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the rapture that happened up to the third heaven, that is, a third of the distance of the height of heaven, from the earth to the firmament, and again the one in paradise, where he was also deemed worthy to become a hearer of unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to speak. All of which happen to be marvelous and surpass our nature or condition. 3.62 And these things, happening, prepared the people of that time to be persuaded also concerning the prophecies; but for us, the outcomes of the prophecies prepare us to be persuaded concerning the signs and concerning all that they spoke, as it also happened in the case of the Lord Christ; coming down then from the Mount of Olives and looking at Jerusalem opposite, lamenting it, he says thus: "How often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Behold, your house is left to you desolate." 3.63 Then when he had spoken out against the temple, the disciples, being still more Judaically inclined, were vexed and, it says, after these things, "coming down from the mountain they showed him the building of the temple," so that, forsooth, they might move him to pity and he might recall the declaration against the temple; for they knew and believed that all things spoken beforehand by him came to pass. But he, knowing, says to them: "Do you see all these things? Amen I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down." And they, being afraid, kept silent, no longer saying anything about this. From that time, therefore, the Romans came and demolished the temple and the city and made it completely desolate, as if fulfilling what was commanded by a signal from the Lord; and we see with our own eyes until now, behold, for more than five hundred years since it became desolate, it has been unable to be renewed. 3.64 Again he said to his own disciples: "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world," and again: "The gates of Hades will not prevail against the Church," and again that the whole inhabited world would be filled with his teaching, like the leaven "which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened" and become one, and again that "the Gospel would be preached in the whole world," along with which also a woman well-disposed to him would be proclaimed. And we see the outcomes of all these things having come to pass—for the Christians, once severely persecuted by Greeks and Jews, have conquered and have drawn their persecutors to themselves, likewise also the Church, never being cast down, but increasing, and likewise the whole earth being filled and still being filled with the teaching of the Lord Christ, and the Gospel being preached in the whole world; which, being present in many places, I have seen, and having learned, I will report as it is in truth. 3.65 In the island of Taprobane in inner India, where the Indian sea is, there is a church of Christians there and clergy and faithful, but I do not know if also further on. Likewise also in the place called Male, where the pepper grows, and in the place called Kalliana, there is also a bishop ordained from Persia. Likewise also in the island called Dioscorides in the same Indian sea, where the inhabitants also speak Greek, being settlers from the time of the Ptolemies who were after Alexander the Macedonian, and there are clergy ordained from Persia and sent to those parts and a multitude of Christians; which island I sailed past, but I did not land on it; but I met men from there who speak Greek, who had come to Ethiopia. Likewise also among the Bactrians and Huns and Persians and the rest of the Indians and Persarmenians and Medes and Elamites and in the whole land of Persia there are countless churches and bishops and very many Christian peoples and many martyrs and monks living in solitude. 3.66 Likewise also in Ethiopia, both Axum and all the surrounding country, and among the Arabs of Arabia Felix, those now called Homerites, all Arabia and Palestine, both Phoenicia and all Syria and Antioch as far as Mesopotamia, both the Nobatae and the Garamantes, Egypt

