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and it is destroyed in many ways, by elements and by animals, and by the death that is set over it. It is not possible, therefore, for man to be a god, but a work of God. Therefore the Chaldeans have wandered in great error, following after their own lusts. For they worship the corruptible elements and dead images, and they are not aware that they are deifying these things. 406 Let us come, then, to the Greeks, that we may see what they think concerning God. The Greeks, then, saying they are wise, have become more foolish than the Chaldeans, by introducing many gods who have come into being, some male, others female, subject to all sorts of passions and creators of all manner of lawlessness. From which the Greeks, O king, have introduced ridiculous and foolish and impious words, calling those who are not gods, gods, according to their own wicked lusts, so that, having these as advocates of their wickedness, they may commit adultery, plunder, murder, and do all the most dreadful things. For if their gods did such things, how should they themselves not do such things? From these pursuits of error, therefore, it has come to pass that men have frequent wars, and slaughters, and bitter captivities. But if we are willing to treat of each of their gods in our discourse, you will see much absurdity. First, there is introduced to them before all others the god called Kronos, and to him they sacrifice their own children, who had many children by Rhea, and in a madness devoured his own children. And they say that Zeus cut off his private parts and threw them into the sea, from which Aphrodite is fabled to have been born. So Zeus, having bound his own father, threw him into Tartarus. Do you see the error and licentiousness which they introduce concerning their god? Is it possible then for a god to be a prisoner and to be cut off? O the folly! Who of those who have sense would say these things? Second is introduced Zeus, who they say became king of their gods, and transformed himself into 408 animals, that he might commit adultery with mortal women. For they introduce him as being transformed into a bull for Europa, and into gold for Danae, and into a swan for Leda, and into a satyr for Antiope, and into a thunderbolt for Semele; and then, that from these were born many children, Dionysus, and Zethus and Amphion, and Herakles, and Apollo and Artemis, and Perseus, and Castor and Helen and Polydeuces, and Minos, and Rhadamanthus, and Sarpedon, and the nine daughters whom they named Muses. Then in this way they introduce the stories concerning Ganymede. It happened therefore, O king, that men imitated all these things, and became adulterers and pederasts, and doers of other terrible deeds, in imitation of their god. How then is it possible for a god to be an adulterer or a sodomite or a parricide? And with this one they also introduce a certain Hephaestus as being a god, and him lame, and holding a hammer and tongs, and working as a smith for the sake of food. So he is in need; which is not possible for a god to be lame and in need of men. Then they introduce Hermes as a god who is covetous and a thief and avaricious and a magician, and crippled and an interpreter of words. which is not possible for a god to be such a one. And they introduce Asclepius as a god, being a physician and preparing drugs and compounding plasters for the sake of food (for he was in want), but later he was struck by lightning by 410 Zeus because of Tyndareus, son of Lacedaemon, and died. And if Asclepius, being a god and struck by lightning, was not able to help himself, how will he help others? And Ares is introduced as being a god, a warrior and jealous, and a luster after cattle and other things; but later, when he was committing adultery with Aphrodite, he was bound by the infant Eros and by Hephaestus. How then is he a god who is covetous and a warrior and a captive and an adulterer? And they introduce Dionysus as a god, leading nocturnal festivals and a teacher of drunkenness, and

