10

which is owed by us, the servants of the Word and of Truth, even to those who have done no good service; and this after his departure from hence, at a time when we have escaped even the appearance of flattery, and our words are free from wicked suspicion.

40. For who would not have hoped, if nothing else, that the honors would make him gentler? Who would not have hoped that from the trust, with which he was entrusted even contrary to expectation, he would be more just? as if by a just and royal judgment of them both, the one being censured, the other promoted; for he who honored the second in ways no one would have hoped, not even he himself who received the honor, it is clear that he did not punish the former without just anger; and the one was due to that man's rashness, while the other was due to the benevolence of him who had honored him.

41. And at the same time he had confidence, if I may say something greater, not so much from that man's loyalty as from his own power; by which, it seems to me, the great Alexander also, taking courage, gave not only his life to the defeated Porus, although he had fought so vigorously for his kingdom, but also again the kingdom of the Indians; as if about to show his magnanimity in no other way than this, to be overcome by which he, being Alexander, thought worse than by arms; since it was in his own power to subdue him again, if he should prove wicked. And the abundance of his confidence was his benevolence.

42. And yet why do I contend this, when it is quite possible to be victorious even when defeated? For if he who trusted is wicked, 35.568 what then would he be in comparison with him who was trusted? And if not foreseeing the character is a fault, where shall we place the wickedness itself? But truly wickedness is an irrational thing; and there is nothing by which one could make the wicked better; since he too, from those things by which he ought to have appeared more well-disposed and to have extinguished any spark of wickedness he had, from these very things was kindled to a greater hatred, and considered how he might requite his benefactor.

43. These are the things that Platos and Chrysippuses, the illustrious Peripatos and the venerable Stoa, and those who shout out elegant things taught him; these things the equality of geometry taught him, and the discourses concerning justice, and the principle that one ought to choose to be wronged rather than to do wrong; these things his noble teachers, both champions and lawgivers of his reign, whom he gathered for himself from the crossroads and the pits, taught him; whose character he did not praise, but whose eloquence he admired; and perhaps not even this, but only their impiety, as a sufficient counselor and teacher of what should and should not be done.

44. How is it not worthy to admire these men, who both in word fashion cities that cannot be established in reality, and all but worship solemn tyrannies, and hold the obol above the gods with a supercilious brow; and some of them maintain that God does not exist at all, others that he has no providence for things here below, but that all things are moved randomly and by chance, others that we are led by stars and formations of necessity, led by I know not what or whence; while others refer everything to pleasure, and suppose this to be the end of human life? But for them virtue is otherwise a specious name, and nothing is longer than the present life, nor is there any examination 35.569 hereafter of the things lived here to restrain injustice. For either no one of the wise among them perceived these things, but in deep mire, as the saying goes, and in the lightless gloom of error and ignorance he was shrouded, not even so much as to look upon the rays of truth, having been purified in his mind, but wallowing in things below and in sensation, and being able to imagine nothing beyond demons, nor to be lifted up worthily to the Creator; or if anyone saw even a little, using reason as his guide, and not God, he was carried away by what was more persuasive, and by what attracts the masses more because of its nearness.

45. What wonder then that one who starts from such doctrines, and is guided by such helmsmen, thus also the one who was trusted appeared wicked to the one who trusted him, and the one who was honored to the one who honored him? For if it is necessary at all also through the

10

ὃ καὶ τοῖς μηδὲν εὐεργετηκόσιν ὀφείλεται παρ' ἡμῶν, τῶν Λόγου καὶ Ἀληθείας θεραπευτῶν· καὶ ταῦτα μετὰ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἀπαλλαγὴν, ἡνίκα καὶ τὸ κολακεύειν δοκεῖν ἐκπεφεύγαμεν, καὶ πονηρᾶς ἐλεύθερος ὑπονοίας ὁ λόγος.

