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attended him and lightened his misfortunes, as was possible, and treated his wounds. Not long after his arrest, the Magi severely tortured him with raw thongs, compelling him to worship the sun; but as he did not yield, they again kept him 2.13.3 in chains. At that time, Aeithalas and Jacobus, presbyters, and Azadanes and Abdiesus, deacons, were also inhabiting the prison for their faith, having been most cruelly scourged by the Magi. After a long time had passed, the great Archmagus conferred with the king about them. And having been permitted to punish them as he wished, if they would not worship the sun, 2.13.4 he made known the order of Sapor to those in the prison. But when they openly answered that they would never appear as betrayers of Christ nor worship the sun, he tortured them unsparingly. And Acepsimas, having remained steadfast in his confessions of faith, died. Some of the hostages from Armenia among the Persians secretly took up 2.13.5 his remains and buried them. But the others, although scourged no less, miraculously lived; and not having changed their mind, they were again in chains. With them was also Aeithalas, who, while being stretched and beaten, had his arms torn from his shoulders by the excessive pulling, and carried his hands about, dead and merely hanging, so that others had to bring food to his mouth. 2.13.6 In this reign, an innumerable multitude of presbyters and deacons and monks and holy virgins, and of others serving in the churches and devoted to the faith, perished by the testimony of their life, 2.13.7 and bishops of whom I have learned were Barbasymes and Paul and Gaddiabes and Sabinus and Mareas and Mocimus and John and Hormisdas and Bulidas, Papas and Jacobus and Romas and Maares and Agas and Bochres and Abdas and Abdiesus, John and Abramius and Abdelas and Sabores and Isaac and Dausas, who had been taken captive by the Persians from a place so-called Zabdaeus, at that time died for the faith together with Mareabdes, a chorepiscopus, and about two hundred and fifty of the clergy under him, who had been taken captive with him by the Persians. 2.14.1 About this time Miles also suffered martyrdom; who at first served as a soldier among the Persians, but after this, having left the military, he emulated the apostolic way of life. It is said that having been ordained bishop of a Persian city, he often suffered many things and endured blows and tortures by stretching. And when he persuaded no one to become a Christian, taking it hard, he cursed the city and 2.14.2 departed. Not long after, when the chief men there