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heaven. For just as through a tree death entered, 1.335 so also through a tree, life, since we find the resurrection of the dead seven times in the divine scripture, and after the seven, an eighth rose from the dead, the Lord who had raised the seven. For before the resurrection of Christ, there were only seven resurrections of the dead, first [that] in the Old [Testament], that of the son of the widow of Zarephath, whom Elijah raised, second, that of the son of the Shunammite, whom Elisha raised, third, that of the soldier whom they buried near Elisha, as he leaped out as if from a fire, and fourth in the New [Testament], that of the daughter of the ruler of the synagogue, fifth, that of the widow's son, sixth, that of Lazarus, seventh, that many bodies of the sleeping saints rose, and eighth, the resurrection of the Lord after the saving passion. At the time of the passion when the earthquake occurred, it was found in many Greek memoirs that a great earthquake occurred and darkness over the whole world, so that even stars appeared. And Josephus also relates that a certain oracle was found in the holy writings, containing that at that time a certain man from their country would rule the whole world, which he himself understood to have been fulfilled in Vespasian, but he missed the interpretation entirely; for he did not rule over all of it. It remains, therefore, that this is fulfilled in our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom the Father says, "Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for your possession." Whence the sound of his holy apostles went out into all the earth, 1.336 and their words to the ends of the world. Since, therefore, at this time God created the creation, and the budding of the trees bears witness, for this reason He also freed Israel from Egyptian bondage at this time, and the archangel Gabriel brought the good news to the virgin. It is fitting, therefore, that at the same time Christ also endured the saving passion.

Pilate, therefore, after the crucifixion of Christ, set up images of Caesar in the temple by night. And when dawn came, the Jews, seeing them, were so disturbed that Pilate, terrified, moved them elsewhere. Tiberius, however, being very concerned for justice, wrote to the rulers of the cities that if he should write anything commanding something to be done contrary to the laws, they should not pay attention, as he would have been ignorant of it. And so Pilate, knowing his love of truth and justice, reported to him in summary all the miracles of Christ and the doctrines of piety, as Tertullian relates in his Apology for the Christians, and that after death He came back to life and is now believed by all to be a god. And that Tiberius, astonished, reported everything to the senate. But it did not accept it, saying it obeyed an ancient law, not to deify anyone before, unless he were judged by a vote and decree among them. But he accepted this law, but ordered that no one should hinder the preaching of Christ; 1.337 and indeed he even threatened death to those who dared to accuse the preaching. But Pilate, out of hatred for the Jews, also corrupted the sacred treasury called the Corbanas and many of them. And in the days of Caesar he mixed the blood of some of them with their sacrifices, in the following manner. The Galileans, having followed the doctrines of Judas the Galilean, whom Luke also mentions in the Acts of the Apostles, learned empty talk and error from him, as Josephus said. For on the pretext of piety, forsooth, he said that no one ought to say "lord," not even with the mouth, neither in honor nor in courtesy, and to assign to men the honor and glory fitting only for God. Whence also many of them endured harsh tortures for not calling Caesar lord and master. These then taught that no sacrifices should be offered to God other than those prescribed in the law of Moses. And from there, therefore, preventing those delivered by the senate of the people from taking place concerning the

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οὐρανῷ. ὥσπερ γὰρ διὰ ξύλου εἰσῆλθεν ὁ θάνα 1.335 τος, καὶ διὰ ξύλου ἡ ζωή, ἐπειδὴ ἑπτάκις νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν εὕ ρομεν ἐν τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ, καὶ μετὰ τοὺς ἑπτὰ ὄγδοος ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀνέστη ὁ κύριος ὁ ἐγείρας τοὺς ἑπτά. πρὸ γὰρ τῆς Χριστοῦ ἀνα στάσεως ἑπτὰ μόναι ἀναστάσεις νεκρῶν ἐγένοντο, πρώτη μὲν [ἡ] ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ ἡ τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς χήρας τῆς Σαραφθίας, ὃν ἤγειρεν Ἠλίας, δευτέρα ἡ τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς Σωμανίτιδος, ὃν Ἐλισαῖος ἤγειρε, τρίτη ἡ τοῦ στρατιώτου ὃν ἐγγὺς Ἐλισαίου θάψαντες, ὡς ἀπὸ πυρὸς ἐξεπήδησε, τετάρτη δὲ ἐν τῇ καινῇ ἡ τοῦ ἀρχισυναγωγοῦ τῆς θυγατρός, πέμπτη ἡ τοῦ υἱοῦ τῆς χήρας, ἕκτη ἡ τοῦ Λαζά ρου, ἑβδόμη ὅτι πολλὰ σώματα τῶν κεκοιμημένων ἁγίων ἀνέστη, καὶ ὀγδόη ἡ τοῦ κυρίου ἀνάστασις μετὰ τὸ σωτήριον πάθος. καθ' ὃν καιρὸν τοῦ πάθους γενομένου σεισμοῦ ἐν πολλοῖς εὑρέθη Ἑλλη νικοῖς ὑπομνήμασιν ὅτι σεισμὸς ἐγένετο μέγας καὶ σκότος ἐφ' ὅλην τὴν οἰκουμένην, ὥστε καὶ ἀστέρας φανῆναι. ἱστορεῖ δὲ καὶ Ἰώ σηπος χρησμόν τινα ἐν ἱεροῖς γράμμασιν εὑρεθῆναι, περιέχοντα ὡς κατὰ καιρὸν ἐκεῖνον ἀπὸ τῆς αὐτῶν χώρας ἄρξει τις ἄνθρωπος τῆς οἰκουμένης πάσης, ὃν αὐτὸς μὲν ἐπὶ Οὐεσπασιανοῦ ἐξείληφε πεπληρῶσθαι, διήμαρτε δὲ τῆς ἑρμηνείας ἐκ διαμέτρου· οὐ γὰρ πάσης οὗτος ἦρξε. λείπεται δὲ οὖν ἐπὶ τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν τοῦτο πληροῦσθαι, πρὸς ὅν φησιν ὁ πατήρ "αἴτησαι παρ' ἐμοῦ, καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς." ὅθεν εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν 1.336 ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος τῶν ἱερῶν ἀποστόλων αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ ῥήματα αὐτῶν. ἐπεὶ οὖν κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦ τον ὁ θεὸς τὴν κτίσιν ἐδημιούργησε, καὶ μαρτυρεῖ τῶν δένδρων ἡ βλάστησις, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον ἠλευθέρωσε τῆς Αἰγυπτιακῆς δουλείας, καὶ τῇ παρθένῳ Γαβριὴλ ὁ ἀρχάγγελος εὐηγγελίσατο. εἰκότως οὖν κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν καὶ Χριστὸς ὑπέμεινε τὸ σωτήριον πάθος.

