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to refute. But he showed the truth of this all the more. For they, having gladly heard these words, made known to all their kinsmen throughout the world the things which had been commanded. And they ran together from all sides, contributing both money and zeal to the building. He who had commanded this also supplied very great amounts, not acting out of ambition but fighting against the truth. And he also sent a governor with them, a worthy minister of the impious commands. And they say that they even made mattocks of silver, and shovels and baskets. And when they began to dig and carry out the earth, many thousands did this all day long, but at night the earth was automatically moved back from the ravine. And they also demolished the very remains of the building, hoping to build everything anew. And when they had gathered together many thousands of medimni of both gypsum and lime, suddenly violent winds blew, and whirlwinds and storms and tempests scattered it all at once. And while they were still raging and not brought to their senses by the divine long-suffering, first a very great earthquake occurred, sufficient to terrify even those utterly uninitiated in divine things. And when they were not afraid, fire, springing up from the foundations being dug, burned up most of the diggers and scattered the others. And at night, while very many were sleeping in a certain nearby portico, the building suddenly collapsed along with the roof and buried all those sleeping. And during the same night and again on the next day, the luminous form of the saving cross appeared in the sky; and the very garments of the Jews 200 were filled with crosses, not, however, luminous, but made of a black color. The adversaries of God, seeing these things and fearing the scourges sent from God, fled and went to their own homes, confessing as God the one who had been nailed to the wood by their forefathers. Julian heard these things, for they were reported by all, but like Pharaoh he hardened his heart. And when the Persians, learning of Constantius' death, took courage and came to the Roman borders proclaiming war, it seemed good to him, who did not have its champion, to gather the army. And sending to Delphi and Delos and Dodona and the other oracles, he asked the seers if he ought to go to war. And they both commanded him to go to war and promised him victory. And I will put one of the oracles into my history as a refutation of their falsehood. It is this: "Now we gods have all set out to bring back trophies of victory from beside the river Ther; and of them I shall be leader, impetuous, battle-stirring Ares." Therefore, let those who call the Pythian the god of eloquence and leader of the Muses satirize the laughable quality of the verses; but I, having discovered its falsehood, lament the one who was deceived. And they called the river Tigris "Ther," since there is a beast of the same name. And this, gushing forth from the Armenian mountains and flowing through Assyria, empties into the Persian Gulf. Deluded by these oracles, the wretched man both dreamed of victory and imagined the war against the Galileans after the Persian war. And he called the Christians "Galileans," 1 thinking he would attach dishonor to them by this name. But he, having been educated in letters, ought to have considered that a change of name in no way harms one's reputation. For not even if Socrates had been named Critias and Pythagoras been called Phalaris, would they have partaken in any disgrace from the change of names; nor indeed if Nireus had been called Thersites would he have lost the beauty which he had received from nature. But he, who had been educated in these things, taking none of them to mind, supposed he was harming us by a name that in no way belongs to us; and believing the falsehood of the oracles, he threatened to set up in the churches the images of the licentious demon. And departing with these threats, he was overcome by one man in Beroea. For this man happened to be renowned in other ways (for he was the leader of the citizens there),

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διελέγχειν. ἔδειξε δὲ μᾶλλον τὴν ταύτης ἀλή θειαν. τούτων γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι τῶν λόγων ἀσπασίως ἀκούσαντες ἅπασι τὰ προστεταγμένα τοῖς κατὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην ὁμοφύλοις ἐδήλωσαν. οἱ δὲ πάντοθεν συνέθεον, καὶ χρήματα καὶ προθυμίαν εἰς τὴν οἰκοδο μίαν εἰσφέροντες. ἐχορήγησε δὲ ὅτι πλεῖστα καὶ ὁ τοῦτο προστετα χώς, οὐ φιλοτιμίᾳ χρώμενος ἀλλὰ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ μαχόμενος. συναπέστειλε δὲ καὶ ἄρχοντα, τῶν δυσσεβῶν προσταγμάτων ἄξιον ὑπουργόν. φασὶ δὲ αὐτοὺς καὶ σκαπάνας ἐξ ὕλης ἀργύρου καὶ ἄμας καὶ κοφινίδας κατασκευάσαι. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὀρύττειν ἤρξαντο καὶ τὸν χοῦν ἐκφορεῖν, πανημέριον μὲν τοῦτο ἔδρων μυριάδες πολλαί, νύκτωρ δὲ ὁ χοῦς αὐτόματος ἀπὸ τῆς φάραγγος μετετίθετο κατέλυσαν δὲ καὶ αὐτὰ τῆς οἰκοδομίας τὰ λείψανα, νεόδμητα πάντα κατασκευάσειν ἐλπίσαντες. ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ γύψου καὶ τιτάνου πολλὰς μεδίμνων συνήθροισαν μυριάδας, ἐξαπίνης ἄνεμοι βίαιοι πνεύσαντες καὶ στρόβιλοι καὶ καταιγίδες καὶ λαίλαπες πάσας ἀθρόως ἐσκέδασαν. ἔτι δὲ μεμηνότων ἐκείνων καὶ τῇ μακρο θυμίᾳ τῇ θείᾳ μὴ σωφρονιζομένων, πρῶτον μὲν σεισμὸς ἐγένετο μέγιστος καὶ τοὺς παντελῶς ἀμυήτους τῶν θείων ἱκανὸς καταπλῆ ξαι. ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ ἔδεισαν, πῦρ ἐκ τῶν ὀρυττομένων ἀναδραμὸν θεμελίων πλείστους μὲν τῶν ὀρυττόντων ἐνέπρησε, τοὺς δὲ ἄλλους ἐσκέδασε. καὶ νύκτωρ δὲ παμπόλλων ἔν τινι πελαζούσῃ καθευδόν των στοᾷ, κατηνέχθη μὲν ἀθρόως σὺν τῷ ὀρόφῳ τὸ οἰκοδόμημα, τοὺς δὲ καθεύδοντας συνέχωσεν ἅπαντας. κατὰ δὲ τὴν αὐτὴν νύκτα καὶ αὖ πάλιν τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ τοῦ σωτηρίου σταυ ροῦ τὸ σχῆμα φωτοειδές· καὶ αὐτὰ δὲ τὰ τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἐσθήματα 200 σταυρῶν ἐπεπλήρωτο, οὐκ ἔτι μέντοι φωτοειδῶν ἀλλ' ἐκ μελαίνης κατεσκευασμένων χροιᾶς. ταῦτα οἱ ἀντίθεοι θεασάμενοι καὶ τὰς θεηλάτους μάστιγας ὀρρωδήσαντες ἀπέδρασάν τε καὶ τὰ οἰκεῖα κατέ λαβον, θεὸν ὁμολογοῦντες τὸν ὑπὸ τῶν προγόνων τῷ ξύλῳ προση λωθέντα. ταῦτα ἤκουσε μὲν Ἰουλιανός, παρὰ πάντων γὰρ ᾔδετο, τῷ δὲ Φαραὼ παραπλησίως τὴν καρδίαν ἐσκλήρυνεν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ Πέρσαι τὴν Κωνσταντίου πυθόμενοι τελευτὴν ἀνε θάρρησαν καὶ εἰς τοὺς Ῥωμαίων ὅρους ἀφίκοντο πόλεμον προαγγεί λαντες, ἔδοξεν αὐτῷ συναγεῖραι τὴν στρατιάν, τὸν ταύτης οὐκ ἔχοντι πρόμαχον. πέμψας δὲ εἰς ∆ελφοὺς καὶ ∆ῆλον καὶ ∆ωδώνην καὶ τὰ ἄλλα χρηστήρια, εἰ χρὴ στρατεύειν ἐπηρώτα τοὺς μάντεις. οἱ δὲ καὶ στρατεύειν ἐκέλευον καὶ ὑπισχνοῦντο τὴν νίκην. ἕνα δὲ τῶν χρησμῶν εἰς ἔλεγχον τοῦ ψεύδους ἐνθήσω τῇ συγγραφῇ. ἔστι δὲ οὗτος· "νῦν πάντες ὡρμήθημεν θεοὶ νίκης τρόπαια κομίσασθαι παρὰ Θηρὶ πο ταμῷ· τῶν δ' ἐγὼ ἡγεμονεύσω θοῦρος πολεμόκλονος Ἄρης". τὸ μὲν οὖν τῶν ἐπῶν καταγέλαστον κωμῳδείτωσαν οἱ λόγιον θεὸν καὶ τῶν Μουσῶν ἀρχηγέτην τὸν Πύθιον ὀνομάζοντες· ἐγὼ δὲ αὐτοῦ τὸ ψεῦδος εὑρὼν τὸν ἐξηπατημένον ὀδύρομαι. Θῆρα δὲ ποταμὸν τὸν Τίγριν ὠνόμασαν, ἐπειδήπερ ἐστὶν αὐτοῦ θηρίον ὁμώνυμον. οὗτος δὲ ἐκ τῶν Ἀρμενίων ἀναβλυστάνων ὀρῶν καὶ διὰ τῆς Ἀσσυρίας ῥέων εἰς τὸν Περσικὸν εἰσβάλλει κόλπον. Ὑπὸ τούτων ὁ δείλαιος βουκοληθεὶς τῶν χρησμῶν, καὶ τὴν νίκην ὠνειροπόλει καὶ μετὰ τὴν Περσικὴν μάχην τὸν πρὸς τοὺς Γαλιλαίους ἐφαντάζετο πόλεμον. τοὺς δὲ Χριστιανοὺς Γαλιλαίους 1 ὠνόμαζεν, ἀτιμίαν αὐτοῖς ἐκ τῆς προσηγορίας προσάψειν ἡγούμενος. ἔδει δὲ αὐτὸν σκοπῆσαι λόγοις ἐντεθραμμένον, ὡς ἥκιστα δόξῃ λυ μαίνεται προσηγορίας ἐναλλαγή. οὐδὲ γὰρ εἰ Σωκράτης ὠνομάσθη Κριτίας καὶ Φάλαρις ὁ Πυθαγόρας προσηγορεύθη, λώβης ἂν μετέσχον τινὸς ἐκ τῆς τῶν ὀνομάτων μεταβολῆς· οὐδέ γε ὁ Νηρεὺς Θερσίτης ἐπικληθεὶς ἀπώλεσεν ἂν ὃ παρὰ τῆς φύσεως ἐδέξατο κάλλος. ἀλλὰ τούτων οὐδὲν ὁ ταῦτα πεπαιδευμένος εἰς νοῦν λαβών, ἐκ τῆς οὐδα μόθεν ἡμῖν ἁρμοττούσης προσηγορίας πημαίνειν ἡμᾶς ὑπέλαβε· καὶ τῇ τῶν χρησμῶν ψευδολογίᾳ πιστεύσας ἠπείλει ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις ἐνι δρῦσαι τῆς δαίμονος τῆς ἀκολάστου τὰ εἴδωλα. Μετὰ τούτων δὲ ἀπάρας τῶν ἀπειλῶν, ὑφ' ἑνὸς ἀνδρὸς ἐν Βεροίᾳ κατηγωνίσθη. οὗτος γὰρ ὁ ἀνὴρ καὶ ἄλλως μὲν περιφανὴς ἐτύγχανεν ὤν (τῶν γὰρ αὐτόθι πολιτευομένων ἡγεῖτο),