had offended the king, an army arriving with three hundred elephants over2.14.3 threw the city, and having ploughed it like a field, they sowed it. But Miles, carrying only a wallet in which he had the holy book of the Gospels, went to Jerusalem to pray, and from there to Egypt to see the monks there. We have learned what a doer of divine and wonderful works this man was, as the children of the Syrians testify, who wrote down his deeds 2.14.4 and his life. But I think it is sufficient for me for the present to have related these things about him and about those who were martyred in Persia during the reign of Sapor. For one could hardly enumerate all the things that happened to them, who they were and from where, or how they completed their martyrdom and what punishments they endured; for all kinds of such methods are found among the Persians, who vie in cruelty. 2.14.5 To speak summarily, it is said that the number of martyrs known by name at that time, both men and women, was about sixteen thousand, but the multitude beyond these was beyond number, and for this reason it seemed a laborious task to enumerate their names for the Persians and Syrians and the inhabitants of Edessa, who took great care in this matter. 2.15.1 Since, then,

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ὑπηρετεῖτο καὶ τὰς συμφορὰς αὐτῷ ἐκούφιζεν, ὡς ἐνῆν, καὶ τὰς πληγὰς ἐθεράπευε. μετ' οὐ πολὺ δὲ τῆς συλλήψεως ἱμᾶσιν ὠμοῖς χαλεπῶς αὐτὸν ἐβασάνισαν οἱ μάγοι βιαζόμενοι προσκυνῆσαι τὸν ἥλιον· ὡς δὲ οὐκ εἶξε, πάλιν αὐτὸν 2.13.3 ἐν δεσμοῖς εἶχον. κατ' ἐκεῖνο δὲ καιροῦ καὶ ᾿Αειθαλᾶς καὶ ᾿Ιάκωβος πρεσβύτεροι, ᾿Αζαδάνης τε καὶ ᾿Αβδιησοῦς διάκονοι διὰ τὸ δόγμα δεσμωτή-ριον ᾤκουν, χαλεπώτατα ὑπὸ τῶν μάγων μαστιγωθέντες. χρόνου δὲ πολλοῦ παρελθόντος ἐκοινώσατο περὶ αὐτῶν βασιλεῖ ὁ μέγας ἀρχίμαγος. καὶ ἐπιτραπεὶς ὡς βούλεται τιμωρήσασθαι αὐτούς, εἰ μὴ τὸν ἥλιον προσκυνήσουσι, 2.13.4 δήλην τοῖς ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ ἐποιήσατο τὴν Σαβώρου πρόσταξιν. ὡς δὲ ἀναφανδὸν ἀπεκρίναντο μήποτε σφᾶς προδότας φανήσεσθαι τοῦ Χριστοῦ μηδὲ τὸν ἥλιον προσκυνήσειν, ἀφειδῶς αὐτοὺς ἐβασάνισε. καὶ ᾿Ακεψιμᾶς μὲν ἐν ταῖς τοῦ δόγματος ὁμολογίαις ἀνδρεῖος διαμείνας ἐτελεύτησε. τινὲς δὲ τῶν ἐξ ᾿Αρμενίας παρὰ Πέρσαις ὁμήρων τὸ λείψανον αὐτοῦ λάθρα ἀνε2.13.5 λόμενοι ἔθαψαν. οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι, καίπερ οὐχ ἧττον μαστιγωθέντες, παραδόξως ἔζων· καὶ μὴ μεταθέμενοι τῆς γνώμης πάλιν ἐν δεσμοῖς ἐγένοντο. σὺν αὐτοῖς δὲ ἦν καὶ ᾿Αειθαλᾶς, ὃς ἐν τῷ τύπτεσθαι τεινόμενος, ὑπὸ τοῦ ἄγαν ἑλκυσμοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν ὤμων διεσπάσθη τοὺς βραχίονας καὶ νεκρὰς καὶ μόνον ᾐωρημένας τὰς χεῖρας περιέφερεν, ὡς ἄλλους τῷ στόματι αὐτοῦ τὴν τροφὴν προσάγειν. 