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What is more, this is what surpasses every wonder. For lest you say that now the Church has been established by the peace of kings, when it was smaller, when it seemed to be weaker, then God allowed it to be warred against, so that you may learn that its present security is not from the peace of kings, but comes from the power of God.

γʹ. And that this is true, consider how many wished to introduce doctrines among the Greeks, and to establish a strange way of life, such as Zeno, Plato, Socrates, Diagoras, Pythagoras, and countless others; but nevertheless they were so far from prevailing, as not even to be known by name to the many. But Christ not only wrote a constitution, but also planted it throughout the whole world. How many things is Apollonius of Tyana said to have done? But so that you may learn that all those things were a lie and a fantasy, and nothing true, it has been extinguished, and straightway came to an end. And let no one think it an insult to Christ that in our discourses about him we mention Pythagoras and Plato, Zeno and the man of Tyana; for we do not do this of our own opinion, but by condescending to the weakness of the Jews, who consider him to be a mere man; since Paul also did so? For when he entered Athens, he did not discourse to them from the prophets nor from the Gospels, but made his exhortation from the altar; not because he considered the altar more trustworthy than the Gospels, nor because the letters written there were more honorable than the prophets, but because he was speaking to Greeks who believed in none of our things, he won them over from their own doctrines. For this reason he says, I became to the Jews as a Jew, to those without the law as without the law, not being without law to God, but under the law of Christ. Thus also the Old Testament, speaking about God to the Jews, does, saying thus: Who is like you among the gods, O Lord? What are you saying, O Moses? For is there any comparison at all? I did not say this by way of comparison, he says, but because I am speaking to Jews, who have a great opinion of the demons, condescending to their weakness, 48.887 I introduced this manner of teaching. Since therefore our discourse is also to Jews, who consider Christ to be a mere man and some kind of lawbreaker, for this reason we have also made our examination from those who are admired among the Greeks. But if you wish, let us also attempt these proofs from those among them who attempted this, and gathered disciples, and were proclaimed rulers and leaders, and were immediately extinguished. In this way, then, Gamaliel also silenced them. For when he saw them raging, and desiring to shed the blood of the disciples, wishing to restrain them from their uncontrollable madness, having ordered the apostles to be put outside for a short time, he spoke to them thus: Take heed to yourselves concerning these men, what you are about to do. For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody; and about four hundred men followed him; and he was killed, and all who obeyed him were scattered. And after him Judas the Galilean rose up, who drew away a considerable crowd; and he died, and his disciples perished. And now I say to you, take heed to yourselves, because if this work is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow it, lest you be found to be fighters against God. How then will it be clear that, if it is of men, it will be overthrown? You have had experience, he says, from Judas and Theudas. So that this one also who is preached by these men, if he is such as those were, and does not do everything by divine power, wait a little, and the outcome of events itself will convince you, and through the end you will know clearly, whether he is a deceitful man, as you say, and a lawbreaker, or God who holds all things together, and who manages our affairs with ineffable power; which is in fact what happened. They waited, and through the very

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πλέον, τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ παντὸς θαύματος ἔχον ὑπερβολήν. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ λέγῃς, ὅτι νῦν ἡ Ἐκκλησία ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν βασιλέων εἰρήνης συνέστηκεν, ὅτε ἐλάττων ἦν, ὅτε ἀσθενεστέρα εἶναι ἐδόκει, τότε αὐτὴν πολεμεῖσθαι συνεχώρησεν ὁ Θεὸς, ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι καὶ ἡ νῦν ἀσφάλεια αὐτῆς οὐκ ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν βασιλέων εἰρήνης, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δυνάμεως γίνεται.

