willingly the customary things, and to be honored by all, and to exhort them and to pray on behalf of the emperor himself. These things happened, and immediately the divine philanthropy was shown. And again he who was at his last breaths, was again healthy and strong, that most grievous ulcer having been miraculously healed by the prayer of the Christians. But before the wound had well scarred over, having been moved to a greater madness by the devil working in him, the tyrant wrote godless edicts and laws filled with cruelty, in which he commanded that Christians should neither live nor be citizens, nor dwell in all the inhabited world, nor in the deserts; for otherwise, he says, we are not able to live and prosper, unless the race of the Christians is wiped out. And so among men the affairs of the Christians were despaired of. But God did not forget his own creation; for one could see the Christians being dragged in herds, all the people together with women and children, to death. But the divine justice scattered the counsels of the lawless; for everywhere wars and uprisings of barbarians immediately, and severe famines and droughts and plagues, untimely deaths suddenly broke out, so that the living were not sufficient to bury the dead, and thunderbolts and terrors were sent, so that each cared only for himself, and 4053 thus the tyrant's edicts remained unfulfilled. But Constantine, good in all things, was brought safely to his own father. And he, having received him healthy, and having given much thanks to God, not long after handed over the kingdom to him, and passed from this life. And the great Constantine was proclaimed emperor in the first year of the two hundred and seventy-first Olympiad, in the month of July, on the twenty-fifth. And Maxentius, being the most wicked of all who had come before him, oppressed those who dwelt in Rome, and especially the Christians. So having murdered many of the leading men, and having exiled many, he plundered their substance. And practicing the same intemperance as Galerius, he defiled many of the free women, and practicing countless other impious acts and unspeakable deeds, he was unbearable to all, using magical evil arts. And when the great Constantine had subjected the northern and western parts as far as the Ocean itself, there was great peace and gladness and order in the whole world under him. And the inhabitants of Rome sent a petition to him, begging him not to overlook the mother of the emperors being destroyed by a harsh tyrant, or rather by a flesh-eating beast. Having heard these things, the great Constantine and having compassion on them, considered how to free them from slavery, but he feared this because of his sorceries and evil arts. For already he had dismembered many children on the pretext of his unlawful divination. Therefore, while he was in great care and thought, there appeared to him as he was in the field with the soldiers around noon, a pillar-like cross made of light, on which was inscribed, "In this, conquer." And the emperor, having become afraid, asked those with him, if they also had seen anything. And they having confessed that they had seen the same vision as he, then the emperor, being strengthened in spirit, was filled with courage and eagerness. And on the following night the Lord appeared and said to him: Use the sign that appeared, and you will be victorious over all your enemies. And when day came, having without delay fashioned a cross, which until this day is kept in the imperial palace, he commanded it to be carried before him into the war. But the impious tyrant, trusting in his demons, and having bridged the nearby river with many ships, went out to war. 4056 And when the battle was joined, the adversaries were crushed by the power of the cross, and most having been cut down, the rest with the tyrant fled towards the city, but the bridge having been broken by a greater power, they were drowned in the river with all their host, like Pharaoh. And one could see the whole

