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the ten steps according to the sacred Letter. For if it were the third hour of the day, the shadow, having already advanced, would not have run back, nor would the sun have reversed its course, even if it happened that the door and the steps of the house of Hezekiah faced the west. And these things are concerning the position of the house. 8.17 And the reason for such a sign is this, that most of the nations, and perhaps all, being more enslaved to the host of heaven, honor the sun as the greatest of all gods and the father of lights. Therefore God, by commanding this to reverse its course, declared to all the nations that He Himself is the Master of all, and that this one is a servant and not a god; for if He commanded so great an element to reverse its course contrary to habit, how much more can He command the lesser ones, using them as His own servants? 8.18 And I will say, with God, what profit came from this. For when the sun went back, it became known to all the nations to the end of the earth, so that even the Babylonian king, Merodach, the son of Baladan, being far away and seeing the sign, came to astonishment and investigation of the fearsome and extraordinary wonder. For amazement and fear seized the king himself and his great men, seeking with haste, being all agitated concerning astronomy, to learn the cause of such a fearsome and great sign. And after much inquiry, he learns that Hezekiah, the king of Judea, having fallen into sickness and come to despair, prayed to God, and He gave him health and an addition of fifteen years to his life; for this reason, to confirm the promise, God made this great and fearsome sign, that He is the God of gods, who made the heaven and the earth and all that is in them. 8.19 Having learned these things and been instructed by the event, the Babylonian, that He is God of all, very quickly sent many gifts and an embassy to Hezekiah, as to a genuine servant beloved by the God of all. And at the same time, it is again taught that the heaven is not a revolving sphere according to the opinion of the Babylonians, which they first suspected when they were once on high from their tower-building, but standing and fixed to the earth like a vault. For if it were a sphere, the sun would not have gone in the opposite direction while the whole was revolving forward, not being carried along with the whole, so as to reverse its course for the space of three hours, that is, a fourth of a day, and again another fourth, until it came to the place from which it had made its return. 