and mosquitoes. And he spoke, and He sent, obeying him in a way similar to Moses. And the men were wounded by the divine arrows, and the horses and elephants, breaking their bonds, fled, scattering here and there, unable to bear those stings. 1.12 When the impious king saw, therefore, that all the siege-engines had provided no help, and that the assault of the river had been fruitless—for the fallen wall had been rebuilt—, and that the whole army was both worn out with toils and suffering hardship in the open and being driven by the God-sent plague, and when he saw the divine man walking on the wall, and supposed him to be the king overseeing the work—for he was seen wearing a purple robe and a diadem—, he was indeed indignant at those who had deceived him and persuaded him to mount a campaign and had said that the king was not present. And having passed a sentence of death against them, he disbanded the army and reached his own palace as quickly as possible. 1.13 Such things God also worked wondrously in the time of this Hezekiah, not less than those, but even greater, as it seems to me. For that the city was not captured even when the wall had fallen, what scope for hyperbole of wonder does it leave? But in addition to this, I especially marvel at that, that when using curses, he did not ask for thunderbolts and lightning to be brought, which that great Elijah did, when each captain of fifty came to him with his fifty. For he had heard the Lord saying explicitly to James and John—who had tried to do this very thing: "You do not know of what spirit you are?" For this reason he did not ask for the earth to gape for them, nor did he entreat for the phalanx to be consumed by fire, but for them to be wounded by those little creatures and, recognizing the power of God, to learn piety, though late. 1.14 Such boldness did this divine man have before God; such grace did he enjoy from above. Continuing in these things and, growing in divine things each day, with the greatest renown he laid aside this life and set out on the departure from hence. But when time had passed and this city was handed over to the one then ruling the Persian kingdom, all who inhabited the city went out, and they carried the body of their champion, being distressed indeed and lamenting their relocation, but singing of the power of the victorious hero. For they would not have come under barbarians had he been alive. Having related these things concerning this divine man, I will move on to another narrative, beseeching to share in his blessing. 2.t JULIANUS 2.1 Julianus, whom the local people, honoring him, surnamed Sabas—the name signifies 'the elder' in the Greek language—, pitched his ascetic hut in the land formerly of the Parthians, but now called that of the Osroenes; and this extends towards