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καταθυμίως τὰ κατ' ἔθος, καὶ ὑπὸ πάντων τιμᾶσθαι, παρακαλεῖν τε καὶ εὔχεσθαι αὐτοὺς ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ αὐτοκράτορος. Ταῦτα γέγονε, καὶ εὐθέως ἡ θεία φιλανθρωπία ἐδείκνυτο. Καὶ πά λιν ὁ ἐν ἐσχάταις ἀναπνοαῖς γεγονὼς, αὖθις ὑγιὴς καὶ ῥωμαλέος ὑπῆρχε, τοῦ χαλεπωτάτου ἕλκους ἐκείνου τῇ εὐχῇ τῶν Χριστιανῶν παραδόξως ὑγια σθέντος. Ἀλλὰ μή πω τοῦ τραύματος καλῶς συνουλώ σαντος, εἰς μειζοτέραν μανίαν κινηθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐνεργοῦντος τοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ διαβόλου, ὁ τύραννος προσ τάγματα ἄθεα καὶ νόμους πεπληρωμένους ὠμότη τος ἔγραψεν, ἐν οἷς ἐκέλευσε μήτε ζῇν μήτε πολι τεύεσθαι Χριστιανοὺς, μήτε οἰκεῖν ἐν πάσῃ τῇ οἰκου μένῃ, μήτε ἐν ταῖς ἐρήμοις ἄλλως γὰρ, φησὶν, οὐδὲ ζῇν καὶ εὐημερεῖν οὐ δυνάμεθα, εἰ μὴ ἐξαλει φθῇ τὸ γένος τῶν Χριστιανῶν. Καὶ ἦν λοιπὸν παρὰ ἀνθρώποις ἀπηλπισμένα τὰ Χριστιανῶν. Ὁ δὲ Θεὸς οὐκ ἐπελάθετο τοῦ οἰκείου πλάσματος· ἦν γὰρ ἰδεῖν ἀγεληδὸν συρομένους τοὺς Χριστιανοὺς πανδημεὶ σὺν γυναιξί τε καὶ τέκνοις ἐπὶ τὸν θάνατον. Ἀλλ' ἡ θεία δίκη τὰς βουλὰς τῶν ἀνόμων διεσκέδασε· παν ταχοῦ γὰρ πόλεμοι καὶ ἐπαναστάσεις βαρβάρων εὐ θέως, λιμοί τε σφοδροὶ καὶ αὐχμοὶ λοιμοί τε, ἄωροι θάνατοι ἄφνω ἐπέσκηψαν, ὡς μὴ ἀρκεῖν τοὺς ζῶντας θάπτειν τοὺς νεκροὺς, κεραυνοί τε καὶ φόβητρα ἐπέμ ποντο, ὥστε ἕκαστον ἑαυτοῦ μόνον μεριμνᾷν, καὶ 4053 οὕτως ἄπρακτα ἔμειναν τὰ τοῦ τυράννου προστάγ ματα. Ὁ δὲ τὰ πάντα χρηστὸς Κωνσταντῖνος διεσώθη πρὸς τὸν οἰκεῖον πατέρα. Ὁ δὲ δεξάμενος αὐτὸν ὑγιῆ, καὶ πολλὰ τῷ Θεῷ εὐχαριστήσας, μετ' οὐ πολὺ δὲ πα ραδοὺς αὐτῷ τὴν βασιλείαν, μετήλλαξε τὸν βίον. Ἀν ηγορεύθη δὲ βασιλεὺς ὁ μέγας Κωνσταντῖνος ἐν τῷ πρώ τῳ ἐνιαυτῷ τῆς διακοσιοστῆς ἑβδομηκοστῆς πρώτης Ὀλυμπιάδος, μηνὶ Ἰουλίῳ, εἰκοστῇ καὶ πέμπτῃ. Ὁδὲ Μαξέντιος πονηρότατος πάντων τῶν πρὸ αὐτοῦ γεγονὼς τοὺς τῇ Ῥώμῃ ἐνοικοῦντας ἀπέτριβε καὶ μάλιστα τοὺς Χριστιανούς. Πολλοὺς οὗν τῶν πρώτων φονεύσας, καὶ πολλοὺς ἐξορίσας, τὰς οὐσίας αὐτῶν διήρπαζεν. Τῇ δὲ αὐτῇ τοῦ Γαλερίου χρώμενος ἀκολασίᾳ πολλὰς τῶν ἐλευθέρων γυναικῶν ἐμίανεν, ἑτέρας δὲ μυρίας ἀνοσιουργίας καὶ ἀῤῥητοποιΐας ἐπιτηδεύων, ἀφόρητος πᾶσιν ὑπῆρχε, γοητικαῖς κα κομαγγανείαις χρώμενος. Τοῦ δὲ μεγάλου Κωνσταντίνου τὰ βόρεια καὶ δυτικὰ μέρη ἕως αὐτοῦ τοῦ Ὠκεανοῦ ὑποτάξαντος, ἦν εἰρήνη πολλὴ καὶ θυμηδεία καὶ κατάστασις ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ κατ' αὐτὸν οἰκουμένῃ. Οἱ δὲ Ῥώμης οἰκήτορες δέησιν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐστείλαντο παρακαλοῦντες, μὴ παριδεῖν τὴν μητέρα τῶν βασιλέων ἀπὸ ἀπηνοῦς τυράννου, μᾶλλον δὲ σαρκοβόρου θηρίου ἀπολλυμένην. Ταῦτα ἀκούσας ὁ μέγας Κων σταντῖνος καὶ συμπαθήσας αὐτοῖς, ἐφρόντιζε τοῦ ἐλευθερῶσαι αὐτοὺς ἐκ τῆς δουλείας, ἐδεδίει δὲ τοῦτο διὰ τὰς γοητείας καὶ αὐτοῦ κακομαγγανείας. Ἤδη γὰρ ὡς πολλὰ ἀνέτεμε παιδία προφάσει τῆς ἀθεμίτου αὐτοῦ μαντείας. Ἐν πολλῇ οὖν φροντίδι καὶ σκέψει ὑπάρχοντι ὤφθη αὐτῷ ἐν κάμπῳ διάγοντι μετὰ τῶν στρατιωτῶν περὶ μεσημβρίας στηλοειδὴς σταυρὸς ἐκ φωτὸς κατεσκευασμένος, ἐν ᾧ ἐπ εγέγραπτο, «Ἐν τούτῳ νίκα.» Ἔμφοβος δὲ γενόμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς, ἠρώτα τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ, εἰ καὶ αὐτοί τι ἐθεάσαντο. Οἱ δὲ ὁμολογήσαντες τὴν αὐτὴν αὐτῷ ἑωρακέναι ὀπτασίαν, τότε ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀναῤῥωσθεὶς τῷ φρονήματι, θάρσους τε καὶ προθυμίας ἀνάπλεως ἦν. Τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ νυκτὶ ἐπιστὰς ὁ Κύριος εἶπεν αὐτῷ· Χρῆσαι τῷ φανέντι σημείῳ, καὶ ἔσῃ νικῶν πάντας τοὺς ἐχθρούς σου. Ἡμέρας δὲ γενομένης ἀμελητὶ σχεδιάσας σταυρὸν, ὅσπερ μέχρι τῆς σήμε ρον ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις φυλάττεται, ἐκέλευσε προ άγεσθαι αὐτὸν εἰς τὸν πόλεμον. Ὁ δὲ δυσσεβὴς τύραννος, θαρσήσας τοῖς δαίμοσιν αὐτοῦ, καὶ γε φυρώσας τὸν παραρέοντα ποταμὸν πολλαῖς ναυσὶν, ἐξῆλθεν εἰς πόλεμον. 4056 Συμβολῆς δὲ γενομένης, συνετρίβησαν ὑπὸ τῆς τοῦ σταυροῦ δυνάμεως οἱ ὑπεναντίοι, καὶ κατακο πέντες οἱ πλεῖστοι, οἱ λοιποὶ σὺν τῷ τυράννῳ, ὡς ἐπὶ τὴν πόλιν ἔφυγον, τῆς δὲ γεφύρας κρείττονι δυνάμει διαῤῥαγείσης, κατεποντίσθησαν ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ κατὰ τὸν Φαραὼ πανστρατί. Καὶ ἦν ἰδεῖν ὅλον τὸν

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