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and having previously often fashioned symmetrical ones. From which one of the emperor’s closest associates who was present, first declared that the emperor's affairs would be quite narrow and would cause the emperor much difficulty, just as the garment now pressed upon his body; but later, they would be diametrically wider than necessary and affording much ease. And on the same day, as the divine liturgy was being celebrated, it so happened that that passage of the Gospel was read, in which our savior and king of the ages, Christ Jesus, speaking to his own disciples about the things that would befall them, said, “If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also.” Which those present, taking note of, said that wicked, corrupt, and slanderous men, and those who care nothing for the saving commandments of Christ, would persecute the emperor and show great madness against him, just as indeed the Jews persecuted Christ the benefactor with all zeal, and they would prevail against him for a time, just as indeed they seemed to, having killed the redeemer. But later, the good and noble men and those worthy of Christ's commandments and who keep his words, will also keep the emperor's word and will do all that is commanded by him. 2.169 Such things indeed did the many prophesy from the sacred words, which also later came to pass nearly according to their interpretation. But the emperor himself, having great faith in the archbishop of Didymoteichon and heeding him as one with superior insight, since indeed he had been proven in many instances previously not to be without divine grace, on the same day after his proclamation, sent to him, and he revealed what had happened, that what had been voted as expedient by common consent might be accomplished, and he begged him to offer prayers to God on his behalf, so that the good and pleasing will of God might be done in his case. For this was his custom to ask those deemed worthy of such things, to offer prayers to God on his behalf. But he said that it was not good to report it after the fact. For it should have been done before, when it was also possible for him, with God's giving, to advise on some of the necessary things; but now nothing was left but to pray to God for what was expedient for the community and for him. But as for ruling the Romans, he himself knew that it had been decreed by God. Nevertheless, the lips of one who eats an unripe fig will swell; alluding by the example that he would first fall into many dangers and trials. And wishing as it were to reveal the dangers, from where and from whom they would be, he reminded him of a certain vision, which he had been deemed worthy to receive concerning future events while the emperor Andronikos was still alive. And this new emperor said that, while the 2.170 emperor was still alive, and he himself was still content with the lot of a private citizen, this archbishop, having a certain conversation with him, had said of Apokaukos, so addressing him without his title, not to hold him in very high regard, but to be on guard against the man, as he would be the cause of great outrage. And when he said, in a kind of jest, what sort of outrage could an egg cause to a stone, the archbishop said that arrogance was a great evil, especially when it touches both those perfect in virtue and those who have reached the highest peak of worldly prosperity. And when he said that he was not led into such things by arrogance, but from being especially conscious of his own great power and the other’s powerlessness; unless perhaps one might accuse a wolf of insolence for deeming itself stronger than a sheep, or a lion for thinking its strength far surpasses that of a deer. And as he still asked him to make the vision clear to him, as if he were persuaded by what he had said, since natural things have been created unchangeable by God, but human affairs are borne now one way now another and undergo much change, and after he had begged him much to be persuaded to recount what had been seen; “Once while praying,” he said, “and speaking idly to myself alone and to God, I seemed to see you standing before me. But suddenly Apokaukos so violently attacked

