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of the last year of the desolation of the aforementioned temple up to the 50th year of Oziah, king of the Jews, in which Isaiah and Hosea prophesied and all those who were their contemporaries, so that the first Olympiad according to the Greeks was concurrent with the prophet Isaiah and10.9.6 his contemporaries. And again, going back in time from the first Olympiad to the capture of Ilium, you will find 408 years in total, as the chronological records among the Greeks contain. 10.9.7 And according to the Hebrews, going back from the 50th year of Oziah, king of the Jews, to the third year of Labdon, who was judge among the Hebrews, you will collect the same number of 408 years; so that the capture of Ilium was in the times of Labdon the judge, seven years before Samson began to rule the Hebrews, whom they say became irresistible in bodily strength, similar to the one acclaimed among 10.9.8 the Greeks as Heracles. And from thence, going further back and having gathered for yourself a number of 400 years, you would find, among the Hebrews, Moses, and among 10.9.9 the Greeks, Cecrops the earth-born. The marvels among the Greeks are recorded as later than the times of Cecrops. For after Cecrops comes the flood of Deucalion and the conflagration under Phaethon, and the birth of Erichthonius, and the rape of Kore and the mysteries of Demeter, the founding of the Eleusinian rites, the agriculture of Triptolemus, the rape of Europa by Zeus, the birth of Apollo, the arrival of Cadmus at Thebes, and still more recent than these, Dionysus, 10.9.10 Minos, Perseus, Asclepius, the Dioscuri, Heracles. But Moses is established as being older than all of these, having flourished in age around the time of Cecrops. And from Moses, going back again to the first year of Abraham's life, you will find 505 years. And counting back the same number of years from the aforementioned year of the reign of Cecrops, you will come to Ninus the Assyrian, whom they say was the first to rule all of Asia except for the Indians; from whom the city of Ninus is named, which is called Nineveh among the Hebrews, in whose time Zoroaster the magus ruled the Bactrians. And the wife and successor of Ninus in the kingdom was Semiramis; so that Abraham was in their time. 10.9.11 These things, then, have been demonstratively established as being so in the Chronological Canons composed by us. But for the present, in addition to what has been said, I shall use as a witness to the antiquity of Moses the one who is most hostile and warlike of all towards both the Hebrews and us, I mean the philosopher of our time, who, having put forth his plot against us with an excess of