Front Matter

The Preparation for the Gospel

Praeperatio Evangelica

Eusebius

APPIAN WAY PRESS

THE PREPARATION FOR THE GOSPEL PRAEPERATIO EVANGELICA

Copyright 2025 by Rick Brannan. Available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

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About This Translation

This translation was created on 2024-12-27 using the model gpt-4o-mini from OpenAI. To ensure the translation is communicating the same meaning as the original, a sentence-level semantic similarity check was performed between the source text and translation using bowphs/SPhilBerta, available from HuggingFace. In addition to the sentence-level semantic similarity check, the text-to-translation length ratio was evaluated for each verse to locate and review possible hallucination.

Disclaimer

Please note, as indicated above, that this translation is a machine-generated translation. There are several older works, like Eusebius's Praeperatio Evangelica, that are either not available in English or only available in old and difficult to read translations. This translation is an attempt to provide a readable and fairly literal modern English translation of the source text. The process that created this translation has done its best to mitigate hallucinations, but there may still be translation issues.

About the Source

Translated from: Eusebius, Eusebii Caesaerensis Opera. Teubner:Leipzig, 1867.

The source edition of Praeperatio Evangelica was retrieved from the Github repository First1KGreek.

For more information: First1KGreek. The Greek edition this translation uses as its source text is available as well.

“Book One”

Book 1, Section 1

I want to explain the Christian faith and what it is to those who do not know it through this prepared work, promising to include proof of the Gospel. I call upon you, Theodote, divine overseer, friend of God, and sacred leader, with my prayers, hoping to receive your help as you greatly assist with your holy services on our behalf in support of the established foundation of the Gospel teaching.

² But what does it mean to say that we should first clearly explain the Gospel? It announces to all people the presence of the highest and greatest goods, which were foretold long ago and have recently shone upon everyone. It does not promise unseen wealth, nor this small and troubled life, nor anything related to the body and its decay. Instead, it speaks of the spiritual essence that souls possess, which is dear and close to them, and of which the bodies are merely shadows that follow along.

³ If the main point of these things is piety, it is not the false and wandering kind, but the one that is truly named with truth. This piety is the relationship with the one and only true God, who is acknowledged and truly exists, and it is the life lived according to him. From this relationship comes friendship with him, which leads to a truly God-loving and most blessed end. This end comes from above, guided by greater things, and returns again to them.

⁴ What could be more blessed than this good and all-blessed love of God? Is he not the source of life, light, truth, and the giver of all good things to everyone? Does he not include the reason for everything that exists and for living itself? So, what more could be lacking in the friendship directed toward him? What could the creator of good things lack when becoming familiar with him? Or how could he be diminished, who is both a father in the world and the caretaker of the great ruler, the all-powerful king of all?

⁵ But it cannot be said that anyone who approaches the all-powerful God and is honored with the most blessed friendship through true piety would not have a good state of both soul and body, along with everything outside of them.

⁶ This good and saving friendship between humans and God is sent down from above by the all-good word of God, like a ray of infinite light. It brings good news to all people, not from here or there, but from everywhere, urging all nations to come to the God of all. It encourages everyone to hurry and receive the gift with all the eagerness of their souls, whether they are Greeks or non-Greeks, men, women, or children, poor or rich, wise or uneducated, without anyone looking down on the call.

⁷ Because the father of all has created the same essence and nature for everyone, he has justly made all people worthy of great gifts. He gives knowledge and friendship to all who wish to obey him and generously offers grace to those who gladly accept it.

⁸ The word of Christ has brought the message of friendship to the Father for the whole world, saying, "For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not counting their sins against them." He teaches divine truths and, when he came, he proclaimed peace to those far away and peace to those nearby.

⁹ Long ago, the children of the Hebrews, inspired by God, proclaimed to the whole world. One said, "All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will worship before him, for the kingdom belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations." And again, "Say among the nations that the Lord reigns; he has established the world, which will not be shaken." Another said, "The Lord will appear among them and will destroy all the gods of the nations of the earth, and each person will worship him from their own place."

¹⁰ Long ago, these things were revealed in divine oracles, but now they have been made known to us through the teachings of our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is fitting that the knowledge of God, which was long preached and awaited by all the nations, is now proclaimed to us, as the word from heaven is present, showing the results of the works through the voices of the ancients.

¹¹ But why should we hurry to follow the path of words when we should first take up what is necessary and remove all obstacles? Since some do not preserve any part of Christianity, but instead accept those who claim to uphold its glory with an unreasonable faith and unexamined agreement, they say that no one can provide clear proof of the truth in what is promised. They only require faith from those who come, treating them as trustworthy and relying on the grace of uncertain and untested faith. Therefore, it is fitting to briefly address the matters that have been reasonably asked of us by both Greeks and those of the circumcision, while thoroughly examining what concerns us.

¹² For I believe that the word will proceed in an orderly way to the complete teaching of the gospel and the understanding of deeper doctrines, if the preparation for us is made beforehand, providing a foundation and introduction that suits those coming from the nations. After this, it will give those who have already entered and are now prepared the precise knowledge of the most important teachings about our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, and the mystery of God's plan.

¹³ Let us begin the preparation by addressing what has been reasonably asked of us by both Greeks and those of the circumcision, while carefully examining what concerns us through thorough investigation of what will be said.