Μʹ. Τίς γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἤλπισεν, εἰ μή τι ἄλλο, ταῖς τιμαῖς ποιήσειν αὐτὸν ἡμερώτερον; Τίς δὲ οὐκ ἐκ τῆς πίστεως, ἣν ἐπιστεύθη καὶ παρὰ τὸ εἰκὸς, δικαιότερον; ὡς ἀμφοῖν δικαίᾳ καὶ βασιλικῇ κρίσει, τοῦ μὲν ἐπιτιμηθέντος, τοῦ δὲ προβληθέντος· ὁ γὰρ τὸν δεύτερον τιμήσας, οἷς οὐκ ἄν τις ἤλπισεν, οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ὁ τυχὼν τῆς τιμῆς, δῆλον, ὡς οὐδὲ τὸν πρότε ρον ἄνευ δικαίας ὀργῆς ἐκολάσατο· καὶ τὸ μὲν, τῆς ἐκείνου προπετείας ἦν, τὸ δὲ τῆς τοῦ τετιμηκότος φιλανθρωπίας.

ΜΑʹ. Καὶ ἅμα τὸ θαῤῥεῖν εἶχεν, εἰ δεῖ τὸ μεῖζον εἰπεῖν, οὐ τοσοῦτον ἐκ τῆς ἐκείνου πίστεως, ὅσον ἐκ τῆς ἰδίας δυνάμεως· ᾗ μοι δοκεῖ καὶ Ἀλέξανδρος θαῤῥήσας ὁ πάνυ δοῦναι μὴ μόνον τὸ ζῇν ἡττημένῳ Πώρῳ, καὶ ταῦτα νεανικῶς οὕτως ἠγωνισμένῳ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν αὖθις Ἰνδῶν· ὡς τὸ μεγαλόψυχον οὐκ ἄλλως ἢ οὕτως ἐπιδει ξόμενος, ᾧ κρατηθῆναι χεῖρον ἐνόμιζεν Ἀλέ ξανδρος ὢν ἢ τοῖς ὅπλοις· τοῦ δὲ, εἰ κακὸν λάβοι, χειρώσασθαι πάλιν ἐπ' αὐτῷ τυγχάνοντος. Καὶ ἦν αὐτῷ ἡ περιουσία τοῦ θαῤῥεῖν τὸ φιλάνθρωπον.

ΜΒʹ. Καίτοι τί τοῦτο ἀγωνίζομαι, σφόδρα ἐνὸν κρατεῖν καὶ ἡττημένον; Εἰ γὰρ ὁ πιστεύσας κακὸς, 35.568 τί ποτ' ἂν εἴη παρ' ἐκεῖνον ὁ πιστευθείς; Καὶ εἰ τὸ μὴ προϊδέσθαι τὸν τρόπον ὑπαίτιον, αὐτήν γε τὴν κακίαν ποῦ θήσομεν; Ἀλλ' ὄντως ἀσυλλόγιστόν τι πρᾶγμα ἡ πονηρία· καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ᾧ τοὺς μοχθη ροὺς ἄν τις βελτίους ποιήσειεν· ὁπότε κἀκεῖνος ἐξ ὧν εὐνούστερος φανῆναι δίκαιος ἦν, καὶ εἴ τι κακίας εἶχεν ἐμπύρευμα τοῦτ' ἀνελεῖν, ἐκ τούτων εἰς μεῖζον ἀνήφθη μῖσος, καὶ ὅπως ἂν ἀμύνηται τὸν εὐεργέτην ἐσκόπει.

ΜΓʹ. Ταῦτα Πλάτωνες αὐτὸν, καὶ Χρύσιπποι, καὶ ὁ λαμπρὸς Περίπατος καὶ ἡ σεμνὴ Στοὰ, καὶ οἱ τὰ κομψὰ λαρυγγίζοντες ἐξεπαίδευσαν· ταῦτα ἡ τῆς γεωμετρίας ἰσότης, καὶ οἱ περὶ δικαιοσύνης λό γοι, καὶ τὸ χρῆναι ἀδικεῖσθαι μᾶλλον αἱρεῖσθαι ἢ ἀδικεῖν· ταῦτα οἱ γενναῖοι διδάσκαλοι, καὶ τῆς βα σιλείας συναγωνισταί τε καὶ νομοθέται, οὓς ἐκ τῶν τριόδων καὶ τῶν βαράθρων ἑαυτῷ συνελέ ξατο· ὧν οὐ τὸν τρόπον ἐπῄνεσεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν εὐγλωτ τίαν ἐθαύμασε· καὶ οὐδὲ ταύτην ἴσως, ἀλλὰ ἀσέβειαν μόνην, ὡς σύμβουλον ἱκανὴν καὶ τῶν πρακτέων καὶ μὴ, διδάσκαλον.

