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was unable to bear the rule for himself, but through inexperience of sober and kingly reasoning, he crudely set his hand to affairs and above all, irrationally lifting up his soul with the boastful arrogance of pride, he was already eager to act insolently even against his partners in the empire, who surpassed him in all things: in birth and upbringing and education and rank and intelligence, and in that which is the crown of all, in self-control and piety toward the true God, he dared to act rashly and to proclaim himself first in honors. 9.10.2 And having intensified his madness to the point of desperation, breaking the treaties which he had made with Licinius, he takes up a war without truce. Then in a short time, having thrown everything into confusion and disturbed every city and the whole army, having gathered a countless multitude of myriads, he went forth, setting himself in battle array against him, with hopes in demons, whom he indeed thought to be gods, and with his soul elated by the myriads of his soldiers, 9.10.3 and indeed having joined in battle, he was made bereft of the oversight from God, since the victory was awarded by the one and only God of all to the one then ruling. 9.10.4 First, he lost the army in which he trusted, and his bodyguards around him having left him naked and deserted by all, and having fled to the victor, the wretched man, having as quickly as possible taken off the royal attire which was not fitting for him, cowardly and ignobly and unmanly he slipped into the crowd and then he ran away, hiding himself through the fields and the villages; with difficulty he escaped the hands of his enemies, arranging the means for his safety, proving by the very deeds the divine oracles to be faithful and true, in which it is said, 9.10.5 A king is not saved by a great force, and a giant will not be saved by the abundance of his strength; a horse is a false thing for safety, and in the abundance of its power it will not be saved. Behold, the eyes of the Lord are upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy, to deliver their souls from death. 9.10.6 Thus indeed the tyrant, full of shame, having come to his own regions, first, in a manic rage, he put to death many priests and prophets of the gods formerly admired by him, by whose oracles he had been stirred up to undertake the war, as sorcerers and deceivers and above all traitors to his safety; then giving glory to the God of the Christians and having enacted a law on behalf of their freedom most perfectly and fully, he immediately died a miserable death, with no extension of time being given to him. The law sent down by him was as follows: COPY OF THE TRANSLATION OF THE TYRANT'S DECREE CONCERNING CHRISTIANS, TRANSLATED FROM THE ROMAN TONGUE INTO GREEK 9.10.7 "Imperator Caesar Gaius Valerius Maximinus, Germanicus, Sarmaticus, pious, fortunate, unconquered, Augustus. That in every way we are continually providing for the benefit of our provincials and wish to furnish them with those things by which the advantages of all are best secured, and whatever things are for their common advantage and utility, and what is suitable for the public advantage and happens to be pleasing to the minds of each, no one is ignorant, but we believe that each person refers to what is being done and that each of mankind knows and holds it manifest in himself. 9.10.8 Whenever, therefore, before this it became clear to our knowledge, from this pretext from which it had been commanded by the most divine Diocletian and Maximian, our parents, that the assemblies of the Christians be abolished, that many extortions and confiscations had been made by officials, and that this was proceeding in the future also against our provincials, for whom we are especially eager that fitting provision be made, their private properties being wasted, letters having been given to the governors of each province last year, we enacted that if any one should wish to follow such a custom or the same

