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are established by the gods, and if anyone says otherwise, those who hear should not endure it at all; but if any old man among you understands, he should make such speeches to a ruler and to one of his own age, in the presence of no young person. You command most rightly, O stranger.” 12.1.3 Rightly then the preceding Hebrew Scripture also, before the understanding and contemplation of the divine scriptures, places faith first through what it says: “If you do not believe, you will not understand.” And again: “I believed, therefore I have spoken.” 12.1.4 Hence also among us, to those just being introduced and imperfect in their condition, as if infants in their souls, the reading in the divine scriptures is handed down more simply, with the exhortation that one must believe what is contained therein as the words of God, but to those advanced in condition and mature in understanding, it is permitted to delve deeply and examine the meaning of what is said. And the children of the Hebrews were fond of calling these men deuterotai, being as it were interpreters and expositors of the meaning of the scriptures.

12.2.1 2. THAT FAITH IS THE GREATEST OF VIRTUES, ALSO ACCORDING TO PLATO

“Shall we not then say after this that you praise, as it seems, O Tyrtaeus, especially those who become distinguished in war against foreign and external foes. Would he perhaps say this and agree? Why not? 12.2.2 But we, while these men are good, say that far better still are those who become clearly the best in the greatest war. And we too have a poet as a witness, Theognis, a citizen of the Megarians in Sicily, who says: A faithful man is worthy to be weighed against gold and silver in a difficult strife, Cyrnus. 12.2.3 And we say this man becomes much better than that man in a more difficult war, by about as much as justice, temperance, and wisdom, coming together with courage, are better than courage alone. For a man who is faithful and sound in times of civil strife could never become so without complete virtue; but of those who stand their ground well and are willing to die fighting in the war of which Tyrtaeus speaks, there are a great many mercenaries, most of whom become reckless, unjust, insolent, and the most foolish of nearly all men, except for some very few. 12.2.4 To what point then does this argument of ours now lead? And what does he wish to make clear by saying these things? Clearly this: that more than anything, both the lawgiver here from Zeus, and every one who is of even small use, looking to nothing else than the greatest virtue especially, will always establish his laws; and this is, as Theognis says, faithfulness in dangers, which one might call perfect justice.” 12.2.5 And among us the saving Word, joining prudence with faith, approves the one who is adorned in both respects in his own words, saying: “Who then will be the faithful and prudent steward?” And again: “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things.” Clearly, then, in these passages he shows that he does not approve of unreasoning faith, but that which is joined with the greatest virtues, if indeed prudence and goodness are such.

12.3.1 3. THAT ONE MUST BELIEVE WHAT IS SAID ABOUT THE SOUL AND THE OTHER ARGUMENTS CONCERNING SUCH THINGS, FROM THE 11TH BOOK OF THE LAWS;

“For it seems to me that for a certain occasion we have gone through the preceding arguments, as

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κεῖται θέντων θεῶν, καὶ ἄν τις ἄλλως λέγῃ, μὴ ἀνέχεσθαι τὸ παράπαν ἀκούοντας· γέρων δὲ εἴ τις ξυννοεῖ τῶν παρ' ὑμῖν, πρὸς ἄρχοντά τε καὶ ἡλικιώτην μηδενὸς ἐναντίον νέου ποιεῖσθαι τοὺς τοιούτους λόγους. Ὀρθότατά γε, ὦ ξένε, κελεύεις.» 12.1.3 Εἰκότως δῆτα καὶ ἡ Ἑβραίων προλαβοῦσα γραφὴ τῆς τῶν θείων γραφῶν συνέσεώς τε καὶ θεωρίας τὴν πίστιν προτάττει δι' ὧν φησιν· «Ἐὰν μὴ πιστεύσητε, οὐδὲ μὴ συνῆτε.» καὶ αὖθις· «Ἐπίστευσα, διὸ καὶ ἐλάλησα.» 12.1.4 ἔνθεν καὶ παρ' ἡμῖν τοῖς μὲν ἄρτι εἰσαγομένοις καὶ τὴν ἕξιν ἀτελέσιν, ὡς ἂν τὰς ψυχὰς νηπίοις, ἁπλούστερον ἡ ἐν ταῖς θείαις γραφαῖς ἀνάγνωσις παραδίδοται μετὰ τοῦ δεῖν πιστεύειν ὡς θεοῦ λόγοις τοῖς ἐμφερομένοις παρακελεύεσθαι, τοῖς δὲ τὴν ἕξιν προβεβηκόσι καὶ πολιοῖς τὸ φρόνημα ἐμβαθύνειν καὶ δοκιμάζειν τὸν νοῦν τῶν λεγομένων ἐπιτέτραπται. τούτους δὲ παισὶν Ἑβραίων δευτερωτὰς φίλον ἦν ὀνομάζειν, ἑρμηνευτὰς ὥσπερ καὶ ἐξηγητὰς ὄντας τῆς τῶν γραφῶν διανοίας.

