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he shall fall into the pit which he has made. His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his iniquity shall come down upon his own pate. 9.9.7 In this way, then, the bridge over the river having been broken, the passage sank, and at once the boats with the men on them went to the bottom, and first of all the most impious one himself, then also the shield-bearers with him, as the divine oracles foretold, sank like lead in the mighty water. 9.9.8 So that fittingly, if not in words, then at least in deeds, like those around the great servant Moses, those who had received the victory from God might sing and say the very same things against the impious tyrant of old: Let us sing unto the Lord, for He has been gloriously glorified. Horse and rider He has thrown into the sea. The Lord is my helper and protector; He became my salvation. And who is like you among the gods, O Lord, who is like you? Glorified in the saints, wonderful in glories, doing wonders. 9.9.9 These things and whatever was kindred and similar to them, Constantine celebrated in deed to God, the universal Sovereign and author of the victory, and entered Rome in triumph, as all at once, together with children and women, the members of the senate and the other most distinguished men, with the whole Roman populace, received him with joyful eyes and with their very souls as a redeemer, savior, and benefactor, with acclamations and insatiable joy. 9.9.10 But he, as one possessing an innate piety toward God, was not at all moved by their shouts nor elated by their praise, but being very well aware of the help from God, he immediately ordered the trophy of the Savior's passion to be set up under the hand of his own statue, and indeed, having set it up in the most public place in Rome with him holding the salutary sign in his right hand, he commanded this very inscription to be engraved in the very words of the Roman tongue: 9.9.11 «By this salutary sign, the true proof of courage, I have freed your city, saved from the tyrant's yoke, and furthermore, having liberated both the Senate and the People of Rome, I have restored them to their ancient distinction and splendor.» 9.9.12 And upon these events, both Constantine himself and with him Licinius, his mind not yet having turned to the madness into which he later fell, praising God, the author of all good things for them, both with one will and mind drew up a most perfect and complete law on behalf of the Christians, and the wonders done for them by God and the victory over the tyrant, and the law itself they sent to Maximinus, who was still ruler of the nations of the East and was feigning friendship toward them. 9.9.13 But he, like a tyrant, being greatly distressed at what he learned had happened, and then, wishing not to seem to yield to others nor, on the other hand, to suppress the command out of fear of those who had ordered it, as if from his own authority to the governors under him, of necessity drew up this first letter on behalf of the Christians, falsely pretending to things never yet done by him, lying against himself. 9.9a.t COPY OF THE TRANSLATION OF THE TYRANT'S LETTER 9.9a.1 «Jovius Maximinus Augustus to Sabinus. I am confident that it is manifest both to your firmness and to all men that our masters Diocletian and Maximian, our fathers, when they saw almost all men, having abandoned the worship of the gods, had joined themselves to the nation of the Christians, rightly decreed that all men who had departed from the worship of their own immortal gods should by open correction and punishment be recalled to the worship of the gods. 9.9a.2 But when I first auspiciously came to the East and learned that in some places a great many men who were able to benefit the public were being exiled by the judges for the aforesaid reason, I gave orders to each of the judges that none of them should henceforth