Ὁ τοίνυν Πιλᾶτος μετὰ τὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ σταύρωσιν εἰκόνας τοῦ Καίσαρος εἰς τὸ ἱερὸν νύκτωρ ἀνέθηκεν. ὄρθρου δὲ γενομέ νου οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι θεασάμενοι τοσοῦτον ἐταράχθησαν ὥστε Πιλᾶτος ἐκδειματωθεὶς ἀλλαχοῦ ταύτας μετέθηκε. Τιβέριος δὲ λίαν τοῦ δικαίου φροντίζων ἔγραφε τοῖς ἄρχουσι τῶν πόλεων, ἐάν τι γράφῃ παρὰ τοὺς νόμους προστάσσων γίνεσθαι, μὴ προσέχειν ὡς ἠγνοη κότι. διὸ καὶ Πιλᾶτος εἰδὼς αὐτοῦ τὸ φιλάληθες καὶ φιλοδίκαιον, τὰ τεράστια Χριστοῦ πάντα καὶ τὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας δόγματα αὐτῷ δι' ἐπιτομῆς ἀνεκοινώσατο, καθὼς ἱστορεῖ Τερτυλιανὸς ἐν τῇ ὑπὲρ Χριστιανῶν ἀπολογίᾳ, καὶ ὅτι μετὰ θάνατον ἀνεβίωσε καὶ ἤδη παρὰ πᾶσι θεὸς εἶναι πιστεύεται. καὶ ὅτι Τιβέριος καταπλαγεὶς ἀνήγγειλε πάντα τῇ συγκλήτῳ. ἡ δὲ οὐ προσήκατο, πειθαρχεῖν νόμῳ παλαιῷ λέγουσα, μὴ πρότερον θεοποιῆσαί τινα, εἰ μὴ ψήφῳ καὶ δόγματι παρ' αὐτοῖς κριθείη. ὁ δὲ τὸν μὲν νόμον τοῦτον ἐδέξατο, ἐκέλευσε δὲ μηδένα ἐμποδίζειν τῷ Χριστοῦ κηρύγματι· 1.337 καὶ μέντοι καὶ θάνατον προσηπείλησε τοῖς κατηγορεῖν τολμῶσι τοῦ κηρύγματος. Ὁ δέ γε Πιλᾶτος μίσει τῷ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους καὶ τὸν ἱερὸν θησαυρὸν τὸν καλούμενον κορβανᾶν διέφθειρε καὶ πολλοὺς ἐξ αὐ τῶν. ἔμιξε δὲ καί τινων ἐξ αὐτῶν ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις τοῦ Καίσαρος τὸ αἷμα τῶν θυσιῶν, τρόπῳ τοιῷδε. οἱ Γαλιλαῖοι τοῖς δόγμασιν ἐξακολουθήσαντες Ἰούδα τοῦ Γαλιλαίου, οὗ καὶ Λουκᾶς ἐν τοῖς πράξεσι τῶν ἀποστόλων μέμνηται, κενοφωνίαν καὶ πλάνην ἔμαθον ἐξ αὐτοῦ, καθὼς ἔφη Ἰώσηπος. προφάσει γὰρ εὐσεβείας δῆθεν κύριον μηδὲ μέχρι στόματος ἔφασκε δεῖν τινὰ λέγειν, μήτε κατὰ τιμὴν μήτε φιλοφροσύνην, καὶ τὴν θεῷ μόνῳ πρέπουσαν τιμήν τε καὶ δόξαν ἀνθρώποις ἀπονέμειν. ὅθεν καὶ πολλοὶ αὐτῶν περὶ τοῦ μὴ εἰπεῖν Καίσαρα κύριον καὶ δεσπότην χαλεπὰς αἰκίας ὑπέστη σαν. οἵτινες λοιπὸν ἐδίδασκον μηδὲν παρὰ τὰς διατεταγμένας ἐν τῷ Μωσέως νόμῳ θυσίας ἀναφέρεσθαι τῷ θεῷ. κἀντεῦθεν τοί νυν κωλύοντες τὰς ὑπὸ τῆς γερουσίας τοῦ λαοῦ παραδιδομένας γίνεσθαι περὶ τῆς τοῦ