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he placed it before those holy feet, saying those things which he had also said to his own household. But the divine man, laying the child down and bending his knees, lay prostrate, entreating the master of life and death. Late in the evening the child uttered a sound and called his father. Thus perceiving that the Master had accepted his supplication and granted life, that divine man arose, and having worshipped him who does the will of those who fear him and hears their prayer, he finished his supplication and gave the child back to his father. I myself witnessed this, and I heard the father narrate the miracle, and I have brought the story to many, knowing it to be apostolic and a cause of great benefit to those who would hear it. 21.15 And I myself often enjoyed his assistance. I shall recall one or two instances, thinking it most ungrateful to pass them over in silence and not teach the kinds of his beneficence. Marcion the abominable had sown many thorns of impiety in the land of the city of Cyrrhus. Trying to pull these up by the roots, I set every rope in motion and kept using every device. But those who benefited from my cure, "instead of loving me," to speak prophetically, "slandered me, and returned to me evil for good and hatred for my love." And using sorcerous witchcraft and employing wicked demons as collaborators, they tried to wage war invisibly. And once at night a certain wicked demon came shouting, and using a Syrian voice: "Why do you war, so-and-so, against Marcion? Why indeed have you undertaken the battle against him? What harm has he ever done you? Stop the war, cease the hostility, or you will learn by experience how good quiet is. For know well that I would have shot you down long ago, had I not seen the choir of martyrs with James guarding you." 21.16 I heard these things, as did one of my acquaintances sleeping nearby; "Do you hear," I said, "so-and-so, what is being said?" And he said: "I heard everything, and wanting to get up and peer out and learn who was speaking, for your sake I kept quiet, supposing you were asleep." Getting up, then, we both peered out and saw no one moving nor did we hear anyone speaking. And our other housemates also heard those words. I understood, then, that by 'choir of martyrs' he meant the little flask of the martyrs' oil, which, having the blessing collected from very many martyrs, was hung by my bed. And under my head lay the old cloak of the great James, which had become for me stronger than any adamantine fortress. 21.17 And when I was about to approach their largest village, and then many things arising in the meantime were preventing my departure, I sent to my Isaiah, entreating to enjoy the divine alliance. And he said: "Take courage, for all those hindrances have been dissolved like spiders' webs; and this God taught me at night, not sketching it in a dream, but showing it in a waking vision. For I saw," he said, "when I had begun the hymnody, in that region where those places lie, a certain fiery serpent creeping from the west to the east and being borne through the middle of the air. And having completed three prayers I saw it again bent back, showing its circular shape with its tail joined to its head. And again having finished eight prayers, I saw it cut in two and dissolved into smoke." 21.18 Thus he foresaw these things, and we witnessed the outcome agreeing with the prophecy. For at dawn, led by the arch-evil serpent, those who were formerly of Marcion's company, but now had become of the apostolic phalanx,

