Lactantius, The Divine Institutes

Now I will subjoin the rest. Therefore the Son of the most high and mighty God shall come to judge the quick and the dead, as the Sibyl testifies and says:—

“For then there shall be confusion of mortals throughout the whole earth, when the Almighty Himself shall come on His judgment-seat to judge the souls of the quick and dead, and all the world.”

But He, when He shall have destroyed unrighteousness, and executed His great judgment, and shall have recalled to life the righteous, who have lived from the beginning, will be engaged among men a thousand years, and will rule them with most just command. Which the Sibyl proclaims in another place, as she utters her inspired predictions:—

“Hear me, ye mortals; an everlasting King reigns.”

Then they who shall be alive in their bodies shall not die, but during those thousand years shall produce an infinite multitude, and their offspring shall be holy, and beloved by God; but they who shall be raised from the dead shall preside over the living as judges.1401 [This is “the first resurrection” as conceived of by the ancients, and the (Phil. iii. 11) ἐξανάστασις of St. Paul.] But the nations shall not be entirely extinguished, but some shall be left as a victory for God, that they may be the occasion of triumph to the righteous, and may be subjected to perpetual slavery. About the same time also the prince of the devils, who is the contriver of all evils, shall be bound with chains, and shall be imprisoned during the thousand years of the heavenly rule in which righteousness shall reign in the world, so that he may contrive no evil against the people of God. After His coming the righteous shall be collected from all the earth, and the judgment being completed, the sacred city shall be planted in the middle of the earth, in which God Himself the builder may dwell together with the righteous, bearing rule in it. And the Sibyl marks out this city when she says:—

“And the city which God made, this He made more brilliant than the stars, and sun, and moon.”

Then that darkness will be taken away from the world with which the heaven will be overspread and darkened, and the moon will receive the brightness of the sun, nor will it be further diminished: but the sun will become seven times brighter than it now is; and the earth will open its fruitfulness, and bring forth most abundant fruits of its own accord; the rocky mountains shall drop with honey; streams of wine shall run down, and rivers flow with milk: in short, the world itself shall rejoice, and all nature exult, being rescued and set free from the dominion of evil and impiety, and guilt and error. Throughout this time beasts shall not be nourished by blood, nor birds by prey; but all things shall be peaceful and tranquil. Lions and calves shall stand together at the manger, the wolf shall not carry off the sheep, the hound shall not hunt for prey; hawks and eagles shall not injure; the infant shall play with serpents. In short, those things shall then come to pass which the poets spoke of as being done in the reign of Saturnus. Whose error arose from this source,—that the prophets bring forward and speak of many future events as already accomplished. For visions were brought before their eyes by the divine Spirit, and they saw these things, as it were, done and completed in their own sight. And when fame had gradually spread abroad their predictions, since those who were uninstructed in the mysteries1402 Profani a sacramentis. of religion did not know why they were spoken, they thought that all those things were already fulfilled in the ancient ages, which evidently could not be accomplished and fulfilled under the reign of a man.1403 [This rationale of the Orphica and Sibyllina deserves thought.] But when, after the destruction of impious religions and the suppression of guilt, the earth shall be subject to God,—

“The sailor1404 Vector, i.e., the passenger, as opposed to one who sails in a ship of war. himself also shall renounce the sea, nor shall the naval pine

Barter merchandise; all lands shall produce all things.

The ground shall not endure the harrow, nor the vineyard the pruning hook;

The sturdy ploughman also shall loose the bulls from the yoke.

The plain shall by degrees grow yellow with soft ears of corn,

The blushing grape shall hang on the uncultivated brambles,

And hard oaks shall distil the dewy honey.

Nor shall the wool learn to counterfeit various colours;

But the ram himself in the meadows shall change his fleece,

Now for a sweetly blushing purple, now for saffron dye;

Scarlet of its own accord shall cover the lambs as they feed.

The goats of themselves shall bring back home their udders distended with milk;

Nor shall the herds dread huge lions.”1405 Virg., Bucol., iv. 21–45. The order of the lines is changed. [This, the famous Pollio, greatly influenced Constantine. See p. 140, note 7, supra.]

Which things the poet foretold according to the verses of the Cumæan Sibyl. But the Erythræan thus speaks:—

“But wolves shall not contend with lambs on the mountains, and lynxes shall eat grass with kids; boars shall feed with calves, and with all flocks; and the carnivorous lion shall eat chaff at the manger, and serpents shall sleep with infants deprived of their mothers.”

And in another place, speaking of the fruitfulness of all things:—

“And then shall God give great joy to men; for the earth, and the trees, and the numberless flocks of the earth shall give to men the true fruit of the vine, and sweet honey, and white milk, and corn, which is the best of all things to mortals.”

And another in the same manner:—

“The sacred land of the pious only will produce all these things, the stream of honey from the rock and from the fountain, and the milk of ambrosia will flow for all the just.”

Therefore men will live a most tranquil life, abounding with resources, and will reign together with God; and the kings of the nations shall come from the ends of the earth with gifts and offerings, to adore and honour the great King, whose name shall be renowned and venerated by all the nations which shall be under heaven, and by the kings who shall rule on earth.

0808A CAPUT XXIV. De renovato mundo.