2.13.6 ᾿Επὶ ταύτης τῆς ἡγεμονίας μαρτυρίᾳ τοῦ βίου περιέστησαν πρεσβυτέρων τε καὶ διακόνων καὶ μοναχῶν καὶ ἱερῶν παρθένων καὶ τῶν ἄλλως περὶ τὰς ἐκκλησίας ὑπηρετουμένων καὶ περὶ τὸ δόγμα διακειμένων πλῆθος ἀναρίθ2.13.7 μητον, ἐπίσκοποι δὲ ὧν ἐπυθόμην Βαρβασύμης καὶ Παῦλος καὶ Γαδδιάβης καὶ Σαβῖνος καὶ Μαρέας καὶ Μώκιμος καὶ ᾿Ιωάννης καὶ ῾Ορμίσδας καὶ Βουλιδᾶς, Πάπας τε καὶ ᾿Ιάκωβος καὶ ῾Ρώμας καὶ Μαάρης καὶ ῎Αγαςκαὶ Βόχρης καὶ ᾿Αβδᾶς καὶ ᾿Αβδιησοῦς, ᾿Ιωάννης τε καὶ ᾿Αβράμιος και᾿Αβδελᾶς καὶ Σαβώρης καὶ ᾿Ισαὰκ καὶ ∆αυσᾶς, ὃς αἰχμάλωτος μὲν ἦν γενόμενος ὑπὸ Περσῶν ἀπὸ Ζαβδαίου χωρίου ὧδε προσαγορευομένου, κατ' ἐκεῖνο δὲ καιροῦ ὑπὲρ τοῦ δόγματος τέθνηκεν ἅμα Μαρεάβῃ χωρεπισκόπῳ καὶ κληρικοῖς τῶν ὑπ' αὐτὸν ἀμφὶ διακοσίοις πεντήκοντα, οἳ παρὰ Περσῶν αἰχμάλωτοι σὺν αὐτῷ συνελήφθησαν. 2.14.1 ῾Υπὸ τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον καὶ Μίλης ἐμαρτύρησεν· ὃς τὰ μὲν πρῶτα παρὰ Πέρσαις ἐστρατεύετο, μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα καταλιπὼν τὴν στρατείαν τὴν ἀποστολικὴν πολιτείαν ἐζήλωσε. λέγεται δὲ πόλεως Περσικῆς ἐπίσκοπος χειροτονηθεὶς πολλὰ πολλάκις παθεῖν καὶ πληγὰς ὑπομεῖναι καὶ ἑλκυσμούς. ὡς δὲ οὐδένα ἔπεισε χριστιανίσαι, χαλεπῶς ἐνεγκὼν κατηράσατο τῇ πόλει καὶ 2.14.2 ἀνεχώρησε. μετ' οὐ πολὺ δὲ τῶν ἐνθάδε πρωτευόντων ἐξαμαρτόντων εἰς βασιλέα παραγενομένη στρατιὰ μετὰ τριακοσίων ἐλεφάντων τὴν πόλιν κατέ2.14.3 στρεψαν καὶ οἷα ἄρουραν γεωργήσαντες ἔσπειραν. Μίλης δὲ μόνον πήραν ἐπιφερόμενος, ἐν ᾗ τὴν ἱερὰν βίβλον τῶν εὐαγγελίων εἶχεν, εἰς ῾Ιεροσόλυμα ἀπῆλθεν εὐξόμενος, κἀκεῖθεν εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἐπὶ θέᾳ τῶν αὐτόθι μοναχῶν. οἵων δὲ τοῦτον τὸν ἄνδρα θεσπεσίων καὶ παραδόξων ἔργων δημιουργὸν γενέσθαι παρειλήφαμεν, μαρτυροῦσι Σύρων παῖδες, οἳ τὰς αὐτοῦ πράξεις 2.14.4 καὶ τὸν βίον ἀνεγράψαντο. ἐμοὶ δὲ ἀρκεῖν ἡγοῦμαι ταῦτα τέως περὶ αὐτοῦ διεξελθεῖν καὶ τῶν ἐν Περσίδι μαρτυρησάντων ἐπὶ τῆς Σαβώρου βασιλείας. σχολῇ γὰρ ἄν τις ἅπαντα τὰ ἐπ' αὐτοῖς γεγενημένα ἀπαριθμήσαι, τίνες τε ἦσαν καὶ πόθεν ἢ πῶς τὴν μαρτυρίαν ἐπετέλεσαν καὶ ποίας τιμωρίας ὑπέμειναν· παντοδαποὶ γὰρ τῶν τοιούτων τρόποι παρὰ Πέρσαις εἰς ὠμότητα 2.14.5 φιλοτιμουμένοις. ὡς ἔνι δὲ συλλήβδην εἰπεῖν, λέγεται τῶν τότε μαρτύρων τοὺς ὀνομαστὶ φερομένους, ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας, εἶναι εἰς μυρίους ἑξακισχιλίους, τὴν δὲ ἐκτὸς τούτων πληθὺν κρείττω ἀριθμοῦ, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐργῶδες φανῆναι τὰς αὐτῶν προσηγορίας ἀπαριθμήσασθαι Πέρσαις τε καὶ Σύροις καὶ τοῖς ἀνὰ τὴν ῎Εδεσσαν οἰκοῦσιν, οἳ πολλὴν τούτου ἐπιμέλειαν ἐποιήσαντο. 2.15.1 ᾿Επεὶ δὲ ὧδε