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ἡγεμονίας αὐτῷ μὴ οἷός τε φέρειν, ἀλλὰ δι' ἀπειρίαν σώφρονος καὶ βασιλικοῦ λογισμοῦ ἀπειροκάλως τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐγχειρῶν ἐπὶ πᾶσίν τε ὑπερηφανίας μεγαλαυχίᾳ τὴν ψυχὴν ἀλόγως ἀρθείς, ἤδη καὶ κατὰ τῶν τῆς βασιλείας κοινωνῶν, τὰ πάντα αὐτοῦ προφερόντων γένει καὶ τροφῇ καὶ παιδείᾳ ἀξιώματί τε καὶ συνέσει καὶ τῷ γε πάντων κορυφαιοτάτῳ, σωφροσύνῃ καὶ τῇ περὶ τὸν ἀληθῆ θεὸν εὐσεβείᾳ, τολμᾶν ὥρμητο θρασύνεσθαι καὶ πρῶτον ἑαυτὸν ταῖς τιμαῖς ἀναγορεύειν. 9.10.2 ἐπιτείνας δ' εἰς ἀπόνοιαν τὰ τῆς μανίας, συνθήκας ἃς πρὸς Λικίννιον πεποίητο παρασπονδήσας, πόλεμον ἄσπονδον αἴρεται. εἶτ' ἐν βραχεῖ τὰ πάντα κυκήσας πᾶσάν τε πόλιν ἐκταράξας καὶ πᾶν στρατόπεδον, μυριάδων τὸ πλῆθος ἀνηρίθμων συναγαγών, ἔξεισιν, εἰς μάχην αὐτῷ παραταξάμενος, δαιμόνων ἐλπίσιν, ὧν δὴ ᾤετο θεῶν, καὶ ταῖς τῶν ὁπλιτῶν μυριάσιν τὴν ψυχὴν ἐπηρμένος, 9.10.3 καὶ δὴ συμβαλὼν εἰς χεῖρας, ἔρημος τῆς ἐκ θεοῦ καθίσταται ἐπισκοπῆς, τῆς νίκης ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ πάντων ἑνὸς καὶ μόνου θεοῦ τῷ τότε κρατοῦντι πρυτανευθείσης. 9.10.4 ἀπόλλυσι δὴ πρῶτον τὸ ἐφ' ᾧ πεποίθει ὁπλιτικόν, τῶν τε ἀμφ' αὐτὸν δορυφόρων γυμνὸν καὶ πάντων ἔρημον αὐτὸν καταλελοιπότων τῷ τε κρατοῦντι προσπεφευγότων, ὑπεκδὺς ὁ δείλαιος ὡς τάχιστα τὸν οὐ πρέποντα αὐτῷ βασιλικὸν κόσμον, δειλῶς καὶ δυσγενῶς καὶ ἀνάνδρως ὑποδύνει τὸ πλῆθος κἄπειτα διαδιδράσκει κρυπταζόμενός τε ἀνὰ τοὺς ἀγροὺς καὶ τὰς κώμας μόλις τῶν πολεμίων τὰς χεῖρας, τὰ τῆς σωτηρίας αὐτῷ προμνώμενος, διέξεισιν, ἔργοις αὐτοῖς εὖ μάλα πιστοὺς καὶ ἀληθεῖς τοὺς θείους ἀποφήνας χρησμούς, ἐν οἷς εἴρηται 9.10.5 οὐ σῴζεται βασιλεὺς διὰ πολλὴν δύναμιν, καὶ γίγας οὐ σωθήσεται ἐν πλήθει ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ· ψευδὴς ἵππος εἰς σωτηρίαν, ἐν δὲ πλήθει δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ οὐ σωθήσεται. ἰδοὺ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ κυρίου ἐπὶ τοὺς φοβουμένους αὐτόν, τοὺς ἐλπίζοντας ἐπὶ τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ, ῥύσασθαι ἐκ θανάτου τὰς ψυχὰς αὐτῶν. 9.10.6 οὕτω δῆτα αἰσχύνης ἔμπλεως ὁ τύραννος ἐπὶ τὰ καθ' ἑαυτὸν ἐλθὼν μέρη, πρῶτα μὲν ἐμμανεῖ θυμῷ πολλοὺς ἱερεῖς καὶ προφήτας τῶν πάλαι θαυμαζομένων αὐτῷ θεῶν ὧν δὴ τοῖς χρησμοῖς ἀναρριπισθεὶς τὸν πόλεμον ἤρατο, ὡς ἂν γόητας καὶ ἀπατεῶνας καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσιν προδότας τῆς αὐτοῦ γενομένους σωτηρίας ἀναιρεῖ· εἶτα δὲ δοὺς δόξαν τῷ Χριστιανῶν θεῷ νόμον τε τὸν ὑπὲρ ἐλευθερίας αὐτῶν τελεώτατα καὶ πληρέστατα διαταξάμενος, δυσθανατήσας αὐτίκα μηδεμιᾶς αὐτῷ χρόνου δοθείσης προθεσμίας τελευτᾷ τὸν βίον. ὁ δὲ καταπεμφθεὶς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ νόμος τοιοῦτος ἦν ΑΝΤΙΓΡΑΦΟΝ ΕΡΜΗΝΕΙΑΣ ΤΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΤΥΡΑΝΝΟΥ ΥΠΕΡ ΧΡΙΣΤΙΑΝΩΝ ∆ΙΑΤΑΞΕΩΣ ΕΚ ΡΩΜΑΙΚΗΣ ΓΑΩΤΤΗΣ ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΑ∆Α ΜΕΤΑΛΗΦΘΕΙΣΗΣ 9.10.7 «Αὐτοκράτωρ Καῖσαρ Γάϊος Οὐαλέριος Μαξιμῖνος, Γερμανικός, Σαρματικός, εὐσεβὴς εὐτυχὴς ἀνίκητος Σεβασ τός. κατὰ πάντα τρόπον ἡμᾶς διηνεκῶς τῶν ἐπαρχιωτῶν τῶν ἡμετέρων τοῦ χρησίμου προνοεῖσθαι καὶ ταῦτα αὐτοῖς βούλεσθαι παρέχειν, οἷς τὰ λυσιτελῆ πάντων μάλιστα κατορθοῦται καὶ ὅσα τῆς λυσιτελείας καὶ τῆς χρησιμότητός ἐστιν τῆς κοινῆς αὐτῶν καὶ ὁποῖα πρὸς τὴν δημοσίαν λυσιτέλειαν ἁρμόζει καὶ ταῖς ἑκάστων διανοίαις προσφιλῆ τυγχάνει, οὐδένα ἀγνοεῖν, ἀλλ' ἕκαστον ἀνατρέχειν ἐπ' αὐτὸ τὸ γινόμενον γινώσκειν τε ἕκαστον τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ δῆλον εἶναι πιστεύομεν. 9.10.8 ὁπότε τοίνυν πρὸ τούτου δῆλον γέγονεν τῇ γνώσει τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ ἐκ ταύτης τῆς προφάσεως ἐξ ἧς κεκελευσμένον ἦν ὑπὸ τῶν θειοτάτων ∆ιοκλητιανοῦ καὶ Μαξιμιανοῦ, τῶν γονέων τῶν ἡμετέρων, τὰς συνόδους τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἐξῃρῆσθαι, πολλοὺς σεισμοὺς καὶ ἀποστερήσεις ὑπὸ τῶν ὀφφικιαλίων γεγενῆσθαι, καὶ εἰς τοὐπιὸν δὲ τοῦτο προχωρεῖν κατὰ τῶν ἐπαρχιωτῶν τῶν ἡμετέρων, ὧν μάλιστα πρόνοιαν τὴν προσήκουσαν γίνεσθαι σπουδάζομεν, τῶν οὐσιῶν τῶν ἰδίων αὐτῶν κατατριβομένων, δοθέντων γραμμάτων πρὸς τοὺς ἡγεμόνας ἑκάστης ἐπαρχίας τῷ παρελθόντι ἐνιαυτῷ ἐνομοθετήσαμεν ἵν' εἴ τις βούλοιτο τῷ τοιούτῳ ἔθει ἢ τῇ αὐτῇ