8.20 Concerning all these figures, we have written in the Christian and comprehensive Cosmography, as you yourself also know, O wonderful one, at the urging of the God-loving Pamphilus of Jerusalem. For the prophet himself, through whom the reversal of the sun occurred, having by the deed of this fearsome sign removed the suspicion of the Babylonians that the heaven is not a revolving sphere, but that they hold a fabricated opinion, not long after states the figure of the heaven itself thus: "He who has set the heaven like a vault," and again: "The Lord God who made the heaven and fixed it," at the same time declaring both its figure, that it is like a vault, and saying "set" and "fixed," and not revolving. And having written such things, it is clear that he also benefited the Babylonians. 8.21 For it is possible for one who wishes to learn from the things that happened concerning Cyrus, king of the Persians. For taking the book of Isaiah in his hands and reading, he found the passage written which had been prophesied concerning him; for Isaiah says in the passage thus: "Thus says God to my anointed, Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, that nations might hearken before him, and I will break the strength of kings, I will open doors before him, and cities shall not be shut. I will go before you and make mountains level, I will break in pieces doors of bronze and shatter bars of iron and I will give you dark, hidden, unseen treasures I will open to you, that you may know that I am the Lord God, who calls you by your name, the God of Israel. For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my

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τοὺς δέκα ἀναβαθμοὺς κατὰ τὸ Γράμμα τὸ ἱερόν. Εἰ γὰρ ἦν τὸ ἔμπαλιν τρίτη ὥρα τῆς ἡμέρας, οὐδὲ ἡ σκιὰ ἤδη δραμοῦσα ἀνέτρεχεν, οὔτε ὁ ἥλιος ἀνεπόδιζεν εἰς τοὐπίσω, εἰ καὶ συνέβη τὴν θύραν καὶ τοὺς ἀναβαθμοὺς τοῦ οἴκου Ἐζεκίου ἐπὶ τὴν δύσιν ὁρᾶν. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν περὶ τῆς θέσεως τοῦ οἴκου. 8.17 Ἡ αἰτία δὲ τοῦ τοιούτου σημείου αὕτη ἐστίν, ὅτιπερ τὰ πολλὰ τῶν ἐθνῶν, τάχα δὲ πάντα, τῇ στρατιᾷ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ μᾶλλον δουλεύοντα τὸν ἥλιον τιμῶσιν, ὡς μείζονα πάντων θεὸν καὶ πατέρα φώτων ὄντα. Τοῦτον οὖν ἀναποδίσαι κελεύσας ὁ Θεὸς ἐδήλωσε πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἑαυτὸν μὲν εἶναι τοῦ παντὸς ∆εσπότην, δοῦλον δὲ τοῦτον ὑπάρχειν καὶ οὐ θεόν· εἰ γὰρ τὸ τηλικοῦτο στοιχεῖον ἀναποδίσαι παρὰ τὴν συνήθειαν προσέταξε, πόσῳ μᾶλλον τοῖς ἥττοσιν ὡς ἰδίοις δούλοις κεχρημένος κελεύειν δύναται; 8.18 Ἐρῶ δὲ σὺν Θεῷ καὶ τί τὸ ἐντεῦθεν κέρδος ἐγένετο. Ἀναδραμόντος τοίνυν τοῦ ἡλίου, πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς γνωστὸς γέγονεν, ὥστε καὶ τὸν βαβυλώνιον βασιλέα, Μεωδάχ, υἱὸν τοῦ Λααδάν, πόρρωθεν ὄντα καὶ θεωρήσαντα τὸ σημεῖον εἰς ἔκπληξιν καὶ ἔρευναν ἐλθεῖν τοῦ φοβεροῦ καὶ παραδόξου θαύματος. Θάμβος γὰρ καὶ φόβος περιεῖχεν αὐτὸν τὸν βασιλέα καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ μεγιστᾶνας μετὰ σπουδῆς ζητοῦντας, περὶ τὴν ἀστρονομίαν πάντας ἐπτοημένους, τοῦ τοιούτου φοβεροῦ καὶ μεγάλου σημείου τὴν αἰτίαν μαθεῖν. Πολλῆς δὲ ζητήσεως γενομένης, μανθάνει ὡς Ἐζεκίας, ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς Ἰουδαίας, ἀρρωστίᾳ περιπεσὼν καὶ εἰς ἀπόγνωσιν ἐλθὼν ηὔξατο τὸν Θεόν, καὶ δέδωκεν αὐτῷ ὑγείαν καὶ προσθήκην ζωῆς ἐτῶν δεκαπέντε· ἕνεκα τούτου πρὸς πίστωσιν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸ μέγα καὶ φοβερὸν σημεῖον τοῦτο, ὅτι αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς τῶν θεῶν, ὁ ποιήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς. 8.19 Ταῦτα μαθὼν καὶ παιδευθεὶς ἔργῳ ὁ Βαβυλώνιος αὐτὸν εἶναι Θεὸν τοῦ παντὸς τάχιστα πολλὰ δῶρα καὶ πρεσβείαν τῷ Ἐζεκίᾳ ἀπέστειλεν, ὡς δούλῳ γνησίῳ καὶ ἀγαπωμένῳ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ τῶν ὅλων. Ἐν ταὐτῷ δὲ πάλιν διδάσκεται ὡς οὐ σφαῖρα στρεφομένη κατὰ τὴν τῶν Βαβυλωνίων δόξαν, ἣν ὡς ἀπὸ τῆς πυργοποιΐας ἐφ' ὑψηλοῦ ποτε γενόμενοι πρῶτοι ὑπώπτευσαν, ὁ οὐρανὸς ὑπάρχει, ἀλλ' ἱστάμενος καὶ πεπηγὼς εἰς γῆν ὡς καμάρα. Εἰ γὰρ ἦν σφαῖρα, οὐκ ἂν τοῦ παντὸς ἐπὶ τὰ πρόσω στρεφομένου ὁ ἥλιος τὴν ἐναντίαν ἐβάδισε μὴ συμπεριφερόμενος τῷ παντί, ὥστε ὡρῶν τριῶν διάστημα, τουτέστι τέταρτον ἡμέρας, ἀναπο δίσαι, καὶ πάλιν ἕτερον τέταρτον, ἕως ὅτε ἦλθεν εἰς τὸν τόπον, ἐξ οὗπερ τὴν ὑποστροφὴν ἐποιήσατο. 8.20 Περὶ τούτων δὲ πάντων τῶν σχημάτων ἐν τῇ Χριστιανικῇ καὶ περιεκτικῇ Κοσμογραφίᾳ, ὡς οἶσθα καὶ αὐτός, θαυμάσιε, κατεγράψαμεν, τοῦ θεοφιλοῦς Παμφίλου τοῦ Ἱεροσολυμίτου ἡμᾶς εἰς τοῦτο προτρεψαμένου. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ προφήτης, δι' οὗ γέγονεν ὁ ἀναποδισμὸς τοῦ ἡλίου, ἔργῳ ἀνελὼν διὰ τοῦ φοβεροῦ σημείου τὴν ὑπόνοιαν τῶν Βαβυλωνίων ὡς οὐκ ἔστι σφαῖρα στρεφομένη ὁ οὐρανός, ἀλλὰ πεπλασμένην δόξαν δοξάζουσι, μετ' οὐ πολὺ αὐτοῦ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τὸ σχῆμα λέγει οὕτως· "Ὁ στήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν ὡσεὶ καμάραν", καὶ πάλιν· "Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ὁ ποιήσας τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ πήξας αὐτόν", ὁμοῦ καὶ τὸ σχῆμα δηλώσας ὅτι ὡς καμάρα ἐστί, καὶ "στήσας" καὶ "πήξας", καὶ μὴ στρεφόμενον, εἰπών. Τοιαῦτα δὲ συγγραψάμενος, εὔδηλον ὡς καὶ τοὺς Βαβυλωνίους ὠφέλησεν. 8.21 Ἔνεστι γὰρ μαθεῖν τῷ βουλομένῳ ἐκ τῶν κατὰ τὸν βασιλέα Περσῶν Κῦρον γενομένων. Λαβὼν γὰρ μετὰ χεῖρας τὴν βίβλον Ἠσαΐου καὶ ἀναγνοὺς εὗρεν τὴν περιοχὴν τὴν περὶ αὐτοῦ προρρηθεῖσαν γεγραμμένην· φησὶ γὰρ Ἠσαΐας ἐν τῇ περιοχῇ οὕτως· "Τάδε λέγει ὁ Θεὸς τῷ χριστῷ μου Κύρῳ, οὗ ἐκράτησα τῆς δεξιᾶς ἐπακοῦσαι ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ ἔθνη, καὶ ἰσχὺν βασιλέων διαρρήξω, ἀνοίξω ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ θύρας, καὶ πόλεις οὐ συγκλεισθήσονται. Ἐγὼ ἔμπροσθεν αὐτοῦ πορεύσομαι καὶ ὄρη ὁμαλιῶ, θύρας χαλκᾶς συντρίψω καὶ μοχλοὺς σιδηροῦς συγκλάσω καὶ δώσω σοι θησαυροὺς σκοτεινούς, ἀποκρύφους, ἀοράτους ἀνοίξω σοι, ἵνα γνῷς ὅτι ἐγὼ Κύριος ὁ Θεός, ὁ καλῶν τὸ ὄνομά σου, Θεὸς Ἰσραήλ. Ἕνεκεν Ἰακὼβ τοῦ παιδός μου καὶ Ἰσραὴλ τοῦ