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He will also remind him of that parable of the ten thousand talents and the hundred denarii. I know the boldness of our father, he will not shrink from frightening him with this parable, and saying, ‘See that you too do not hear on that day: Wicked servant, I forgave you all that debt, because you besought me; you also ought to have forgiven your fellow servants.’ You benefit yourself more than them, in forgiving their lesser sins, receiving amnesty for your greater ones. He will add to what has been said that prayer also, which those who initiated him into the sacred mystery taught him to pray and say: Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive our debtors. He will teach along with these things that the sin was not committed by the city in common, but by certain men, strangers and foreigners, doing nothing with reason, but with all audacity and lawlessness; and that it would not be just, for the lack of discipline of a few, for so great a city to be destroyed, and for those who have done no wrong to pay the penalty. And yet even if all had sinned, they have paid a sufficient penalty, being consumed by fear for so many days, and expecting to die each day, being driven about, being exiled, living more pitiably than the condemned, carrying their blood in their hands, and not feeling secure in their own lives. Be satisfied with this punishment, do not proceed further in anger, make the judge above gentle for yourself through your humanity toward your fellow servants; consider the greatness of the city, and that our deliberation now is not about one or two or three or ten souls, but about countless myriads, about the head of the whole inhabited world. This is the city in which they were first called Chri49.49stians; honor Christ, reverence the first city to have proclaimed this name, so desired and sweet to all; that city has been a lodging for apostles, a dwelling-place of the righteous. Now this outrage against the rulers has occurred for the first and only time, and all past time bears witness to the character of the city. For if they were continually rebellious, one ought to condemn their wickedness; but if this has happened once in all time, it is clear that the sin is not of the character of the city, but this transgression was committed by those who have simply and rashly attached themselves to it. The priest will say these things, and more than these, with greater boldness; the emperor will hear these things; and the one is humane, and the other is faithful, so that from both sides we have good hopes. But rather, even before the faith of the teacher, and before the humanity of the emperor, we trust in the mercy of God; for indeed while the emperor is being supplicated, and the priest is supplicating, He himself will stand in their midst, softening the heart of the emperor, stirring the tongue of the priest, making his words prosper, preparing the other's mind to receive what is said, and to assent to the prayers with much forgiveness. For indeed to Christ our city is more beloved than all, both on account of the virtue of our forefathers and on account of your own. And just as Peter first among the apostles preached Christ; so among the cities, as I have already said, this one first, like some wondrous crown, bound upon itself the name of Christians. And if where there were only ten righteous men, God promised to save all the inhabitants; where there are not ten or twenty, nor only twice that many, but many more who serve God with all exactness, how should one not expect good things, and be confident for the common life of us all? I have heard many say that a king's threat is like the wrath of a lion, and they are cast down and in pain. What then shall we say to them? That he who said, Wolves and lambs shall feed together, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox, will be able also to make this lion a gentle sheep. Let us therefore beseech him, and send an embassy to him, and he will surely calm the emperor's anger, and