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ἁρπαγὴν τὴν ἕως τρίτου οὐρανοῦ γενομένην, τουτέστι παρὰ τὸ τρίτον τοῦ διαστήματος τοῦ ὕψους τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, τοῦ ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἕως τοῦ στερεώματος, καὶ πάλιν τὴν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ, ἔνθα καὶ τῶν ἀρρήτων ῥημάτων ἠξιώθη ἀκουστὴς γενέσθαι, ἅπερ οὐκ ἐξὸν ἀνθρώπῳ λαλῆσαι. Ἅπερ πάντα παράδοξα τυγχάνει καὶ τὴν ἡμετέραν φύσιν ἤτοι κατάστασιν ὑπερβαίνει. 3.62 Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν τοὺς τότε ἀνθρώπους γινόμενα παρεσκεύασαν πείθεσθαι καὶ περὶ τῶν προρρήσεων· ἡμᾶς δὲ αἱ ἐκβάσεις τῶν προφητειῶν παρασκευάζουσι πείθεσθαι περὶ τῶν σημείων καὶ περὶ πάντων ὧν ἐλάλησαν, οἷον γέγονε καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ· κατερχόμενος τότε ἐκ τοῦ ὄρους τῶν Ἐλαιῶν καὶ προσέχων τῇ Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἀπέναντι, ταλανίζων αὐτήν φησιν οὕτως· "Ποσάκις ἠθέλησα ἐπισυναγαγεῖν τὰ τέκνα σου, ὃν τρόπον ἐπισυνάγει ὄρνις τοὺς νεοσσοὺς ὑπὸ τὰς πτέρυγας, καὶ οὐκ ἠθελήσατε. Ἰδοὺ ἀφίεται ὁ οἶκος ὑμῶν ἔρημος." 3.63 Εἶτα ἀποφηναμένου αὐτοῦ κατὰ τοῦ ναοῦ, οἱ μαθηταὶ ἐδάκνοντο ἔτι ἰουδαϊκώτερον διακείμενοι καί, φησὶ μετὰ ταῦτα, "κατελθόντες ἐκ τοῦ ὄρους ὑπέδειξαν αὐτῷ τὴν οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ ναοῦ", ἵνα δῆθεν εἰς οἶκτον αὐτὸν κινήσωσι καὶ τὴν φωνὴν τὴν κατὰ τοῦ ναοῦ ἀνακαλέσηται· ᾔδεσαν γὰρ καὶ ἐπίστευον πάντα τὰ προλαλούμενα παρ' αὐτοῦ γίνεσθαι. Ὁ δὲ γνοὺς πρὸς αὐτούς φησι· "Βλέπετε πάντα ταῦτα; Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, οὐ μὴ ἀφεθῇ λίθος ἐπὶ λίθον, ὃς οὐ καταλυθήσεται." Ἐκεῖνοι δὲ φοβηθέντες ἡσύχασαν, μηκέτι εἰπόντες τι περὶ τούτου. Ἔκτοτε οὖν ἐλθόντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι καὶ τὸν ναὸν καὶ τὴν πόλιν κατέσκαψαν καὶ ἔρημον παντελῶς εἰργάσαντο, ὥσπερ ἐκ συνθήματος ∆εσπότου τὸ προσταχθὲν ἐκπληρώσαντες· καὶ ὁρῶμεν αὐταῖς ὄψεσι μέχρι τοῦ νῦν, ἰδοὺ πλέον πεντακοσίων ἐτῶν ἐξότε ἔρημος γέγονε, μὴ δυνάμενος ἀνανεωθῆναι. 3.64 Ἔτι εἶπε τοῖς ἰδίοις μαθηταῖς· "Θαρσεῖτε, ἐγὼ νενίκηκα τὸν κόσμον", καὶ πάλιν· "Πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσι τῆς Ἐκκλησίας", καὶ πάλιν πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκουμένην τῆς αὐτοῦ πλησθήσεσθαι διδασκαλίας, ὥσπερ ζύμην "λαβοῦσα γυνὴ κρύψει εἰς ἀλεύρου σάτα τρία, ἕως οὗ ζυμωθῇ ὅλον" καὶ γένηται ἕν, καὶ πάλιν "κηρυχθήσεσθαι τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ κόσμῳ", μεθ' οὗ καὶ γυναῖκα εὔνουν αὐτῷ συγκηρύττεσθαι. Καὶ ὁρῶμεν τὰς ἐκβάσεις πάντων γενομέναςδιωκόμενοι γάρ ποτε πάνυ οἱ χριστιανοὶ ἐξ Ἑλλήνων καὶ Ἰουδαίων νενικήκασι καὶ τοὺς διώκοντας εἰς ἑαυτοὺς εἵλκυσαν, ὁμοίως καὶ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν ποτὲ μὴ καταβαλλομένην, ἀλλὰ πληθυνομένην, καὶ ὁμοίως πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν τῆς διδασκαλίας τοῦ ∆εσπότου Χριστοῦ πληρωθεῖσαν καὶ ἔτι πληρουμένην, καὶ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον κηρυττόμενον ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ κόσμῳ· ὅπερ ἐν πλείοσι τόποις παρὼν εἶδον, καὶ μεμαθηκὼς ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀπαγγελῶ. 3.65 Ἐν Ταπροβάνῃ νήσῳ ἐν τῇ ἐσωτέρᾳ Ἰνδίᾳ, ἔνθα τὸ Ἰνδικὸν πέλαγός ἐστι, καὶ Ἐκκλησία χριστιανῶν ἐστιν ἐκεῖ καὶ κληρικοὶ καὶ πιστοί, οὐκ οἶδα δὲ εἰ καὶ περαιτέρω. Ὁμοίως καὶ εἰς τὴν λεγομένην Μαλέ, ἔνθα τὸ πέπερι γίνεται, καὶ ἐν τῇ Καλλιάνᾳ δὲ τῇ καλουμένῃ, καὶ ἐπίσκοπός ἐστιν ἀπὸ Περσίδος χειροτονούμενος. Ὁμοίως καὶ ἐν τῇ νήσῳ τῇ καλουμένῃ ∆ιοσκορίδους κατὰ τὸ αὐτὸ Ἰνδικὸν πέλαγος, ἔνθα καὶ οἱ παροικοῦντες ἑλληνιστὶ λαλοῦσι, πάροικοι τῶν Πτολεμαίων τῶν μετὰ Ἀλέξανδρον τὸν Μακεδόνα ὑπάρχοντες, καὶ κληρικοί εἰσιν ἐκ Περσίδος χειροτονούμενοι καὶ πεμπόμενοι ἐν τοῖς αὐτόθι καὶ χριστιανοὶ πλῆθος· ἣν νῆσον παρέπλευσα μέν, οὐ κατῆλθον δὲ ἐν αὐτῇ· συνέτυχον δὲ ἀνδράσι τῶν ἐκεῖ ἑλληνιστὶ λαλοῦσιν, ἐλθοῦσιν ἐν τῇ Αἰθιοπίᾳ. Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ Βάκτροις καὶ Οὔννοις καὶ Πέρσαις καὶ λοιποῖς Ἰνδοῖς καὶ Περσαρμενίοις καὶ Μήδοις καὶ Ἐλαμίταις καὶ πάσῃ τῇ χώρᾳ Περσίδος καὶ ἐκκλησίαι ἄπειροι καὶ ἐπίσκοποι καὶ χριστιανοὶ λαοὶ πάμπολλοι καὶ μάρτυρες πολλοὶ καὶ μονάζοντες ἡσυχασταί. 3.66 Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν Αἰθιοπίαν, Ἀξώμην τε καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν περίχωρον, Ἄραβάς τε τοὺς Εὐδαίμονας, τοὺς νῦν καλουμένους Ὁμηρίτας, πᾶσαν Ἀραβίαν καὶ Παλαιστίνην, Φοινίκην τε καὶ πᾶσαν Συρίαν καὶ Ἀντιόχειαν μέχρι Μεσοποταμίας, Νοβάτας τε καὶ Γαραμάντας, Αἴγυπτον