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acquitted him, the Spirit ordaining that the proclamation be fulfilled for all through him, as he himself says in the second epistle to Timothy, when indeed he writes that Luke was also with him, who recorded the Acts of the Apostles up to this first defense of Paul, and was with him, as it seems, being silent on the account of his martyrdom, at which he was not present, evidently when for the second time the blessed Paul was sent up from Caesarea of Palestine by Festus to Nero at his own request, and for the second time stood before him and was perfected by martyrdom through blood. Wherefore the Jews, having failed in their plot against him to kill him, turn to the killing of James, the brother of the Lord; concerning which Hegesippus, a worthy disciple of the apostles, says these things in his fifth commentary: 411 Of Hegesippus, a disciple of the apostles, from the fifth commentary, concerning Saint James, the brother of the Lord. The brother of the Lord, James, succeeds to the government of the Church with the apostles, who was called the Just by all from the times of Christ even to our own, since many were called James. But this man was holy from his mother's womb. He drank no wine or strong drink, nor did he eat any living thing; and a razor never came upon his head, he did not anoint himself with oil, and he did not use the bath. To him alone was it permitted to enter the holy place; for he did not wear wool, but linen. And he alone would enter into the temple, and was found lying on his knees and asking for forgiveness for the people, so that his knees became hard like a camel's because he was always bending the knee in worship to God and asking for forgiveness for the people. On account of his exceeding righteousness he was called the Just and Oblias, which is, protection of the people, and righteousness, as the prophets declare concerning him. Some therefore of the seven sects which I have described before in my commentaries asked him, what is the door of Jesus, and he said that this one is the Savior; from which some believed that Jesus is the Christ; but the aforementioned sects did not believe either in a resurrection or in one who is coming to give to each according to his works, but as many as did believe, did so because of James. Since many, therefore, even of the rulers believed, there was a commotion of the Jews and Pharisees and Scribes, saying that the whole people is in danger of expecting Jesus as the Christ. Therefore, coming together to James they said: We beseech you, restrain the people, since they have been led astray concerning Jesus, as if he were the Christ. We beseech you to persuade all who have come for the day of the Passover concerning Jesus. For we all obey you; for we and all the people bear witness to you that you are just and that you do not accept the person 412 of anyone. Persuade therefore