hatred, subjected not only us, but also the Hebrews and Moses himself and the prophets after him to the same slanders. For thus, through the admission of our enemies, 10.9.12 I believe that the promise will be confirmed without dispute. Porphyry, therefore, in the fourth book of his plot against us, writes the following in these very words: “Sanchuniathon of Berytus relates the affairs of the Jews with the greatest truth, because it is most in agreement with their places and names, having received his records from Hierombalus the priest of the god Ieuo, who, having dedicated his history to Abelbalus, king of the Berytians, was approved by him and by the examiners of the truth under him. Their times fall even before the Trojan times and approach very nearly those of Moses, as the successions of the kings of Phoenicia indicate. And Sanchuniathon, who, according to the Phoenician dialect, as a lover of truth, collected and wrote the entire ancient history from the city records and from the inscriptions in the temples, lived in the time of Semiramis, the queen of the Assyrians.” 10.9.13 Thus Porphyry. It is necessary, then, to reason about the foregoing matters in this way: if Sanchuniathon lived in the time of Semiramis, and she is acknowledged to be long before the Trojan War, then Sanchuniathon would also be older than the Trojan War. 10.9.14 But he is said to have received the records from others who were older than he in time; and they

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ὑστάτου ἔτους τῆς ἐρημίας τοῦ δηλωθέντος ἱεροῦ ἐπὶ τὸ νʹ ἔτος Ὀζίου τοῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων βασιλέως ἀνιών, καθ' ὃν ἐπροφήτευον Ἡσαΐας καὶ Ὠσηὲ ὅσοι τε τούτοις γεγόνασι σύγχρονοι, ὥστ' εἶναι τὴν πρώτην καθ' Ἕλληνας Ὀλυμπιάδα σύνδρομον Ἡσαΐᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ καὶ10.9.6 τοῖς τούτῳ συγχρόνοις. πάλιν δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης Ὀλυμπιάδος ἐπὶ τοὺς ἔμπροσθεν ἀνιὼν χρόνους μέχρι τῆς Ἰλίου ἁλώσεως εὑρήσεις ἔτη συγκεφαλαιούμενα υηʹ, ὡς αἱ παρ' Ἕλλησι τῶν χρόνων ἀναγραφαὶ περιέχουσι. 10.9.7 καὶ καθ' Ἑβραίους ἀπὸ νʹ ἔτους Ὀζίου τοῦ Ἰουδαίων βασιλέως ἀνιὼν ἐπὶτὸ τρίτον ἔτος Λαβδὼν παρ' Ἑβραίοις γενομένου κριτοῦ τὸν ἴσον συνάξεις ἀριθμὸν ἐτῶν υηʹ· ὥστ' εἶναι τὴν Ἰλίου ἅλωσιν κατὰ τοὺς Λαβδὼν τοῦ κριτοῦ χρόνους, ἑπτὰ ἔτεσι πρότερον ἢ Σαμψὼν ἄρξαι Ἑβραίων, ὃν κατὰ τὴν τοῦ σώματος ἀλκὴν ἀνυπόστατον γενέσθαι φασίν, ἐοικότα τῷ βοωμένῳ παρ' 10.9.8 Ἕλλησιν Ἡρακλεῖ. καὶ ἐντεῦθεν δὲ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀνωτέρω βαδίζων σαυτῷ τε συναγαγὼν ἀριθμὸν ἐτῶν υʹ, εὕροις ἂν κατὰ μὲν Ἑβραίους Μωσέα, κατὰ 10.9.9 δὲ Ἕλληνας Κέκροπα τὸν γηγενῆ. κατώτερα δὲ τῶν Κέκροπος ἱστορεῖται χρόνων τὰ παρ' Ἕλλησι