γʹ. Καὶ ὅτι τοῦτό ἐστιν ἀληθὲς, ἀναλόγισαι πόσοι δόγματα ἠβουλήθησαν εἰσαγαγεῖν παρ' Ἕλλησι, καὶ πολιτείαν ἐνστήσασθαι ξένην, οἷον Ζήνων, Πλάτων, Σωκράτης, ∆ιαγόρας, Πυθαγόρας, καὶ ἕτεροι μύριοι· ἀλλ' ὅμως τοσοῦτον ἀπέσχον περιγενέσθαι, ὡς μηδὲ ἐξ ὀνόματος εἶναι τοῖς πολλοῖς γνώριμοι. Ὁ δὲ Χριστὸς οὐκ ἔγραψε πολιτείαν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πανταχοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης αὐτὴν κατεφύτευσε. Πόσα λέγεται Ἀπολλώνιος ὁ ἐκ Τυάνων πεποιηκέναι; Ἀλλ' ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι ψεῦδος πάντα ἐκεῖνα ἦν καὶ φαντασία, καὶ ἀληθὲς οὐδὲν, ἔσβεσται, καὶ τέλος εὐθὺς ἔλαβεν. Καὶ μηδεὶς ὕβριν εἶναι νομιζέτω τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὅτι ἐν τοῖς περὶ αὐτοῦ λόγοις Πυθαγόρου καὶ Πλάτωνος, Ζήνωνος καὶ τοῦ Τυανέως μεμνήμεθα· οὐ γὰρ ἐξ οἰκείας τοῦτο ποιοῦμεν γνώμης, ἀλλὰ τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ τῶν Ἰουδαίων συγκαταβαίνοντες, τῶν νομιζόντων αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπον εἶναι ψιλόν· ἐπεὶ καὶ Παῦλος οὕτως ἐποίησεν; εἰσελθὼν γὰρ εἰς τὰς Ἀθήνας, οὐκ ἀπὸ προφητῶν οὐδὲ ἐξ Εὐαγγελίων αὐτοῖς διελέγετο, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τοῦ βωμοῦ τὴν παραίνεσιν ἐποιεῖτο· οὐκ ἐπειδὴ τὸν βωμὸν ἀξιοπιστότερον τῶν Εὐαγγελίων εἶναι ἐνόμιζεν, οὐδὲ ἐπειδὴ τὰ γράμματα τὰ ἐκεῖ κείμενα τῶν προφητῶν ἦσαν τιμιώτερα, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ πρὸς Ἕλληνας διελέγετο τοὺς οὐδενὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων πιστεύοντας, ἀπὸ τῶν οἰκείων αὐτοὺς ἐχειρώσατο δογμάτων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησιν, Ἐγενόμην τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ὡς Ἰουδαῖος, τοῖς ἀνόμοις ὡς ἄνομος, μὴ ὢν ἄνομος Θεῷ, ἀλλ' ἔννομος Χριστῷ. Οὕτω καὶ ἡ Παλαιὰ περὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ διαλεγομένη πρὸς Ἰουδαίους ποιεῖ λέγουσα οὕτως· Τίς ὅμοιός σοι ἐν θεοῖς, Κύριε; Τί λέγεις, ὦ Μωϋσῆ; ὅλως γάρ ἐστι σύγκρισις; Οὐ κατὰ σύγκρισιν τοῦτο ποιῶν εἶπον, φησὶν, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους διαλέγομαι, τοὺς μεγάλην περὶ τῶν δαιμόνων ἔχοντας δόξαν, τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ αὐτῶν συγκαταβαίνων, 48.887 τοῦτον τῆς διδασκαλίας εἰσήγαγον τὸν τρόπον. Ἐπεὶ οὖν καὶ ἡμῖν πρὸς Ἰουδαίους ὁ λόγος, τοὺς ἄνθρωπον ψιλὸν εἶναι νομίζοντας τὸν Χριστὸν καὶ παράνομόν τινα, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν παρ' Ἕλλησι θαυμαζομένων ἐποιησάμεθα τὴν ἐξέτασιν. Εἰ δὲ βούλεσθε καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς τοῦτο ἐγχειρησάντων, καὶ μαθητὰς συναγαγόντων, καὶ εἰς ἄρχοντας, καὶ εἰς προστάτας ἀναῤῥηθέντων, καὶ σβεσθέντων εὐθέως, ἐπιχειρήσωμεν ταῖς ἀποδείξεσι ταύταις. Οὕτω γοῦν καὶ ὁ Γαμαλιὴλ αὐτοὺς ἐπεστόμισεν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ εἶδεν αὐτοὺς μαινομένους, καὶ ἐπιθυμοῦντας τὸ αἷμα τῶν μαθητῶν ἐκχέειν, βουλόμενος αὐτοὺς τῆς ἀκαθέκτου μανίας κατασχεῖν, κελεύσας ἔξω ποιῆσαι βραχὺ τοὺς ἀποστόλους, οὕτω πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἔλεγεν· Προσέχετε ἑαυτοῖς ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τούτοις, τί μέλλετε πράσσειν. Πρὸ γὰρ τούτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἀνέστη Θευδᾶς, λέγων εἶναί τινα ἑαυτόν· καὶ ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ ἄνδρες τετρακόσιοι· κἀκεῖνος ἀπώλετο, καὶ πάντες ὅσοι ἐπείθοντο αὐτῷ διεσκορπίσθησαν. Καὶ μετ' ἐκεῖνον ἀνέστη Ἰούδας ὁ Γαλιλαῖος, ὃς ἀπέστησεν ὄχλον ἱκανόν· κἀκεῖνος ἀπέθανε, καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ ἀπώλοντο. Καὶ τὰ νῦν λέγω ὑμῖν, προσέχετε ἑαυτοῖς, ὅτι, ἐὰν ᾖ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο, καταλυθήσεται· εἰ δὲ ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐστιν, οὐ δυνήσεσθε καταλῦσαι αὐτὸ, μή ποτε καὶ θεομάχοι εὑρεθῆτε. Πόθεν οὖν δῆλον ἔσται, ὅτι, ἐὰν ᾖ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων, καταλυθήσεται; Πεῖραν ἐλάβετε, φησὶν, ἀπὸ Ἰούδα καὶ Θευδᾶ. Ὥστε καὶ οὗτος ὁ κηρυττόμενος ὑπὸ τούτων, εἰ τοιοῦτός ἐστιν οἷοι ἐκεῖνοι, καὶ μὴ θείᾳ δυνάμει πάντα ἐργάζεται, μικρὸν ἀναμείνατε, καὶ αὐτὴ τῶν πραγμάτων ὑμᾶς πιστώσεται ἡ ἔκβασις, καὶ διὰ τοῦ τέλους εἴσεσθε σαφῶς, εἴτε ἄνθρωπός ἐστι πλάνος, ὡς φατὲ, καὶ παράνομος, εἴτε Θεὸς ὁ πάντα συγκρατῶν, καὶ ἀποῤῥήτῳ δυνάμει τὰ καθ' ἡμᾶς οἰκονομῶν πράγματα· ὅπερ οὖν καὶ ἐγένετο. Ἀνέμειναν, καὶ δι' αὐτῶν τῶν