it is fitting that it should appear clearly and manifestly. It is necessary, therefore, for you, O men of Greece, foreseeing the things to come and looking to the judgment proclaimed by all, not only by the God-fearing but also by those without, not to attend to the unexamined error of your forefathers, nor, if they themselves erred in something and handed it down to you, to consider this to be true, but, looking to the danger of so terrible a failure, to seek and examine accurately even the things said by your own teachers, as you yourselves say. For they themselves were also compelled by the divine providence for men to speak many things on our behalf, even unwillingly, and especially those who were in Egypt and were benefited by the piety of Moses and his ancestors. For I think it has not escaped some of you, having surely chanced upon the history of Diodorus and of the rest who have written histories about these things, that both Orpheus and Homer and Solon, the one who wrote the laws for the Athenians, and Pythagoras and Plato and certain others, having been in Egypt and having been benefited by the history of Moses, later declared things contrary to what they had previously thought not well concerning the gods. It is necessary to remind you, then, what Orpheus, who was the first teacher, as one might say, of your polytheism, later proclaims to his son Musaeus and his other genuine hearers, speaking about one and only one God. And he spoke thus: I will speak to those for whom it is lawful; but shut the doors, all you profane, alike. But you listen, Musaeus, offspring of the light-bearing Moon! For I will speak true things; nor let the things that appeared before in your breast deprive you of dear life. But looking to the divine word, attend to it, guiding the intellectual vessel of your heart, and tread well on the path, and look upon the one lord of the cosmos. He is one, self-begotten, and from one all things are created; and he himself moves among them, and no one of mortals sees him, but he himself sees all. But he gives evil to mortals out of good, both chilling war and tearful woes. And there is no other besides the great king. But I do not see him; for a cloud is fixed about him. For all mortals have mortal pupils in their eyes, and are too weak to see Zeus who rules over all. For he is established on a brazen heaven upon a golden throne, and his feet rest upon the earth. And he has stretched out his right hand to the end of the ocean from all sides; for about him tremble the long mountains and rivers and the depth of the grey, flashing sea. And again somewhere else he speaks thus: One is Zeus, one Hades, one Helios, one Dionysus, one God in all things. Why do I speak these things to you separately?

σαφῶς καὶ φανερῶς προσήκει, φανῇ. ∆εῖ τοίνυν ὑμᾶς, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἕλληνες, τὰ μέλλοντα προορωμένους καὶ εἰς τὴν ὑπὸ πάντων, οὐ μόνον θεοσεβῶν ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἔξωθεν, κηρυττομένην ἀφορῶντας κρίσιν, μὴ τῇ τῶν προγόνων ὑμῶν ἀβασανίστῳ προσέχειν πλάνῃ, μηδ' εἴ τι σφαλέντες αὐτοὶ παρέδοσαν ὑμῖν τοῦτ' ἀληθὲς εἶναι νομίζειν, ἀλλ', εἰς τὸν τῆς οὕτω δεινῆς ἀποτυχίας ἀφορῶντας κίνδυνον, ζητεῖν καὶ ἐρευνᾶν ἀκριβῶς καὶ τὰ ὑπ' αὐτῶν τῶν ὑμετέρων, ὡς αὐτοί φατε, διδασκάλων εἰρημένα. Πολλὰ γὰρ καὶ αὐτοὶ ὑπὸ τῆς θείας τῶν ἀνθρώπων προνοίας καὶ ἄκοντες ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν εἰπεῖν ἠναγκάσθησαν, καὶ μάλιστα οἱ ἐν Aἰγύπτῳ γε νόμενοι καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Μωϋσέως καὶ τῶν προγόνων αὐτοῦ θεο σεβείας ὠφεληθέντες. Oὐ γὰρ λανθάνειν ἐνίους ὑμῶν οἶμαι, ἐντυχόντας πάντως που τῇ τε ∆ιοδώρου ἱστορίᾳ καὶ ταῖς τῶν λοιπῶν τῶν περὶ τούτων ἱστορησάντων, ὅτι καὶ Ὀρφεὺς καὶ Ὅμηρος καὶ Σόλων, ὁ τοὺς νόμους Ἀθηναίοις γεγραφώς, καὶ Πυθαγόρας καὶ Πλάτων καὶ ἄλλοι τινές, ἐν τῇ Aἰγύπτῳ γενόμενοι καὶ ἐκ τῆς Μωϋσέως ἱστορίας ὠφεληθέντες, ὕστερον ἐναντία τῶν πρότερον μὴ καλῶς περὶ θεῶν δοξάντων αὐτοῖς ἀπεφήναντο. Ὀρφεὺς γοῦν, ὁ τῆς πολυθεότητος ὑμῶν, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, πρῶτος διδάσκαλος γεγονώς, οἷα πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Μουσαῖον καὶ τοὺς λοιποὺς γνησίους ἀκροατὰς ὕστερον περὶ ἑνὸς καὶ μόνου θεοῦ κηρύττει λέγων, ἀναγκαῖον ὑπομνῆσαι ὑμᾶς. Ἔφη δὲ οὕτως· Φθέγξομαι οἷς θέμις ἐστί· θύρας δ' ἐπίθεσθε βέβηλοι Πάντες ὁμῶς. Σὺ δ' ἄκουε, φαεσφόρου ἔκγονε Μήνης, Μουσαῖ'! Ἐξερέω γὰρ ἀληθέα· μηδέ σε τὰ πρὶν Ἐν στήθεσσι φανέντα φίλης αἰῶνος ἀμέρσῃ. Eἰς δὲ λόγον θεῖον βλέψας τούτῳ προσέδρευε, Ἰθύνων κραδίης νοερὸν κύτος, εὖ τ' ἐπίβαινε Ἀτραπιτοῦ, μοῦνον δ' ἐσόρα κόσμοιο ἄνακτα. Eἷς ἔστ', αὐτογενής, ἑνὸς ἔκγονα πάντα τέτυκται· Ἐν δ' αὐτοῖς αὐτὸς περιγίνεται, οὐδέ τις αὐτὸν Eἰσοράᾳ θνητῶν, αὐτὸς δέ γε πάντας ὁρᾶται. Oὗτος δ' ἐξ ἀγαθοῖο κακὸν θνητοῖσι δίδωσι Καὶ πόλεμον κρυόεντα καὶ ἄλγεα δακρυόεντα. Oὐδέ τις ἔσθ' ἕτερος χωρὶς μεγάλου βασιλῆος. Aὐτὸν δ' οὐχ ὁρόω· περὶ γὰρ νέφος ἐστήρικται. Πᾶσιν γὰρ θνητοῖς θνηταὶ κόραι εἰσὶν ἐν ὄσσοις, Ἀσθενέες δ' ἰδέειν ∆ία τὸν πάντων μεδέοντα. Oὗτος γὰρ χάλκειον ἐς οὐρανὸν ἐστήρικται Χρυσέῳ ἐνὶ θρόνῳ, γαίης δ' ἐπὶ ποσσὶ βέβηκε Χεῖρά τε δεξιτερὴν ἐπὶ τέρματος ὠκεανοῖο Πάντοθεν ἐκτέτακεν· περὶ γὰρ τρέμει οὔρεα μακρὰ Καὶ ποταμοὶ πολιῆς τε βάθος χαροποῖο θαλάσσης. Καὶ αὖθις ἀλλαχοῦ που οὕτως λέγει· Eἷς Ζεύς, εἷς Ἀΐδης, εἷς Ἥλιος, εἷς ∆ιόνυσος, Eἷς θεὸς ἐν πάντεσσι. Τί σοι δίχα ταῦτ' ἀγορεύω;