the crowd not to be led astray concerning Jesus; for all the people and all of us obey you. Stand therefore upon the pinnacle of the temple, that you may be from above and your words may be easily heard by all the people. For on account of the Passover all the tribes have come together with the Gentiles. Therefore the aforementioned Scribes and Pharisees placed James upon the pinnacle of the temple and cried out to him and said: O just one, whom we all ought to obey, since the people are being led astray after Jesus who was crucified, declare to us what is the door of Jesus. And he answered with a loud voice: Why do you ask me concerning the Son of Man, when he himself sits in heaven at the right hand of the great Power, and is about to come on the clouds of heaven? And when many were fully convinced and glorified God at the testimony of James, and said: Hosanna to the Son of David, on the contrary the same Scribes and Pharisees said to one another: We have done badly in providing such testimony to Jesus. But let us go up and cast him down, that they may be afraid and not believe him. And they cried out, saying: Oh, oh, even the just one has been led astray. And they fulfilled the scripture which is written in Isaiah: Let us take away the just man, for he is troublesome to us; therefore they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
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ἀπέλυσεν, οἰκονομοῦντος τοῦ πνεύματος τελειωθῆναι τοῖς πᾶσι δι' αὐτοῦ τὸ κήρυγμα, ὡς αὐτός φησιν ἐν τῇ πρὸς Τιμόθεον βʹ ἐπιστολῇ, ὅτε δὴ καὶ τὸν Λουκᾶν γράφει συνεῖναι, ὃς τὰς τῶν ἀποστόλων πράξεις εἰς ταύτην περιέγραψε τὴν πρώτην ἀπολογίαν τοῦ Παύλου ἐλθεῖν, καὶ συνῆν αὐτῷ, ὡς ἔοικε, σιωπήσας τὸν περὶ τοῦ μαρτυρίου αὐτοῦ λόγον, καθ' ὃν οὐ παρῆν, δηλονότι τὸ δεύτερον τοῦ μακαρίου Παύλου ἐξ οἰκείας αἰτήσεως ἀναπεμφθέντος ἀπὸ Καισαρείας τῆς Παλαιστίνης ὑπὸ Φίστου πρὸς Νέρωνα καὶ τὸ δεύτερον παραστάντος αὐτῷ καὶ τελειωθέντος τῷ δι' αἵματος μαρτυρίῳ. ὅθεν Ἰουδαῖοι τῆς κατ' αὐτοῦ ἐπιβουλῆς τοῦ ἀνελεῖν αὐτὸν ἀστοχήσαντες ἐπὶ τὴν ἀναίρεσιν Ἰακώβου τοῦ ἀδελφοθέου τρέπον ται· περὶ ἧς Ἡγήσιππος ἀξιόλογος μαθητὴς τῶν ἀποστόλων τάδε φησὶν ἐν εʹ ὑπομνήματι· 411 Ἡγησίππου μαθητοῦ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐκ τοῦ εʹ ὑπομνήματος περὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Ἰακώβου τοῦ ἀδελφοθέου ∆ιαδέχεται τὴν ἐκκλησίαν μετὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων ὁ ἀδελφὸς τοῦ κυρίου Ἰάκωβος, ὁ ὀνομασθεὶς ὑπὸ πάντων δίκαιος ἀπὸ τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ χρό νων μέχρι καὶ ἡμῶν, ἐπεὶ πολλοὶ Ἰάκωβοι ἐκαλοῦντο. οὗτος δὲ ἐκ κοιλίας μητρὸς αὐτοῦ ἅγιος ἦν. οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὐκ ἔπιε, καὶ ἔμψυχον οὐκ ἔφαγε, καὶ ξυρὸν ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἀνέβη, ἔλαιον οὐκ ἠλείψατο καὶ βα λανείῳ οὐκ ἐχρήσατο. τούτῳ μόνῳ ἐξῆν εἰς τὰ ἅγια εἰσιέναι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐρεοῦν ἐφόρει, ἀλλὰ σινδόνας. καὶ μόνος εἰσήρχετο εἰς τὸν ναόν, ηὑρίσκετό τε κείμενος ἐπὶ τοῖς γόνασι καὶ αἰτούμενος ὑπὲρ τοῦ λαοῦ ἄφεσιν, ὡς ἀπεσκληκέναι τὰ γόνατα αὐτοῦ δίκην καμήλου διὰ τὸ ἀεὶ κάμπτειν ἐπὶ γόνυ προσκυνοῦντα τῷ θεῷ καὶ αἰτεῖσθαι ἄφεσιν τῷ λαῷ. διά γε τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς δικαιοσύνης αὐτοῦ ἐκαλεῖτο δίκαιος καὶ ὀβλίας, ὅ ἐστι περιοχὴ τοῦ λαοῦ, δικαιοσύνη, ὡς οἱ προφῆται δηλοῦσι περὶ αὐτοῦ. Τινὲς οὖν τῶν ἑπτὰ αἱρέσεων τῶν ἐν τῷ λόγῳ προγεγραμμένων μοι ἐν τοῖς ὑπομνήμασιν ἐπυνθάνοντο αὐτῷ, τίς ἡ θύρα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, καὶ ἔλεγε τοῦτον εἶναι τὸν σωτῆρα· ἐξ ὧν τινες ἐπίστευον ὅτι Ἰησοῦς ἐστιν ὁ Χρι στός· αἱ δὲ αἱρέσεις αἱ προειρημέναι οὐκ ἐπίστευον οὔτε ἀνάστασιν οὔτε ἐρχόμενον ἀποδοῦναι ἑκάστῳ κατὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ, ὅσοι δὲ καὶ ἐπίστευσαν, διὰ Ἰάκωβον. Πολλῶν οὖν καὶ τῶν ἀρχόντων πιστευόντων, ἦν θόρυβος τῶν Ἰουδαίων καὶ Φαρισαίων καὶ γραμματέων λεγόντων ὅτι κινδυνεύει πᾶς ὁ λαὸς Ἰησοῦν τὸν Χριστὸν προσδοκᾶν. ἔλεγον οὖν συνελθόντες τῷ Ἰακώβῳ· παρακαλοῦμέν σε, ἐπίσχες τὸν λαόν, ἐπεὶ ἐπλανήθη εἰς Ἰησοῦν, ὡς αὐτοῦ ὄντος τοῦ Χριστοῦ. παρακαλοῦμέν σε πεῖσαι τοὺς ἐλθόντας πάντας εἰς τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ πάσχα περὶ Ἰησοῦ. σοὶ γὰρ πάντες πειθόμεθα· ἡμεῖς γὰρ μαρτυροῦμέν σοι καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὅτι δίκαιος εἶ καὶ ὅτι πρόσωπον οὐ λαμ 412 βάνεις. πεῖσον οὖν σὺ τὸν ὄχλον περὶ Ἰησοῦ μὴ πλανᾶσθαι· καὶ γὰρ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς καὶ πάντες ἡμεῖς πειθόμεθά σοι. στῆθι οὖν ἐπὶ τὸ πτερύγιον τοῦ ἱεροῦ, ἵνα ἄνωθεν ᾖς καὶ ᾖ εὐάκουστά σου τὰ ῥήματα παντὶ τῷ λαῷ. διὰ γὰρ τὸ πάσχα συνεληλύθασι πᾶσαι αἱ φυλαὶ μετὰ καὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν. Ἔστησαν οὖν οἱ προειρημένοι γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι τὸν Ἰάκωβον ἐπὶ τὸ πτερύγιον τοῦ ἱεροῦ καὶ ἔκραξαν αὐτῷ καὶ εἶπον· δίκαιε, ᾧ πάντες πείθεσθαι ὀφείλομεν, ἐπεὶ ὁ λαὸς πλανᾶται ὀπίσω Ἰησοῦ τοῦ σταυρω θέντος, ἀπάγγειλον ἡμῖν τίς ἡ θύρα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ. καὶ ἀπεκρίνατο φωνῇ μεγάλῃ· τί με ἐρωτᾶτε περὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, καὶ αὐτὸς κάθηται ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἐκ δεξιῶν τῆς μεγάλης δυνάμεως καὶ μέλλει ἔρχεσθαι ἐπὶ τῶν νεφελῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ; καὶ πολλῶν πληροφορηθέντων καὶ δοξαζόντων ἐπὶ τῇ μαρτυρίᾳ τοῦ Ἰακώβου καὶ λεγόντων· ὡσαννὰ τῷ υἱῷ ∆αβίδ, τὸ ἔμπαλιν οἱ αὐτοὶ γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἔλεγον· κακῶς ἐποιήσαμεν τοιαύτην μαρτυρίαν παρασχόντες τῷ Ἰησοῦ. ἀλλ' ἀναβάντες καταβάλωμεν αὐτόν, ἵνα φοβηθέντες μὴ πιστεύσωσιν αὐτῷ. καὶ ἔκραξαν λέγοντες· ὢ ὤ, καὶ ὁ δίκαιος ἐπλανήθη· καὶ ἐπλήρωσαν τὴν γραφὴν τὴν ἐν τῷ Ἡσαΐᾳ γεγραμμένην· ἄρωμεν τὸν δίκαιον ὅτι δύσχρηστος ἡμῖν ἐστι· τοίνυν τὰ γενήματα τῶν ἔργων αὐτῶν φάγονται.