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καὶ πρότερον πολλάκις συμμέτρους ἐῤῥαφότος δεδημιουργηκότος. ἐξ ὧν τῶν βασιλεῖ συνηθεστάτων τις παρὼν, τὰ μὲν πρῶτα βασιλέως ἀπεφθέγξατο ἔσεσθαι κομιδῇ στενὰ καὶ πολλὴν ἀπορίαν βασιλεῖ παρέχοντα, ὥσπερ ἡ ἐσθὴς τὸ σῶμα πιέζειν νῦν· τὰ δ' ὕστερον ἐκ διαμέτρου εὐρύτερα τοῦ δέοντος καὶ πολλὴν παρεχόμενα τὴν ἄνεσιν. τῆς αὐτῆς δὲ ἡμέρας καὶ τῆς θείας τελουμένης ἱεροτελεστίας, οὕτω συμβὰν, ἡ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου περικοπὴ ἐκείνη ἀνεγινώσκετο, ἐν οἷς ὁ ἡμέτερος σωτὴρ καὶ τῶν αἰώνων βασιλεὺς ὁ Χριστὸς Ἰησοῦς τοῖς ἰδίοις μαθηταῖς περὶ τῶν εἰς αὐτοὺς συμβησομένων διαλεγόμενος, «εἰ ἐμὲ» ἔλεγεν «ἐδίωξαν, καὶ ὑμᾶς διώξουσιν· εἰ τὸν λόγον μου ἐτήρησαν, καὶ τὸν ὑμέτερον τηρήσουσιν.» ἃ οἱ παρόντες ἐπισημαινόμενοι, τοὺς μὲν φαύλους ἔφησαν ἀνθρώπους καὶ διεφθορότας καὶ συκοφάντας καὶ οἷς οὐδὲν τῶν σωτηρίων μέλει τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐντολῶν, τὸν βασιλέα διώξειν καὶ πολλὴν ἐνδείξεσθαι τὴν μανίαν κατ' αὐτοῦ, οἷα δὴ καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι Χριστὸν τὸν εὐεργέτην πάσῃ διώξαντες σπουδῇ, καὶ ἰσχύσειν κατ' αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ καιρὸν, ὥσπερ δὴ κἀκεῖνοι ἔδοξαν, ἀπεκτονότες τὸν λυτρωτήν. ὕστερον δὲ οἱ καλοὶ καὶ ἀγαθοὶ καὶ ἄξιοι τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τοὺς λόγους αὐτοῦ τηροῦντες, καὶ τὸν βασιλέως λόγον τηρήσουσι καὶ πάντα ποιήσουσι τὰ προσταττόμενα ὑπ' αὐτοῦ. 2.169 τοιαῦτα μὲν ἐπεθείασαν ἐν τοῖς λογίοις οἱ πολλοὶ, ἃ καὶ εἰς ὕστερον ἐξέβη κατὰ τὴν ἐξήγησιν αὐτῶν σχεδόν. αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς περὶ τὸν ∆ιδυμοτείχου ἀρχιερέα πολλὴν τὴν πίστιν ἔχων καὶ τῶν κρειττόνων ὥς τινι προσέχων, οἷα δὴ ἐν πολλοῖς ἀποδεδειγμένῳ πρότερον θείας χάριτος οὐκ ἀμοιρεῖν, τῆς αὐτῆς ἡμέρας μετὰ τὴν ἀνάῤῥησιν πέμψας πρὸς ἐκεῖνον, τὰ γεγενημένα τε ἐδήλου, ὡς κοινῇ γνώμῃ λυσιτελεῖν ἐψηφισμένα τελεσθείη, καὶ προσάγειν εὐχὰς θεῷ ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ ἐδεῖτο, ὥστε γενέσθαι ἐπ' αὐτῷ τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ θέλημα τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ εὐάρεστον. τοῦτον γὰρ εἰώθει τὸν τρόπον τῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα δεῖσθαι ἠξιωμένων, εὐχὰς ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ προσάγειν θεῷ. ὁ δ' ἔφασκεν, ὡς οὐ καλὸν μετὰ τὴν πρᾶξιν ἀπαγγέλλειν. πρότερον γὰρ ἐχρῆν, ἡνίκα καὶ αὐτῷ τι τῶν δεόντων, θεοῦ διδόντος, παραινεῖν ἐξῆν· νυνὶ δὲ οὐδὲν ἢ τοῦ θεοῦ δεῖσθαι λοιπὸν ὑπὲρ τῶν κοινῇ λυσιτελούντων καὶ αὐτοῦ. τὸ βασιλεύειν δὲ Ῥωμαίων, καὶ αὐτὸν μὲν εἰδέναι, ὡς ἐπιψηφισθείη παρὰ θεῷ. πλὴν ἐξοιδήσουσι τὰ χείλη μήπω πεπανθὲν τὸ σῦκον καταφαγόντος· αἰνιττόμενος ἐκ τοῦ παραδείγματος, ὡς πολλοῖς πρότερον περιπεσεῖται κινδύνοις καὶ πειρασμοῖς. θέλων δ' ὥσπερ καὶ τοὺς κινδύνους ὅθεν κἀκ τίνος ἔσονται δηλοῦν, ὁράσεώς τινος ἀνεμίμνησκεν αὐτὸν, ἧς, ἔτι περιόντος Ἀνδρονίκου τοῦ βασιλέως, ἠξίωτο περὶ τῶν ἐσομένων. ἔφασκε δὲ βασιλεὺς ὁ νέος οὑτοσὶ, ὡς, ἔτι περιόν 2.170 τος βασιλέως, αὐτοῦ δ' ἔτι τὴν ἰδιώτου στέργοντος τύχην, ὁμιλίαν τινὰ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως τούτου ποιουμένου πρὸς αὐτὸν, τὸν Ἀπόκαυκον φάναι, οὕτω τῆς ἀξίας χωρὶς προσαγορεύσαντα, μὴ πάνυ ποιεῖσθαι περὶ πλείστου, ἀλλὰ φυλάττεσθαι τὸν ἄνδρα, ὡς μεγάλης ἐπηρείας αἴτιον ἐσόμενον. τοῦ δ' ἐν εὐτραπελίας εἴδει, καὶ ποίαν λίθῳ ἐπήρειαν προξενήσειεν ἂν ὠὸν, εἰπόντος, ὡς μέγα, φάναι τὸν ἀρχιερέα, τὴν ὑπερηφανίαν εἶναι κακὸν, μάλιστα τῶν τε τελείων τὴν ἀρετὴν καὶ τῶν εἰς τὸ ἀκρότατον τῆς κοσμικῆς ἐληλακότων εὐημερίας ἐφαπτομένην. τοῦ δὲ, μὴ εἰς τοιαῦτα προάγεσθαι ἐξ ὑπερηφανίας, εἰρηκότος, ἀλλ' ἐκ τοῦ μάλιστα συνειδέναι ἑαυτῷ μὲν δύναμιν πολλὴν, ἐκείνῳ δὲ ἀδυναμίαν· πλὴν εἰ μὴ καὶ λύκον θρασύτητος αἰτιῷτό τις προβάτου ἰσχυρότερον νομίζεσθαι ἀξιοῦντα καὶ τὸν λέοντα ἐλάφου τὴν ῥώμην πλεῖστον οἰόμενον διαφέρειν. ἔτι δ' ἀξιοῦντος, τὴν ὅρασιν δήλην αὐτῷ ποιεῖν, ὡς δὴ πειθομένου οἷς εἰρήκει, ἐπειδὴ τὰ μὲν φυσικὰ ἀμετάβλητα δεδημιούργηται παρὰ θεοῦ, τὰ ἀνθρώπινα δὲ πράγματα ἄλλο τε ἄλλως φέρεται καὶ πολλὴν ὑπομένει τὴν μεταβολὴν, καὶ πολλὰ δεηθέντος ὥστε πεῖσαι διηγήσασθαι τὰ ὁραθέντα· «εὐχόμενός ποτε» εἶπε «καὶ ἐμαυτῷ μόνῳ καὶ θεῷ προσαδολεσχῶν, ἐδόκουν σε ὁρᾷν ἑστῶτα πρὸ ἐμοῦ. αἴφνης δὲ Ἀπόκαυκον οὕτω ῥαγδαίως ἐπελθεῖν