Epiphanius of Salamis, Panarion

9. Our brief discussion will therefore suffice for this heresy as well. For such men are easily refuted and easily captured, and are Jews rather than anything else. But these are very hostile to the Jews. For not only do the children of the Jews 1.332 hold a hatred for these, but also when they rise in the morning, and at midday, and toward evening, three times a day when they perform their prayers in their synagogues, they curse them and anathematize them, saying three times a day, "May God curse the Nazoraeans." For they are supposedly even more hostile to them, because, being from the Jews, they preach that Jesus is the Christ, which is contrary to those who are still Jews, who have not accepted Jesus. They have the Gospel according to Matthew in a very complete Hebrew form. For this is clearly preserved among them in Hebrew letters, just as it was originally written. But I do not know if they have also removed the genealogies from Abraham to Christ. But having exposed this 1.333 as a feeble and pain-inflicting wasp's sting because of its venom, and having crushed it with the words of truth, let us go on to the next, O longed-for ones, asking for help from God.

Against the Ebionites ˉι, but in the series ˉλ. 1. Ebion, from whom the Ebionites derive, following in order and thinking similar things to these, having fashioned in himself a multiform monstrosity and, so to speak, the serpent-like form of the mythical many-headed Hydra, rose up again in life, being from their school, but preaching and teaching other things besides them. For just as if someone should assemble for himself an ornament from various precious stones and a garment of diverse clothing and adorn himself brilliantly, so also this man, in reverse, taking from each heresy whatever terrible, destructive, and abominable teaching, both formless and implausible, full of rivalry, fashioned himself into all of them. For he has the abomination of the Samaritans, the name of the Jews, the opinion of the Ossaeans and Nazoraeans and Nasaraeans, the form of the Cerinthians, the depravity of the Carpocratians, and he wishes to have only the name of the Christians—for surely not their practice and opinion and knowledge and assent to the faith of the Gospels and Apostles; but being, so to speak, in the middle of all of them, he is by nature nothing, 1.334 but in him is fulfilled what is written: "I was almost in all evil, in the midst of the church and synagogue." For being a Samaritan through his abomination, he denies the name, but confessing himself a Jew, he is opposed to the Jews, although agreeing with them in part, as we will later demonstrate in the proofs concerning him for the refutation against them, with God's help. 2. For this Ebion was a contemporary of these, and he starts from them, being with them. At first he said that Christ was born from intercourse and the seed of a man, that is, of Joseph; as has already been said by us, that thinking the same as the others in all things, he differed in this alone, in adhering to the law of Judaism regarding the Sabbath and circumcision and all other things that are performed among the Jews and Samaritans. Moreover, this man practices more things than the Jews, in a similar way to the Samaritans. For he added the observance of not touching any of the gentiles, and on each day, if he ever had intercourse with a woman and came from her, to be baptized in water, if he had access to either the sea or other waters. But also if he should meet anyone while coming up from the immersion in the waters and baptism, likewise

9. Ἀρκέσει γοῦν καὶ ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ αἱρέσει ἡ διὰ τῆς συντομίας παρ' ἡμῶν διάλεξις. εὐθυέλεγκτοι γὰρ οἱ τοιοῦτοι καὶ εὐάλωτοι, καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι μᾶλλον καὶ οὐδὲν ἕτερον. πάνυ δὲ οὗτοι ἐχθροὶ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ὑπάρχουσιν. οὐ μόνον γὰρ οἱ τῶν Ἰουδαίων παῖδες πρὸς 1.332 τούτους κέκτηνται μῖσος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνιστάμενοι ἕωθεν καὶ μέσης ἡμέρας καὶ περὶ τὴν ἑσπέραν, τρὶς τῆς ἡμέρας ὅτε εὐχὰς ἐπιτελοῦσιν ἑαυτοῖς ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς ἐπαρῶνται αὐτοῖς καὶ ἀναθεματίζουσι, τρὶς τῆς ἡμέρας φάσκοντες ὅτι «ἐπικαταράσαι ὁ θεὸς τοὺς Ναζωραίους». δῆθεν γὰρ τούτοις περισσότερον ἐνέχουσι, διὰ τὸ ἀπὸ Ἰουδαίων αὐτοὺς ὄντας Ἰησοῦν κηρύσσειν εἶναι τὸν Χριστόν, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἐναντίον πρὸς τοὺς ἔτι Ἰουδαίους, τοὺς τὸν Ἰησοῦν μὴ δεξαμένους. ἔχουσι δὲ τὸ κατὰ Ματθαῖον εὐαγγέλιον πληρέστατον Ἑβραϊστί. παρ' αὐτοῖς γὰρ σαφῶς τοῦτο, καθὼς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐγράφη, Ἑβραϊκοῖς γράμμασιν ἔτι σῴζεται. οὐκ οἶδα δὲ εἰ καὶ τὰς γενεαλογίας τὰς ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἄχρι Χριστοῦ περιεῖλον. ἀλλὰ καὶ ταύτην φωράσαντες 1.333 ὡς βληχρὸν καὶ ὀδύνης ἐμποιητικὸν διὰ τοῦ ἰοῦ σφηκίον, καταθλάσαντες τε τοῖς τῆς ἀληθείας λόγοις, ἐπὶ τὰς ἑξῆς ἴωμεν, ἐπιπόθητοι, παρὰ θεοῦ αἰτοῦντες τὴν βοήθειαν.