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φθείρεται δὲ κατὰ πολλοὺς τρόπους, ὑπὸ στοιχείων καὶ ζῴων, καὶ τοῦ ἐπικειμένου αὐτῷ θανάτου. οὐκ ἐνδέχεται οὖν εἶναι τὸν ἄνθρωπον θεὸν ἀλλ' ἔργον Θεοῦ. πλάνην οὖν μεγάλην ἐπλανήθησαν οἱ Χαλδαῖοι, ὀπίσω τῶν ἐπιθυμημάτων αὐτῶν. σέβονται γὰρ τὰ φθαρτὰ στοιχεῖα καὶ τὰ νεκρὰ ἀγάλματα, καὶ οὐκ αἰσθάνονται ταῦτα θεοποιούμενοι. 406 Ἔλθωμεν οὖν ἐπὶ τοὺς Ἕλληνας, ἵνα ἴδωμεν εἴ τι φρονοῦσι περὶ Θεοῦ. οἱ οὖν Ἕλληνες σοφοὶ λέγοντες εἶναι ἐμωράνθησαν χεῖρον τῶν Χαλδαίων, παρεισάγοντες πολλοὺς θεοὺς γεγενῆσθαι, τοὺς μὲν ἄρρενας, τοὺς δὲ θηλείας, παντοίων παθῶν καὶ παντοδαπῶν δημιουργοὺς ἀνομημάτων. ὅθεν γελοῖα καὶ μωρὰ καὶ ἀσεβῆ παρεισήγαγον οἱ Ἕλληνες, βασιλεῦ, ῥήματα, τοὺς μὴ ὄντας προσαγορεύοντες θεούς, κατὰ τὰς ἐπιθυμίας αὐτῶν τὰς πονηράς, ἵνα, τούτους συνηγόρους ἔχοντες τῆς κακίας, μοιχεύωσιν, ἁρπάζωσι, φονεύωσι, καὶ τὰ πάνδεινα ποιῶσιν. εἰ γὰρ οἱ θεοὶ αὐτῶν τοιαῦτα ἐποίησαν, πῶς καὶ αὐτοὶ οὐ τοιαῦτα πράξουσιν; ἐκ τούτων οὖν τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων τῆς πλάνης συνέβη τοὺς ἀνθρώπους πολέμους ἔχειν συχνούς, καὶ σφαγὰς καὶ αἰχμαλωσίας πικράς. ἀλλὰ καὶ καθ' ἕκαστον τῶν θεῶν αὐτῶν εἰ θελήσομεν ἐλθεῖν τῷ λόγῳ, πολλὴν ὄψει τὴν ἀτοπίαν. Ὁ πρῶτος παρεισάγεται αὐτοῖς πρὸ πάντων θεὸς ὁ λεγόμενος Κρόνος, καὶ τούτῳ θύουσι τὰ ἴδια τέκνα, ὃς ἔσχε παῖδας πολλοὺς ἐκ τῆς Ῥέας, καὶ μανεὶς ἤσθιε τὰ ἴδια τέκνα. φασὶ δὲ τὸν ∆ία κόψαι αὐτοῦ τὰ ἀναγκαῖα καὶ βαλεῖν εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν, ὅθεν Ἀφροδίτην μυθεύεται γεννᾶσθαι. δήσας οὖν τὸν ἴδιον πατέρα ὁ Ζεὺς ἔβαλεν εἰς τὸν Τάρταρον. ὁρᾷς τὴν πλάνην καὶ ἀσέλγειαν ἣν παρεισάγουσι κατὰ τοῦ θεοῦ αὐτῶν; ἐνδέχεται οὖν θεὸν εἶναι δέσμιον καὶ ἀπόκοπον; ὦ τῆς ἀνοίας· τίς τῶν νοῦν ἐχόντων ταῦτα φήσειεν; ∆εύτερος παρεισάγεται ὁ Ζεύς, ὅν φασι βασιλεῦσαι τῶν θεῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ μεταμορφοῦσθαι εἰς 408 ζῷα, ὅπως μοιχεύσῃ θνητὰς γυναῖκας. παρεισάγουσι γὰρ τοῦτον μεταμορφούμενον εἰς ταῦρον πρὸς Εὐρώπην, καὶ εἰς χρυσὸν πρὸς ∆ανάην, καὶ εἰς κύκνον πρὸς Λήδαν, καὶ εἰς σάτυρον πρὸς Ἀντιόπην, καὶ εἰς κεραυνὸν πρὸς Σεμέλην· εἶτα γενέσθαι ἐκ τούτων τέκνα πολλά, ∆ιόνυσον, καὶ Ζῆθον καὶ Ἀμφίονα, καὶ Ἡρακλῆν, καὶ Ἀπόλωνα καὶ Ἄρτεμιν, καὶ Περσέα, Κάστορά τε καὶ Ἑλένην καὶ Πολυδεύκην, καὶ Μίνωα, καὶ Ῥαδάμανθον, καὶ Σαρπηδόνα, καὶ τὰς ἐννέα θυγατέρας ἃς προσηγόρευσαν Μούσας. Εἶθ' οὕτως παρεισάγουσι τὰ κατὰ τὸν Γανυμήδην. συνέβη οὖν, βασιλεῦ, τοῖς ἀνθρώποις μιμεῖσθαι ταῦτα πάντα, καὶ γίνεσθαι μοιχοὺς καὶ ἀρρενομανεῖς, καὶ ἄλλων δεινῶν ἔργων ἐργάτας, κατὰ μίμησιν τοῦ θεοῦ αὐτῶν. πῶς οὖν ἐνδέχεται θεὸν εἶναι μοιχὸν ἢ ἀνδροβάτην ἢ πατροκτόνον; Σὺν τούτῳ δὲ καὶ Ἥφαιστόν τινα παρεισάγουσι θεὸν εἶναι, καὶ τοῦτον χωλόν, καὶ κρατοῦντα σφῦραν καὶ πυρόλαβον, καὶ χαλκεύοντα χάριν τροφῆς. ἄρα ἐπιδεής ἐστιν· ὅπερ οὐκ ἐνδέχεται θεὸν εἶναι χωλὸν καὶ προσδεόμενον ἀνθρώπων. Εἶτα τὸν Ἑρμῆν παρεισάγουσι θεὸν εἶναι ἐπιθυμητὴν καὶ κλέπτην καὶ πλεονέκτην καὶ μάγον, καὶ κυλλὸν καὶ λόγων ἑρμηνευτήν. ὅπερ οὐκ ἐνδέχεται θεὸν εἶναι τοιοῦτον. Τὸν δὲ Ἀσκληπιὸν παρεισάγουσι θεὸν εἶναι, ἰατρὸν ὄντα καὶ κατασκευάζοντα φάρμακα καὶ σύνθεσιν ἐμπλάστρων, χάριν τροφῆς (ἐπενδεὴς γὰρ ἦν), ὕστερον δὲ κεραυνοῦσθαι αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ 410 ∆ιὸς διὰ Τυνδάρεων Λακεδαίμονος υἱόν, καὶ ἀποθανεῖν. εἰ δὲ Ἀσκληπιὸς θεὸς ὢν καὶ κεραυνωθεὶς οὐκ ἠδυνήθη ἑαυτῷ βοηθῆσαι, πῶς ἄλλοις βοηθήσει; Ἄρης δὲ παρεισάγεται θεὸς εἶναι πολεμιστὴς καὶ ζηλωτής, καὶ ἐπιθυμητὴς θρεμμάτων καὶ ἑτέρων τινῶν· ὕστερον δὲ αὐτὸν μοιχεύοντα τὴν Ἀφροδίτην δεθῆναι αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τοῦ νηπίου Ἔρωτος καὶ ὑπὸ Ἡφαίστου. πῶς οὖν θεός ἐστιν ὁ ἐπιθυμητὴς καὶ πολεμιστὴς καὶ δέσμιος καὶ μοιχός; Τὸν δὲ ∆ιόνυσον παρεισάγουσι θεὸν εἶναι, νυκτερινὰς ἄγοντα ἑορτὰς καὶ διδάσκαλον μέθης, καὶ