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ἀναμνήσει καὶ τῆς παραβολῆς αὐτὸν ἐκείνης τῆς τῶν μυρίων ταλάντων καὶ τῶν ἑκατὸν δηναρίων. Οἶδα τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν τὴν παῤῥησίαν, οὐ παραιτήσεται αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῆς παραβολῆς ταύτης φοβῆσαι, καὶ εἰπεῖν, Ὅρα μήποτε καὶ σὺ κατ' ἐκείνην ἀκούσῃς τὴν ἡμέραν· Πονηρὲ δοῦλε, πᾶσαν τὴν ὀφειλὴν ἀφῆκά σοι, ἐπεὶ παρεκάλεσάς με· ἔδει καὶ σὲ ἀφεῖναι τοῖς συνδούλοις σου. Σαυτὸν ὠφελεῖς μειζόνως ἢ ἐκείνους, ἐν τῇ τῶν ὀλίγων ἁμαρτημάτων συγχωρήσει τῶν μειζόνων τὴν ἀμνηστίαν λαμβάνων. Προσθήσει τοῖς εἰρημένοις καὶ τὴν εὐχὴν ἐκείνην, ἣν οἱ μυσταγωγήσαντες αὐτὸν τὴν ἱερὰν μυσταγωγίαν, ἐπαίδευσαν εὔχεσθαι καὶ λέγειν· Ἄφες ἡμῖν τὰ ἁμαρτήματα ἡμῶν, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀφίεμεν τοῖς ὀφειλέταις ἡμῶν. ∆ιδάξει μετὰ τούτων ὅτι οὐ κοινὸν τῆς πόλεως γέγονε τὸ ἁμάρτημα, ἀλλ' ἀνθρώπων τινῶν ξένων καὶ ἐπηλύδων, οὐδὲν λογισμῷ ποιούντων, ἢ τόλμῃ καὶ παρανομίᾳ πάσῃ· καὶ οὐκ ἂν εἴη δίκαιον, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὀλίγων ἀπαιδευσίας πόλιν τοσαύτην ἀναρπάζεσθαι, καὶ τοὺς οὐδὲν ἠδικηκότας διδόναι δίκην. Καίτοι εἰ καὶ πάντες ἡμαρτηκότες ἦσαν, ἱκανὴν ἔδωκαν δίκην ἐπὶ τοσαύταις ἡμέραις φόβῳ δαπανώμενοι, καὶ καθ' ἑκάστην ἀποθανεῖσθαι προσδοκῶντες τὴν ἡμέραν, ἐλαυνόμενοι, φυγαδευόμενοι, τῶν καταδίκων ἐλεεινότερον ζῶντες, τὸ αἷμα ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ βαστάζοντες, καὶ οὐ θαῤῥοῦντες αὐτῶν τῇ ζωῇ. Ἀρκέσθητι τῇ τιμωρίᾳ ταύτῃ, μὴ προέλθῃς περαιτέρω τῆς ὀργῆς, ἥμερον σεαυτῷ ποίησον τὸν ἄνω δικαστὴν διὰ τῆς εἰς τοὺς συνδούλους φιλανθρωπίας· ἐννόησον τὸ τῆς πόλεως μέγεθος, καὶ ὅτι οὐ περὶ μιᾶς καὶ δύο καὶ τριῶν καὶ δέκα ψυχῶν ἐστιν ἡμῖν ἡ σκέψις νῦν, ἀλλὰ περὶ μυριάδων ἀπείρων, περὶ τοῦ κεφαλαίου τῆς οἰκουμένης ἁπάσης. Αὕτη ἡ πόλις ἐστὶν, ἐν ᾗ πρῶτον ἐχρημάτισαν Χρι49.49στιανοί· τίμησον τὸν Χριστὸν, αἰδέσθητι τὴν πρώτην ἀνακηρύξασαν τὸ ποθεινὸν τοῦτο καὶ γλυκὺ πᾶσιν ὄνομα· ἀποστόλων ἐκείνη γέγονε καταγώγιον, δικαίων ἐνδιαίτημα. Νῦν τοῦτο πρῶτον καὶ μόνον τὸ τόλμημα γέγονε εἰς τοὺς κρατοῦντας, καὶ μαρτυρεῖ τῷ τῆς πόλεως ἤθει πᾶς ὁ παρελθὼν χρόνος. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ συνεχῶς ἐστασίαζον, ἔδει καταγινώσκειν τῆς πονηρίας· εἰ δὲ ἅπαξ τοῦ παντὸς τοῦτο συνέβη χρόνου, εὔδηλον ὅτι οὐ τοῦ τῆς πόλεως ἤθους τὸ ἁμάρτημα, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἁπλῶς καὶ εἰκῆ προσφθαρέντων αὐτῇ τὸ παρανόμημα γέγονε τοῦτο. Ταῦτα ὁ ἱερεὺς ἐρεῖ, καὶ πλείονα τούτων μετὰ πλείονος τῆς παῤῥησίας· ταῦτα ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀκούσεται· κἀκεῖνος φιλάνθρωπος, καὶ οὗτος πιστὸς, ὥστε ἀμφοτέρωθεν χρηστὰς ἔχομεν τὰς ἐλπίδας. Μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ πρὸ τῆς πίστεως τοῦ διδασκάλου, καὶ πρὸ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας τοῦ βασιλέως, τῷ ἐλέει θαῤῥοῦμεν τοῦ Θεοῦ· καὶ γὰρ ἱκετευομένου τοῦ βασιλέως, καὶ ἱκετεύοντος τοῦ ἱερέως, αὐτὸς παραστήσεται μέσος, τοῦ βασιλέως μαλάσσων τὴν καρδίαν, τοῦ ἱερέως διεγείρων τὴν γλῶσσαν, εὐοδῶν τούτου τὰ ῥήματα, παρασκευάζων ἐκείνου τὴν διάνοιαν ὑποδέξασθαι τὰ λεγόμενα, καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς συγγνώμης ἐπινεῦσαι ταῖς δεήσεσι. Καὶ γὰρ τῷ Χριστῷ ποθεινοτέρα πασῶν ἡ πόλις ἡ ἡμετέρα, καὶ διὰ τὴν τῶν προγόνων καὶ διὰ τὴν ὑμῶν αὐτῶν ἀρετήν. Καὶ καθάπερ ὁ Πέτρος ἐν τοῖς ἀποστόλοις πρῶτος ἐκήρυξε τὸν Χριστόν· οὕτως ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι, καθάπερ ἔφθην εἰπὼν, αὕτη πρώτη, ὥσπερ στέφανόν τινα θαυμαστὸν, τὴν τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἀνεδήσατο προσηγορίαν. Εἰ δὲ ἔνθα δίκαιοι δέκα μόνον ἦσαν, ὑπέσχετο ὁ Θεὸς σώζειν τοὺς ἐνοικοῦντας ἅπαντας· ἔνθα οὐ δέκα καὶ εἴκοσιν, οὐδὲ δὶς τοσοῦτοι μόνον, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ πλείους οἱ τὸν Θεόν εἰσι θεραπεύοντες μετὰ ἀκριβείας ἁπάσης, πῶς οὐ χρὴ τὰ χρηστὰ προσδοκᾷν, καὶ θαῤῥεῖν ὑπὲρ τῆς κοινῆς ἡμῶν ἁπάντων ζωῆς; Ἤκουσα λεγόντων πολλῶν, ὅτι Ἀπειλὴ βασιλέως ὁμοία θυμῷ λέοντος, καὶ καταπιπτόντων καὶ ὀδυνωμένων. Τί οὖν ἂν εἴποιμεν πρὸς ἐκείνους; Ὅτι ὁ εἰπὼν, Λύκοι καὶ ἄρνες ἅμα βοσκηθήσονται, καὶ πάρδαλις συναναπαύσεται ἐρίφῳ, καὶ λέων ὡς βοῦς φάγεται ἄχυρα, δυνήσεται καὶ τὸν λέοντα τοῦτον ποιῆσαι πρόβατον ἥμερον. Παρακαλῶμεν τοίνυν αὐτὸν, καὶ διαπρεσβευώμεθα πρὸς αὐτὸν, καὶ καταστελεῖ πάντως τὸν θυμὸν τοῦ βασιλέως, καὶ