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ἐμπεσεῖται εἰς βόθρον ὃν εἰργάσατο. ἐπιστρέψει ὁ πόνος αὐτοῦ εἰς κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐπὶ κορυφὴν αὐτοῦ ἡ ἀδικία αὐτοῦ καταβήσε ται. 9.9.7 ταύτῃ δῆτα τοῦ ἐπὶ τοῦ ποταμοῦ ζεύγματος διαλυθέντος, ὑφιζάνει μὲν ἡ διάβασις, χωρεῖ δ' ἀθρόως αὔτανδρα κατὰ τοῦ βυθοῦ τὰ σκάφη, καὶ αὐτός γε πρῶτος ὁ δυσσεβέστατος, εἶτα δὲ καὶ οἱ ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ὑπασπισταί, ᾗ τὰ θεῖα προαναφωνεῖ λόγια, ἔδυσαν ὡς εἰ μόλιβδος ἐν ὕδατι σφοδρῷ· 9.9.8 ὥστε εἰκότως εἰ μὴ λόγοις, ἔργοις δ' οὖν ὁμοίως τοῖς ἀμφὶ τὸν μέγαν θεράποντα Μωυσέα τοὺς παρὰ θεοῦ τὴν νίκην ἀραμένους αὐτὰ δὴ τὰ κατὰ τοῦ πάλαι δυσσεβοῦς τυράννου ὧδέ πως ἂν ὑμνεῖν καὶ λέγειν ᾄσωμεν τῷ κυρίῳ, ἐνδόξως γὰρ δεδόξασται. ἵππον καὶ ἀναβάτην ἔρριψεν εἰς θάλασσαν· βοηθὸς καὶ σκεπαστής μου κύριος, ἐγένετό μοι εἰς σωτηρίαν καὶ τίς ὅμοιός σοι ἐν θεοῖς, κύριε, τίς ὅμοιός σοι; δεδοξασμένος ἐν ἁγίοις, θαυμαστὸς ἐν δόξαις, ποιῶν τέρατα. 9.9.9 ταῦτα καὶ ὅσα τούτοις ἀδελφά τε καὶ ἐμφερῆ Κωνσταντῖνος τῷ πανηγεμόνι καὶ τῆς νίκης αἰτίῳ θεῷ αὐτοῖς ἔργοις ἀνυμνήσας, ἐπὶ Ῥώμης μετ' ἐπινικίων εἰσήλαυνεν, πάντων ἀθρόως αὐτὸν ἅμα κομιδῇ νηπίοις καὶ γυναιξὶν τῶν τε ἀπὸ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς καὶ τῶν ἄλλως διασημοτάτων σὺν παντὶ δήμῳ Ῥωμαίων φαιδροῖς ὄμμασιν αὐταῖς ψυχαῖς οἷα λυτρωτὴν σωτῆρά τε καὶ εὐεργέτην μετ' εὐφημιῶν καὶ ἀπλήστου χαρᾶς ὑποδεχομένων· 9.9.10 ὃ δ' ὥσπερ ἔμφυτον τὴν εἰς θεὸν εὐσέβειαν κεκτημένος, μηδ' ὅλως ἐπὶ ταῖς βοαῖς ὑποσαλευόμενος μηδ' ἐπαιρόμενος τοῖς ἐπαίνοις, εὖ μάλα τῆς ἐκ θεοῦ συνῃσθημένος βοηθείας, αὐτίκα τοῦ σωτηρίου τρόπαιον πάθους ὑπὸ χεῖρα ἰδίας εἰκόνος ἀνατεθῆναι προστάττει, καὶ δὴ τὸ σωτήριον σημεῖον ἐπὶ τῇ δεξιᾷ κατέχοντα αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ μάλιστα τῶν ἐπὶ Ῥώμης δεδημοσιευμένῳ τόπῳ στήσαντας αὐτὴν δὴ ταύτην προγραφὴν ἐντάξαι ῥήμασιν αὐτοῖς τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἐγκελεύεται φωνῇ· 9.9.11 «τούτῳ τῷ σωτηριώδει σημείῳ, τῷ ἀληθεῖ ἐλέγχῳ τῆς ἀνδρείας τὴν πόλιν ὑμῶν ἀπὸ ζυγοῦ τοῦ τυράννου διασωθεῖσαν ἠλευθέρωσα, ἔτι μὴν καὶ τὴν σύγκλητον καὶ τὸν δῆμον Ῥωμαίων τῇ ἀρχαίᾳ ἐπιφανείᾳ καὶ λαμπρότητι ἐλευθερώσας ἀποκατέστησα.» 9.9.12 καὶ δὴ ἐπὶ τούτοις αὐτός τε Κωνσταντῖνος καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ Λικίννιος, οὔπω τότε ἐφ' ἣν ὕστερον ἐκπέπτωκεν μανίαν τὴν διάνοιαν ἐκτραπείς, θεὸν τὸν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἁπάντων αὐτοῖς αἴτιον εὐμενίσαντες, ἄμφω μιᾷ βουλῇ καὶ γνώμῃ νόμον ὑπὲρ Χριστιανῶν τελεώτατον πληρέστατα διατυποῦνται, καὶ τῶν πεπραγμένων εἰς αὐτοὺς ἐκ θεοῦ τὰ παράδοξα τά τε τῆς κατὰ τοῦ τυράννου νίκης καὶ τὸν νόμον αὐτὸν Μαξιμίνῳ, τῶν ἐπ' ἀνατολῆς ἐθνῶν ἔτι δυναστεύοντι φιλίαν τε πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὑποκοριζομένῳ, διαπέμπονται. 9.9.13 ὃ δ' οἷα τύραννος περιαλγὴς ἐφ' οἷς ἔγνω γεγενημένος, εἶτα μὴ δοκεῖν ἑτέροις εἶξαι βουλόμενος μηδ' αὖ παρεκθέσθαι τὸ κελευσθὲν δέει τῶν προστεταχότων ὡς ἂν ἐξ ἰδίας αὐθεντίας τοῖς ὑπ' αὐτὸν ἡγεμόσιν τοῦτο πρῶτον ὑπὲρ Χριστιανῶν ἐπάναγκες διαχαράττει τὸ γράμμα, τὰ μηδέπω ποτὲ πρὸς αὐτοῦ πεπραγμένα ἐπιπλάστως αὐτὸς καθ' ἑαυτοῦ ψευδόμενος. 9.9α.t ΑΝΤΙΓΡΑΦΟΝ ΕΡΜΗΝΕΙΑΣ ΕΠΙΣΤΟΛΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΤΥΡΑΝΝΟΥ 9.9α.1 «Ἰόβιος Μαξιμῖνος Σεβαστὸς Σαβίνῳ. καὶ παρὰ τῇ σῇ στιβαρότητι καὶ παρὰ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις φανερὸν εἶναι πέποιθα τοὺς δεσπότας ἡμῶν ∆ιοκλητιανὸν καὶ Μαξιμιανόν, τοὺς ἡμετέρους πατέρας, ἡνίκα συνεῖδον σχεδὸν ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους καταλειφθείσης τῆς τῶν θεῶν θρῃσκείας τῷ ἔθνει τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἑαυτοὺς συμμεμιχότας, ὀρθῶς διατεταχέναι πάντας ἀνθρώπους τοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν αὐτῶν θεῶν τῶν ἀθανάτων θρῃσκείας ἀναχωρήσαντας προδήλῳ κολάσει καὶ τιμωρίᾳ εἰς τὴν θρῃσκείαν τῶν θεῶν ἀνακληθῆναι. 9.9α.2 ἀλλ' ὅτε ἐγὼ εὐτυχῶς τὸ πρῶτον εἰς τὴν ἀνατολὴν παρεγενόμην καὶ ἔγνων εἴς τινας τόπους πλείστους τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὰ δημόσια ὠφελεῖν δυναμένους ὑπὸ τῶν δικαστῶν διὰ τὴν προειρημένην αἰτίαν ἐξορίζεσθαι, ἑκάστῳ τῶν δικαστῶν ἐντολὰς δέδωκα ὥστε μηδένα τούτων τοῦ λοιποῦ