Μ∆ʹ. Πῶς δὲ οὐ θαυμάζειν ἄξιον τούτους, οἳ καὶ λόγῳ πλάττουσι πόλεις, τὰς ἔργῳ συστῆναι μὴ δυ ναμένας, καὶ τὰς σεμνὰς τυραννίδας μονονοὺ προσκυνοῦσι, καὶ τὸν ὀβολὸν ὑπὲρ τοὺς θεοὺς ἄγουσι μετὰ τῆς ὀφρύος· καὶ οἱ μὲν οὐδὲ εἶναι Θεὸν τὸ παράπαν, οἱ δὲ οὐ προνοεῖν τῶν τῇδε δογματί ζουσιν, ἀλλ' εἰκῆ καὶ ὡς ἔτυχε τὸ πᾶν φέρεσθαι, οἱ δὲ ἀστράσιν ἄγεσθαι καὶ σχηματισμοῖς ἀνάγκης, οὐκ οἶδ' ὑπὸ τίνος ἀγομένοις καὶ ὅθεν· οἱ δὲ εἰς ἡδο νὴν τὸ πᾶν φέρειν, καὶ τοῦτο εἶναι πέρας ζωῆς ἀνθρωπίνης ὑπολαμβάνουσιν; Ἡ ἀρετὴ δὲ αὐτοῖς ἄλλως ὄνομα εὐπρεπὲς, καὶ οὐδὲν τοῦ παρόντος βίου μακρότερον, οὐδέ τις ἐξέτασις τῶν ἐνταῦθα βε 35.569 βιωμένων ὕστερον τὴν ἀδικίαν συστέλλουσα. Ἢ γὰρ οὐ συνεῖδέ τις ταῦτα τῶν παρ' ἐκείνοις σοφῶν, ἀλλὰ βαθεῖ βορβόρῳ, τὸ δὴ λεγόμενον, καὶ ἀφεγγεῖ ζόφῳ πλάνης καὶ ἀγνοίας συνεκαλύφθη, μηδ' ὅσον προσβλέψαι ταῖς τῆς ἀληθείας αὐγαῖς καθαρθεὶς τὴν διάνοιαν, ἀλλὰ περὶ τὰ κάτω καὶ τὴν αἴσθησιν ἰλυσπώμενος, καὶ μηδὲν ὑπὲρ τοὺς δαίμονας φαν τασθῆναι δυνηθεὶς, καὶ διαρθῆναι τοῦ πεποιηκό τος ἀξίως· ἢ εἴ τις διέβλεψε καὶ μικρὸν, ὡς ὁδηγῷ λόγῳ, καὶ μὴ Θεῷ χρώμενος, ὑπὸ τοῦ πιθανωτέρου παρεσύρη, καὶ τοῦ μᾶλλον τοὺς πολλοὺς ἕλκοντος δι' ἐγγύτητα.

ΜΕʹ. Τί οὖν θαυμαστὸν τὸν ἐκ τοιούτων μὲν ὁρμώ μενον δογμάτων, ὑπὸ τοιούτων δὲ κυβερνητῶν εὐ θυνόμενον, οὕτω καὶ τῷ πεπιστευκότι φανῆναι κακὸν τὸν πιστευθέντα, καὶ τῷ τιμήσαντι τὸν τιμη θέντα; Εἰ γὰρ δεῖ τι καὶ διὰ τῆς