12.2.1 βʹ. ΟΤΙ ΜΕΓΙΣΤΗ ΤΩΝ ΑΡΕΤΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΚΑΤΑ ΠΛΑΤΩΝΑ Η ΠΙΣΤΙΣ ΤΥΓΧΑΝΕΙ

«Οὐκοῦν τὰ μετὰ ταῦτα εἴποιμεν ἡμεῖς ὅτι σὺ μὲν ἐπαινεῖς, ὡς ἔοικας, ὦ Τυρταῖε, μάλιστα τοὺς πρὸς τὸν ὀθνεῖόν τε καὶ ἔξωθεν πόλεμον γιγνομένους ἐπιφανεῖς. φαίη ταῦτα ἄν που καὶ ὁμολογοῖ; Τί μήν; 12.2.2 Ἡμεῖς δέ γε ἀγαθῶν ὄντων τούτων ἔτι φαμὲν ἀμείνους εἶναι καὶ πολὺ τοὺς ἐν τῷ μεγίστῳ πολέμῳ γιγνομένους ἀρίστους διαφανῶς. ποιητὴν δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς μάρτυρα ἔχομεν Θέογνιν, πολίτην τῶν ἐν Σικελίᾳ Μεγαρέων, ὅς φησι· πιστὸς ἀνὴρ χρυσοῦ τε καὶ ἀργύρου ἀντερύσασθαι ἄξιος ἐν χαλεπῇ, Κύρνε, διχοστασίῃ. 12.2.3 τοῦτον δέ φαμεν ἐν πολέμῳ χαλεπωτέρῳ ἀμείνονα ἐκείνου πάμπολυ γίγνεσθαι, σχεδὸν ὅσον ἀμείνων δικαιοσύνη καὶ σωφροσύνη καὶ φρόνησις εἰς ταὐτὸν ἐλθοῦσαι μετὰ ἀνδρίας αὐτῆς μόνον ἀνδρίας. πιστὸς μὲν γὰρ καὶ ὑγιὴς ἐν στάσεσιν οὐκ ἄν ποτε γένοιτο ἄνευ ξυμπάσης ἀρετῆς· διαβάντες δὲ εὖ καὶ μαχόμενοι ἐθέλοντες ἀποθνήσκειν ἐν ᾧ πολέμῳ φράζει Τυρταῖος, τῶν μισθοφόρων εἰσὶ πάμπολλοι, ὧν οἱ πλεῖστοι γίγνονται θρασεῖς καὶ ἄδικοι καὶ ὑβρισταὶ καὶ ἀφρονέστατοι σχεδὸν ἁπάντων, ἐκτὸς δή τινων εὖ μάλα ὀλίγων. 12.2.4 ποῖ δὴ τελευτᾷ νῦν ἡμῖν οὗτος ὁ λόγος; καὶ τί φανερόν ποτε ποιῆσαι βουληθεὶς λέγει ταῦτα; δηλονότι τόδε, ὡς παντὸς μᾶλλον καὶ ὁ τῇδε ὁ παρὰ ∆ιὸς νομοθέτης πᾶς τε, οὗ καὶ σμικρὸν ὄφελος, οὐκ ἄλλο ἢ πρὸς τὴν μεγίστην ἀρετὴν μάλιστα βλέπων ἀεὶ θήσει τοὺς νόμους· ἔστι δ', ὥς φησι Θέογνις, αὕτη πιστότης ἐν τοῖς δεινοῖς, ἥν τις δικαιοσύνην ἂν τελείαν ὀνομάσειε.» 12.2.5 Καὶ παρ' ἡμῖν ὁ σωτήριος λόγος ὁμοῦ συζεύξας τῇ πίστει τὴν φρόνησιν τὸν κατ' ἀμφότερα κεκοσμημένον τοῖς αὑτοῦ λόγοις ἐγκρίνει λέγων· «Τίς ἄρα ἔσται ὁ πιστὸς καὶ φρόνιμος οἰκονόμος;» καὶ αὖθις· «Εὖ, δοῦλε ἀγαθὲ καὶ πιστέ, ἐπὶ ὀλίγα ἦς πιστός, ἐπὶ πολλῶν σε καταστήσω.» σαφῶς γοῦν ἐν τούτοις οὐ τὴν ἄλογον πίστιν ἀποδέχεσθαι παρίστησιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ταῖς μεγίσταις ἀρεταῖς συνεζευγμένην, εἰ δὴ τοιαῦται φρόνησις καὶ ἀγαθωσύνη.

12.3.1 γʹ. ΟΤΙ ΠΙΣΤΕΥΕΙΝ ∆ΕΙ ΤΟΙΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΨΥΧΗΣ ΛΕΓΟΜΕΝΟΙΣ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΙΣ ΑΛΛΟΙΣ ΤΟΙΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΩΝ ΤΟΙΟΥΤΩΝ ΛΟΓΟΙΣ ΑΠΟ ΤΟΥ ΙΑʹ ΤΩΝ ΝΟΜΩΝ·

«Εἴς τινα γὰρ οὖν μοι καιρὸν φαινόμεθα τοὺς ἔμπροσθεν λόγους διεξελθεῖν, ὡς