Κατὰ Ἐβιωναίων ˉι, τῆς δὲ ἀκολουθίας ˉλ. 1. Ἐβίων, ἀφ' οὗπερ Ἐβιωναῖοι, καθεξῆς ἀκολουθῶν καὶ τὰ ὅμοια τούτοις φρονήσας, πολύμορφον τεράστιον καὶ ὡς εἰπεῖν τῆς μυθευομένης πολυκεφάλου ὕδρας ὀφιώδη μορφὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἀνατυπωσάμενος, πάλιν ἐπανέστη τῷ βίῳ, ἐκ τῆς τούτων μὲν σχολῆς ὑπάρχων, ἕτερα δὲ παρὰ τούτους κηρύττων καὶ ὑφηγούμενος. ὡς γὰρ εἴ τις συνάξειεν ἑαυτῷ ἐκ διαφόρων λίθων τιμίων κόσμον καὶ ποικίλης ἐσθῆτος ἔνδυμα καὶ διαφανῶς ἑαυτὸν κοσμήσῃ, οὕτω καὶ οὗτος τὸ ἀνάπαλιν πᾶν ὁτιοῦν δεινὸν καὶ ὀλετήριον καὶ βδελυκτὸν κήρυγμα, ἄμορφόν τε καὶ ἀπίθανον, ἀντιζηλίας ἔμπλεον παρ' ἑκάστης αἱρέσεως λαβὼν ἑαυτὸν ἀνετύπωσεν εἰς ἁπάσας. Σαμαρειτῶν μὲν γὰρ ἔχει τὸ βδελυρόν, Ἰουδαίων δὲ τὸ ὄνομα, Ὀσσαίων καὶ Ναζωραίων καὶ Νασαραίων τὴν γνώμην, Κηρινθιανῶν τὸ εἶδος, Καρποκρατιανῶν τὴν κακοτροπίαν, καὶ Χριστιανῶν βούλεται ἔχειν τὸ ἐπώνυμον μόνον οὐ γὰρ δήπουθεν τήν τε πρᾶξιν καὶ τὴν γνώμην καὶ τὴν γνῶσιν καὶ τὴν τῶν εὐαγγελίων καὶ ἀποστόλων περὶ πίστεως συγκατάθεσιν· μέσος δὲ ὡς εἰπεῖν ἁπάντων τυγχάνων οὐδὲν πέ1.334 φυκεν, ἀλλὰ ἐπ' αὐτὸν πληροῦται τὸ γεγραμμένον τό «παρ' ὀλίγον ἐγενόμην ἐν παντὶ κακῷ, μέσον ἐκκλησίας καὶ συναγωγῆς». Σαμαρείτης μὲν γὰρ ὢν διὰ τῆς βδελυρίας τοὔνομα ἀρνεῖται, Ἰουδαῖον δὲ ἑαυτὸν ὁμολογῶν Ἰουδαίοις ἀντίκειται, καίτοι συμφωνῶν αὐτοῖς ἐν μέρει, ὡς ὕστερον ἐν ταῖς περὶ τούτου ἀποδείξεσι τοῦ κατ' αὐτῶν ἐλέγχου παραστήσομεν, θεοῦ ἐπιβοηθοῦντος. 2. Οὗτος γὰρ ὁ Ἐβίων σύγχρονος μὲν τούτων ὑπῆρχεν, ἀπ' αὐτῶν δὲ σὺν αὐτοῖς ὢν ὁρμᾶται. τὰ πρῶτα δὲ ἐκ παρατριβῆς καὶ σπέρματος ἀνδρός, τουτέστιν τοῦ Ἰωσήφ, τὸν Χριστὸν γεγεννῆσθαι ἔλεγεν· ὡς καὶ ἤδη ἡμῖν προείρηται ὅτι τὰ ἴσα τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐν ἅπασι φρονῶν ἐν τούτῳ μόνῳ διεφέρετο, ἐν τῷ τῷ νόμῳ τοῦ Ἰουδαϊσμοῦ προσανέχειν κατὰ σαββατισμὸν καὶ κατὰ τὴν περιτομὴν καὶ κατὰ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ὅσαπερ παρὰ Ἰουδαίοις καὶ Σαμαρείταις ἐπιτελεῖται. ἔτι δὲ πλείω οὗτος παρὰ τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ὁμοίως τοῖς Σαμαρείταις διαπράττεται. προσέθετο γὰρ τὸ παρατηρεῖσθαι ἅπτεσθαί τινος τῶν ἀλλοεθνῶν, καθ' ἑκάστην δὲ ἡμέραν, εἴ ποτε γυναικὶ συναφθείη καὶ ᾖ ἀπ' αὐτῆς, βαπτίζεσθαι ἐν τοῖς ὕδασιν, εἴ που δἂν εὐποροίη ἢ θαλάσσης ἢ ἄλλων ὑδάτων. ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰ συναντήσειέν τινι ἀνιὼν ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ὑδάτων καταδύσεως καὶ βαπτισμοῦ, ὡσαύτως