Nunc reliqua subnectam. Veniet igitur summi et maximi Dei Filius, ut vivos ac mortuos judicet, testante atque dicente Sibylla: Πάσης γὰρ γαίης τότε θνητῶν σύγχυσις ἓσται, Αὐτὸς ὁ παντοκράτωρ ὅτ᾽ ἂν ἤλθῃ βήματι κρῖναι Ζώτων καὶ νεκύων ψυχὰς, καὶ κόσμον ἅπαντα.Verum ille, cum deleverit injustitiam, judiciumque maximum fecerit, ac justos, qui a principio fuerunt, ad vitam restauraverit, mille annis inter homines versabitur, eosque justissimo imperio reget. Quod alibi Sibylla vaticinans furensque proclamat: Κλῦτε δή μου, μέροπες, βασιλεὺς αἰώνιος ἄρχει.0808B Tum qui erunt in corporibus vivi, non morientur: sed per eosdem mille annos infinitam multitudinem generabunt; et erit soboles eorum sancta, et Deo cara. Qui autem ab inferis suscitabuntur, ii praeerunt viventibus velut judices. Gentes vero non extinguentur omnino: sed quaedam relinquentur in victoriam 0809A Dei, ut triumphentur a justis, ac subjugentur 0809A perpetuae servituti. Sub idem tempus etiam princeps daemonum, qui est machinator omnium malorum, catenis vincietur; et erit in custodia mille annis coelestis imperii, quo justitia in orbe regnabit, ne quod malum adversus populum Dei moliatur. Post cujus adventum congregabuntur justi ex omni terra; peractoque judicio, civitas sancta constituetur in medio terrae, in qua ipse conditor Deus cum justis dominantibus commoretur. Quam civitatem Sibylla designat, cum dicit: Καὶ πόλιν, ἠν ἐποίησε θεὸς, αὐτὴν ἐποίησε Λαμπροτέραν ἄστρων, καὶ ἡλίου, ἠδὲ σελήνης.

Tunc auferentur a mundo tenebrae illae, quibus offunditur atque obcaecatur coelum; et luna claritudinem 0809B solis accipiet, nec minuetur ulterius. Sol autem septies tanto, quam nunc est, clarior fiet. Terra vero aperiet foecunditatem suam, et uberrimas fruges sua sponte generabit: rupes montium melle sudabunt, per rivos vina decurrent; et flumina lacte inundabunt. Mundus denique ipse gaudebit; et omnis rerum natura laetabitur, erepta et liberata dominio mali, et impietatis, et sceleris, et erroris. Non bestiae per hoc tempus sanguine alentur, non aves praeda: sed quieta et placida erunt omnia. Leones et vituli ad praesepe simul stabunt: lupus ovem non rapiet, canis non venabitur, 0810A accipitres et aquilae non nocebunt: infans cum serpentibus ludet. Denique tunc fient illa, quae poetae aureis temporibus facta esse jam Saturno regnante dixerunt. Quorum error hinc exortus est, quod prophetae futurorum pleraque sic proferunt et enuntiant, quasi jam peracta. Visiones enim divino spiritu offerebantur oculis eorum, et videbant illa in conspectu suo quasi fieri, ac terminari. Quae vaticinia eorum cum paulatim fama vulgasset, quoniam profani a sacramento ignorabant quatenus dicerentur, completa jam esse veteribus saeculis illa omnia putaverunt, quae utique fieri complerique non poterant homine regnante. Cum vero deletis religionibus impiis, et scelere compresso, subjecta erit Deo terra, Cedet et ipse mari vector, nec nautica pinus 0810B Mutabit merces: omnis feret omnia tellus. Non rastros patietur humus, non vinea falcem. Robustus quoque jam tauris juga solvet arator. Tunc etiam molli flavescet campus arista; Incultisque rubens pendebit sentibus uva; Et durae quercus sudabunt roscida mella, Nec varios discet mentiri lana colores. Ipse sed in pratis aries jam suave rubenti Murice, jam croceo mutabit vellera luto. Sponte sua sandyx pascentes vestiet agnos. Ipsae lacte domum referent distenta capellae Ubera, nec magnos metuent armenta leones.

Quae poeta secundum Cumeae Sibyllae carmina prolocutus est. Erytraea vero sic ait: 0811A Οἱ δὲ λύκοι σὺν ἄρνεσσ᾽ ἐν οὔρεσιν ἀμιλλοῦνται· Χόρτον γὰρ λύκες τ᾽ ἐρίφοισιν ἄμα βόσκονται, Ἄρκτοι σὺν μόσχοισιν ὁμοῦ καὶ πᾶσι βροτοῖσι· Σαρκοβόρος τε λέων φάγετ᾽ ἄχυρον παρὰ φάτναις, Σὺν βρέφεσίν τε δράκοντες ἀμάτορσι κοιμὴσονται.Et alio loco de ubertate rerum: Καὶ τότε 0811A δὴχάρμην μεγάλην θεὸς ἀνδράσι δώσει· Καὶ γὰρ γῆ καὶ δένδρα, καὶ ἄσπετα θρέμματα γαίης Δώσουσι καρπὸν τὸν ἀληθινὸν ἀνθρώποισι Οἴνου καὶ μέλιτος γλυκεροῦ, λευκοῦτε γάλακτος, Καὶ σίτου, ὅπερ ἐστὶ βροτοῖς κάλλιστον ἀπάντων.Et alia eodem modo: Εὐσεβέων δὲ μόνων ἁγία χθὼν πάντα τάδ᾽ οἴσει Νᾶμα μέλιτος ἀπὸ πέτρης ἠδ᾽ ἀπὸ πηγῆς, Καὶ γάλα τ᾽ ἀμβροσίης ῥεύσει πάντεσσι δικαίοις.Vivent itaque homines tranquillissimam vitam et copiosissimam, et regnabunt cum Deo pariter; et reges 0811B gentium venient a finibus terrae cum donis ac muneribus, ut adorent et honorificent Regem magnum, cujus nomen erit praeclarum ac venerabile universis nationibus, quae sub coelo erunt, et regibus qui dominabuntur in terra.