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οἰκοῦντες εἰς ἱκετείας σπουδαιο τέρας ἐτρέποντο, πρεσβευτὴν ἔχοντες τὸν μέγαν Ἰάκωβον· οἱ δὲ ἐν ἡλικίᾳ πάντες ἀνῳκοδόμουν σπουδῇ, οὔτε κάλλους, οὔτε ἁρμονίας ἐπιμελούμενοι, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ τυχὸν ἅπαντα συντιθέντες, καὶ λίθους, καὶ πλίνθους, καὶ ὅ τι ἄν τις ἐκόμιζεν· καὶ ἐν μιᾷ νυκτὶ προὔβη τὸ ἔργον, καὶ τοσοῦτον ἔλαβεν ὕψος ὅσον ἀπόχρη διακωλῦσαι καὶ τῶν ἵππων τὸν δρόμον καὶ τῶν ἀνδρῶν τὴν ἄνευ κλιμάκων ἐπίβασιν. Τότε πάντες ἱκετεύουσι τὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἄνθρωπον φανῆναί τε ἐπὶ τοῦ τείχους καὶ ἀραῖς κατατοξεῦσαι τοὺς πολεμίους. Ὁ δὲ ἐπείθετο καὶ ἀνῄει καί, τὰς πολλὰς αὐτῶν θεασάμενος μυριάδας, σκνιφῶν αὐτοῖς καὶ κωνώπων ἐπιπέμψαι νέφος ἱκέτευσε τὸν θεόν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἔλεγεν, ὁ δὲ ἔπεμπε, Μωϋσῇ παραπλησίως πειθόμενος. Καὶ οἵ τε ἄνδρες τοῖς θείοις κατετιτρώσκοντο βέλεσιν, οἵ τε ἵπποι καὶ οἱ ἐλέφαντες, τὰ δεσμὰ διαρρήξαντες, ἐδραπέτευον τῇδε κἀκεῖσε σκεδαν νύμενοι καὶ φέρειν ἐκείνας οὐ δυνάμενοι τὰς ἀκίδας. 1.12 Θεασάμενος τοίνυν ὁ δυσσεβὴς βασιλεὺς καὶ τὰ μηχανήματα ἅπαντα ὄνησιν οὐδεμίαν παρεσχηκότα, καὶ τοῦ ποταμοῦ τὴν προσβολὴν ἀνόνητον γεγενημένην-τὸ γὰρ καταπεσὸν ἀνῳκοδόμητο τεῖχος-, καὶ τὴν στρατιὰν ἅπασαν καὶ τοῖς πόνοις ταλαιπωρουμένην καὶ ὑπαίθριον κακοπαθοῦσαν καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς θεηλάτου ἐλαυνομένην πληγῆς, ἰδὼν δὲ καὶ τὸν θεῖον ἄνθρωπον ἐπὶ τοῦ τείχους βαδίζοντα, καὶ τοπάσας αὐτὸν ἐφεστάναι τῷ ἔργῳ τὸν βασιλέα- ἁλουργίδα γὰρ καὶ διάδημα περικείμενος ἑωρᾶτο-, ἠγα νάκτει μὲν κατὰ τῶν ἐξαπατησάντων καὶ στρατεῦσαι πεισάντων καὶ τὸν βασιλέα μὴ παρεῖναι φησάντων. Θανάτου δὲ ψῆφον κατὰ τούτων ἐξενεγκών, διέλυσε τὴν στρατιὰν καὶ τὰ οἰκεῖα βασίλεια κατέλαβεν ὅτι τάχιστα. 1.13 Τοιαῦτα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦδε τοῦ Ἐζεκίου τεθαυματούργηκεν ὁ θεός, οὐ μείονα ἐκείνων, ἀλλὰ καὶ μείζονα, ὡς ἐμοίγε δοκεῖ. Τὸ γὰρ καὶ τοῦ τείχους καταπεσόντος μὴ ἁλῶναι τὴν πόλιν, ποίαν θαύματος ὑπερβολὴν καταλείπει; Ἐγὼ δὲ πρὸς τούτῳ κἀκεῖνο ἄγαν θαυμάζω, ὅτι καὶ ἀραῖς χρησάμενος, οὐ σκηπτοὺς ᾔτησεν ἐνεχθῆναι καὶ κεραυνούς, ὅπερ Ἠλίας ὁ μέγας ἐκεῖνος ἐποίησεν, ἡνίκα πρὸς αὐτὸν πεντηκόνταρχος ἑκάτερος μετὰ τῆς πεντηκοστύος ἀφίκετο. Ἤκουσε γὰρ τοῦ κυρίου πρὸς Ἰάκωβον καὶ Ἰωάννηντοῦτ' αὐτὸ πειραθέντας ποιῆσαι διαρρήδην εἰπόντος· "Οὐκ οἴδατε ποίου πνεύματός ἐστε;" ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐ χᾶναι αὐτοῖς τὴν γῆν ᾔτησεν, οὐδὲ πυρὶ δαπανηθῆναι τὴν φάλαγγα παρεκάλεσεν, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ζωϋφίοις ἐκείνοις κατα τρωθῆναι καί, τοῦ θεοῦ διαγνόντας τὴν δύναμιν, ὀψέ ποτε μεταμαθεῖν τὴν εὐσέβειαν. 1.14 Τοσαύτην εἶχεν ὁ θεῖος οὗτος ἄνθρωπος πρὸς τὸν θεὸν παρρησίαν· τοσαύτης ἄνωθεν ἀπέλαυε χάριτος. Ἐν τούτοις διατελῶν καί, καθ' ἑκάστην ἐν τοῖς θείοις αὐξανό μενος ἡμέραν, μετὰ τῆς μεγίστης εὐκλείας τόνδε τὸν βίον ἀπέθετο καὶ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἀποδημίαν ἐστείλατο. Χρόνου δὲ διελθόντος καὶ τοῦδε τοῦ ἄστεως ὑπὸ τοῦ τηνικάδε κρατοῦντος τῇ περσικῇ βασιλείᾳ παραδοθέντος, ἐξῄεσαν μὲν ἅπαντες οἱ τὴν πόλιν οἰκοῦντες, ἔφερον δὲ τοῦ προμάχου τὸ σῶμα, ἀσχάλλοντες μὲν καὶ ὀλοφυρόμενοι τὴν μετοικίαν, ᾄδοντες δὲ τοῦ νικηφόρου ἀριστέως τὴν δύναμιν. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἐκείνου περιόντος ὑπὸ βαρβάροις ἐγένοντο. Ταῦτα περὶ τοῦδε τοῦ θείου διεξελθὼν εἰς ἑτέραν διήγησιν μεταβήσομαι, τῆς τούτου μεταλαχεῖν εὐλογίας ἀντιβολῶν. 2.t ΙΟΥΛΙΑΝΟΣ 2.1 Ἰουλιανὸς, ὃν Σάβαν ἐπίκλην οἱ ἐπιχώριοι τιμῶντες ὠνόμαζον-τὸν δὲ πρεσβύτην τῇ ἑλλάδι φωνῇ σημαίνει τὸ ὄνομα-, ἐν τῇ πάλαι μὲν Παρθυαίων, νῦν δὲ Ὀσροηνῶν ὀνομαζομένῃ, τὴν ἀσκητικὴν καλύβην ἐπήξατο· διατείνει δὲ αὕτη πρὸς μὲν