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τέθηκε πρὸ τῶν ἁγίων ἐκείνων ποδῶν, λέγων ἐκεῖνα ἃ καὶ τοῖς οἰκείοις εἰρήκει. Ὁ δὲ θεῖος ἄνθρωπος προτε θηκὼς τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὰ γόνατα κλίνας ἔκειτο πρηνὴς τὸν ζωῆς καὶ θανάτου δεσπότην ἀντιβολῶν. ∆είλης δὲ ὀψίας ἀφῆκε τὸ παιδίον φωνὴν καὶ τὸν πατέρα ἐκάλεσεν. Οὕτως αἰσθόμενος ὁ θεσπέσιος ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ ὡς τὴν ἱκετείαν ὁ δεσπότης ἐδέξατο καὶ τὴν ζωὴν ἐχορήγησεν, ἀνέστη καὶ προσκυνήσας τὸν ποιοῦντα τὸ θέλημα τῶν φοβουμένων αὐτὸν καὶ τῆς δεήσεως αὐτῶν εἰσακούοντα, συνεπέρανε τὴν ἱκετείαν καὶ τῷ φύσαντι τὸ παιδίον ἀπέδωκε. Τοῦτο κἀγὼ ἐθεασάμην καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς τὸ θαῦμα διηγησαμένου ἀκήκοα καὶ πολλοῖς προσήνεγκα τὸ διήγημα ἀποστολικὸν εἰδὼς καὶ πολλῆς ὠφελείας τοῖς ἀκουσομένοις ἐσόμενον πρόξενον. 21.15 Κἀγὼ δὲ πολλάκις τῆς τούτου ἐπικουρίας ἀπέλαυσα. Μιᾶς δὲ ἢ δύο μνησθήσομαι, λίαν ἡγούμενος ἄγνωμον εἶναι σιγῇ παραδοῦναι καὶ μὴ διδάξαι τῆς εὐεργεσίας τὰ εἴδη. Μαρκίων ὁ βδελυρὸς πολλὰς ἀσεβείας ἀκάνθας εἰς τὴν χώραν τῆς Κύρρου κατέσπειρε πόλεως. Ταύτας ἀνασπᾶν προρρίζους πειρώμενος πάντα κάλων ἐκίνουν καὶ πάσῃ μηχανῇ χρώμενος διετέλουν. Οἱ δὲ τῆς δι' ἐμοῦ θεραπείας ἀπολαύοντες, "ἀντὶ τοῦ ἀγαπᾶν με, προφητικῶς εἰπεῖν, ἐνδιέβαλλόν με, καὶ ἔθεντο κατ' ἐμοῦ κακὰ ἀντὶ ἀγαθῶν καὶ μῖσος ἀντὶ τῆς ἀγαπήσεώς μου". Καὶ γοητευτικαῖς χρώμενοι μαγγανείαις καὶ δαίμοσι πονηροῖς συνεργοῖς κεχρημένοι ἀοράτως πολεμεῖν ἐπειρῶντο. Καί ποτε νύκτωρ ἧκέ τις βοῶν ἀλιτήριος δαίμων καὶ τῇ σύρᾳ κεχρημένος φωνῇ· "Τί πολεμεῖς, ὁ δεῖνα, Μαρκίωνι; Τί δήποτε δὲ τὴν πρὸς τοῦτον ἀναδέδεξαι μάχην; Τί σοι λυπηρὸν εἰργάσατο πώποτε; Λῦσον τὸν πόλεμον, κατάπαυσον τὴν δυσμένειαν ἢ τῇ πείρᾳ μαθήσῃ ὅσον ἀγαθὸν ἡσυχία. Εὖ ἴσθι γὰρ ὡς πάλαι ἄν σε κατηκόντισα, εἰ μὴ τὸν τῶν μαρτύρων χορὸν σὺν Ἰακώβῳ φρουροῦντά σε ἑώρων". 21.16 Ἤκουσα τούτων ἐγὼ καί τινι τῶν γνωρίμων πλησίον καθεύδοντι· "Ἀκούεις, ἔφην, ὁ δεῖνα, τῶν λεγομένων;" Ὁ δέ· "Πάντων, εἶπεν, ἐπήκουσα, καὶ διαναστῆναι βουλόμενος καὶ διακῦψαι καὶ γνῶναι τίς ὁ φθεγγόμενος, σοῦ χάριν ἡσυχίαν ἦγον, καθεύδειν σε τοπάσας". Ἀναστάντες τοίνυν ἀμφότεροι διεκύπτομεν καὶ οὐδένα οὔτε κινούμενον ἑωρῶμεν οὔτε φθεγγόμενον ἠκούομεν. Τῶν δὲ ῥημάτων ἐκείνων καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι ἡμῶν ἐπήκουσαν σύνοικοι. Συνῆκα τοίνυν ὡς χορὸν μὲν μαρτύρων ἔλεγε τὸ τοῦ ἐλαίου τῶν μαρτύρων ληκύθιον ὃ παρὰ παμπολλῶν μαρτύρων συνειλεγ μένην ἔχον τὴν εὐλογίαν παρὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἐξήρτητο κλίνην. Καὶ τῇ κεφαλῇ δέ μου ὑπέκειτο τοῦ μεγάλου Ἰακώβου τὸ παλαιὸν περιβόλαιον παντὸς ἕρκους ἀδαμαντίνου στερρότερόν μοι γεγενημένον. 21.17 Καὶ ἡνίκα δὲ τῇ μεγίστῃ τούτων αὐτῶν κώμῃ προσβάλλειν ἤμελλον, εἶτα πολλά τινα ἐν μέσῳ γιγνόμενα τὴν ἔξοδον διεκώλυεν, ἔπεμψα παρὰ τὸν ἐμὸν Ἡσαίαν, τῆς θείας συμμαχίας ἀντιβολῶν ἀπολαῦσαι. Ὁ δέ· "Θάρρει, ἔλεγε, πάντα γὰρ ἐκεῖνα δίκην ἀραχνῶν διαλέλυται τὰ κωλύματα· καὶ τοῦτό με νύκτωρ ἐδίδαξεν ὁ θεὸς οὐκ ὄναρ σκιαγραφήσας, ἀλλ' ὕπαρ ἐπιδείξας. Ἑώρων γάρ, ἔλεγε, τῆς ὑμνῳδίας ἀρξάμενος, κατ' ἐκεῖνο τὸ μέρος ἐν ᾧ τὰ χωρία ἐκεῖνα διάκειται, ὄφιν τινὰ πυροειδῆ ἀπὸ τῆς ἑσπέρας ἐπὶ τὴν ἕω ἑρπύζοντα καὶ διὰ μέσου τοῦ ἀέρος φερόμενον. Τρεῖς δὲ εὐχὰς ἐξανύσας πάλιν ἐθεασάμην ἐπικαμφθέντα καὶ τὸ κυκλοτερὲς ἐπιδείξαντα σχῆμα καὶ τῇ κεφαλῇ συναφθεῖσαν τὴν κέρκον. Ὀκτὼ δὲ πάλιν προσευχὰς συμπεράνας ἐθεασάμην διχοτομηθέντα καὶ εἰς καπνὸν διαλυθέντα." 21.18 Ταῦτα αὐτὸς μὲν οὕτω προεῖδεν, ἡμεῖς δὲ ἐθεασάμεθα συνομολογήσασαν τῇ προρρήσει τὴν ἔκβασιν. Ἕωθεν μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀρχεκάκου ὄφεως στρατηγούμενοι, οἱ πάλαι μὲν τῆς Μαρκίωνος συμμορίας, νῦν δὲ τῆς ἀποστολικῆς γενόμενοι φάλαγγος,