θαυμαζόμενα. γίνεται γὰρ μετὰ Κέκροπα ὁ κατὰ ∆ευκαλίωνα κατακλυσμὸς καὶ ἡ ἐπὶ Φαέθοντος ἐκπύρωσις Ἐριχθονίου τε γένεσις Κόρης τε ἁρπαγὴ καὶ ∆ήμητρος μυστήρια, Ἐλευσινίων ἵδρυσις, Τριπτολέμου γεωργία, Εὐρώπης ὑπὸ ∆ιὸς ἁρπαγή, Ἀπόλλωνος γένεσις, Κάδμου ἐπὶ Θήβας παρουσία καὶ ἔτι τούτων νεώτεροι ∆ιόνυσος, 10.9.10 Μίνως, Περσεύς, Ἀσκληπιός, ∆ιόσκουροι, Ἡρακλῆς. τούτων δ' ἁπάντων πρεσβύτερος γεγονὼς συνίσταται Μωσῆς, ὡς ἂν κατὰ Κέκροπα τὴν ἡλικίαν ἀκμάσας. ἀπὸ δὲ Μωσέως πάλιν ἀνιὼν ἐπὶ τὸ πρῶτον ἔτος ζωῆς Ἁβραὰμ εὑρήσεις ἔτη φεʹ. τοσαῦτα δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ δηλωθέντος ἔτους τῆς Κέκροπος βασιλείας τὸν ἀνωτέρω χρόνον ἀπαριθμούμενος ἐπὶ Νίνον ἥξεις τὸν Ἀσσύριον, ὃν πρῶτόν φασιν ἁπάσης τῆς Ἀσίας πλὴν Ἰνδῶν κεκρατηκέναι· οὗ Νίνος ἐπώνυμος πόλις, ἣ Νινευὴ παρ' Ἑβραίοις ὠνόμασται, καθ' ὃν Ζωροάστρης ὁ μάγος Βακτρίων ἐβασίλευσε. Νίνου δὲ γυνὴ καὶ διάδοχος τῆς βασιλείας Σεμίραμις· ὥστ' εἶναι τὸν Ἁβραὰμ κατὰ τούτους. 10.9.11 Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἀποδεικτικῶς ἐν τοῖς πονηθεῖσιν ἡμῖν Χρονικοῖς Κανόσιν οὕτως ἔχοντα συνέστη. ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ παρόντος πρὸς τοῖς εἰρημένοις μάρτυρι τῆς Μωσέως ἀρχαιότητος χρήσομαι τῷ πάντων δυσμενεστάτῳ καὶ πολεμιωτάτῳ Ἑβραίων τε καὶ ἡμῶν, φημὶ δὲ τῷ καθ' ἡμᾶς φιλοσόφῳ, ὃς τὴν καθ' ἡμῶν συσκευὴν ὑπερβολῇ μίσους προβεβλημένος οὐ μόνους ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἑβραίους αὐτόν τε Μωσέα καὶ τοὺς μετ' αὐτὸν προφήτας ταῖς ἴσαις ὑπηγάγετο δυσφημίαις. οὕτω γὰρ διὰ τῆς τῶν ἐχθρῶν ὁμολογίας 10.9.12 ἀναμφηρίστως ἡγοῦμαι τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν πιστώσεσθαι. γράφει τοίνυν ἐν τῷ τετάρτῳ τῆς καθ' ἡμῶν συσκευῆς ὁ Πορφύριος ῥήμασιν αὐτοῖς τάδε· «Ἱστορεῖ δὴ τὰ περὶ Ἰουδαίων ἀληθέστατα, ὅτι καὶ τοῖς τόποις καὶ τοῖς ὀνόμασιν αὐτῶν τὰ συμφωνότατα, Σαγχουνιάθων ὁ Βηρύτιος, εἰληφὼς τὰ ὑπομνήματα παρὰ Ἱερομβάλου τοῦ ἱερέως θεοῦ Ἰευώ, ὃς Ἀβελβαλῷ τῷ βασιλεῖ Βηρυτίων τὴν ἱστορίαν ἀναθεὶς ὑπ' ἐκείνου καὶ τῶν κατ' αὐτὸν ἐξεταστῶν τῆς ἀληθείας παρεδέχθη. οἱ δὲ τούτων χρόνοι καὶ πρὸ τῶν Τρωϊκῶν πίπτουσι χρόνων καὶ σχεδὸν τοῖς Μωσέως πλησιάζουσιν, ὡς αἱ τῶν Φοινίκης βασιλέων μηνύουσι διαδοχαί. Σαγχουνιάθων δὲ ὁ κατὰ τὴν τῶν Φοινίκων διάλεκτον φιλαλήθως πᾶσαν τὴν παλαιὰν ἱστορίαν ἐκ τῶν κατὰ πόλιν ὑπομνημάτων καὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἀναγραφῶν συναγαγὼν καὶ συγγράψας ἐπὶ Σεμιράμεως γέγονε τῆς Ἀσσυρίων βασιλίδος.» 10.9.13 Ταῦτα ὁ Πορφύριος. δεῖ δὴ συλλογίσασθαι τὰ προκείμενα ὧδέ πως· εἴπερ ὁ Σαγχουνιάθων ἐπὶ Σεμιράμεως γέγονεν, ἡ δὲ μακρῷ πρόσθεν τῶν Τρωϊκῶν ὁμολογεῖται, εἴη ἂν καὶ ὁ Σαγχουνιάθων τῶν Τρωϊκῶν παλαιότερος. 10.9.14 ἀλλ' οὗτος παρ' ἑτέρων πρεσβυτέρων αὐτοῦ τοῖς χρόνοις εἰληφέναι λέγεται τὰ ὑπομνήματα· οἱ δὲ