Book 1, Section 2

First, it is reasonable for someone to wonder who we are in relation to the scripture—whether we are Greeks, barbarians, or something in between—and what we claim to be. It is not about the name we use, which is clear to everyone, but about our way of life and the choices we make. For we do not see the thoughts of Greeks or the practices of barbarians.

² So what would it mean for us to be strangers, and what is this new way of life? How could those who have turned away from their ancestral customs be anything but impious and godless, when these customs are what hold every nation and city together? Or what good is it to hope that the enemies of salvation will stand against us while the benefactors are pushed aside? And what else could this be but fighting against God?

³ What kind of forgiveness could those who have been rejected for ages by all Greeks and barbarians, in cities and countryside, through various sacred rites, ceremonies, and mysteries, expect from all kings, lawmakers, and philosophers? They have turned away and embraced the impious and godless beliefs of humans. What punishments would be fair for those who have abandoned their ancestral ways while becoming zealots for foreign and widely discredited Jewish traditions?

⁴ How could it not be the greatest wickedness and carelessness to easily abandon the beliefs of one's own people, while thoughtlessly and without examination choosing the beliefs of the impious and the enemies of all nations? And not even to offer proper worship to the God who punishes the Jews, but instead to create a new and empty faith for themselves, without keeping the customs of either the Greeks or the Jews?

⁵ Surely, if someone from the Greeks were to hear these things, they would find nothing true about either their own customs or ours. The children of the Jews would blame us, saying that we, being foreign and of a different race, use their books without any connection to ourselves. They would say that we shamelessly, as they might put it, try to include ourselves while forcefully pushing aside our own people and their traditions.

⁶ For if someone were to claim that Christ was foretold, it was the prophets of the Jews who announced his coming, saying that he would be the redeemer and king of the Jews, not that he would be sent to the foreign nations. Or if the scriptures contain any other joyful messages, these are also proclaimed to the Jews, and we do not see them acting on these things.

⁷ And it is very strange that they quickly accept the accusations against their nation while remaining silent about the promises of good things made to them. Instead, they seem more likely to be forced to change themselves, taking advantage of others and deceiving only themselves.

⁸ But the most unreasonable of all is that they do not even follow the laws closely, but clearly break them, while expecting to receive the promised better rewards meant for those who keep the laws.

Book 1, Section 3

When we first wonder about these things, let us call upon the God of all through our savior, the same Word, so that we may be cleansed by the high priest. We have shown beforehand that we have nothing to present as proof, yet we cling to an unreasonable faith.

² So, we will discuss this right from the start and not from a distance. We will consider both how we approach those who seek to learn our teachings and how we respond to those who oppose us with more logical arguments. Through this, we aim to create both written and unwritten responses, for each individual questioner and for public discussions.

³ Yes, indeed, through the writings we have that contain the overall discussion of the gospel proof, the present word proclaims to all people every grace from God and every heavenly blessing. We should reason more clearly about the plan of our savior and lord Jesus Christ, believing it through many clear proofs.

⁴ Many before us have worked hard on many other discussions. Sometimes, they arranged arguments and counterarguments against those who oppose us. At other times, they explained the sacred scriptures with detailed notes and smaller conversations. They have also defended our beliefs more strongly.

⁵ Indeed, we are putting in careful effort. First of all, the holy apostle Paul, avoiding deceptive and clever arguments, uses clear proofs. He says, "Our message and preaching are not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in the proof of the spirit and power." He also adds, "We speak wisdom among those who are mature, but not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are being brought to nothing. Instead, we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom." And again, he says that our ability comes from God, who has made us servants of a new covenant.

⁶ It is fitting that we are all instructed to be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks us for a reason for the hope that is in us. Therefore, there are countless new writers, as it has been said, who provide wise and clear arguments and proofs for our written message. There are also many notes prepared on the sacred and inspired scriptures, presenting the true and unchanging teachings that were first announced to us about the word of godliness with clear proofs.

⁷ But all these words are unnecessary, since the works are clearer and more certain. The divine and heavenly power of our Savior still openly shows all people the inspired and heavenly life it proclaims.

⁸ Surely, his teaching will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a witness to all nations. Later, by his power, he will gather a church from all the nations, which had not yet been seen or formed during the time he became human. It will be invincible and unshakable by divine foreknowledge, and it will never be overcome by death. It will stand and remain unmovable, just as it has been established on the solid and unshakable rock of his power. The outcome of this prophecy will rightly silence those who shamelessly prepare to speak against it.

⁹ For who would not confess the truth of the prophecy, since the events clearly show that it is indeed the power of god? But it was not human nature that could bring about these things in this way before they happened, having seen them both prophesied and accomplished through actions.

¹⁰ Surely, the message of the gospel has filled the whole world that the sun can see, and it has reached all the nations. Even now, it grows and continues to spread the teachings about him through his followers.

¹¹ The church, which is named after him, stands strong and rooted. It is lifted up by the prayers of holy and god-loving souls to the heavenly heights, receiving praise every day. It shines forth the spiritual and divine light of the piety revealed by him to all. It is never defeated or submissive to its enemies, nor does it retreat from the gates of death. For he himself declared: "I will build my church on this rock, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it."

¹² And gathering many other countless things that have been said and foretold by our Savior, we present them as evidence. We show that the outcomes of events match his divine foreknowledge. We demonstrate the truth about him, which is praised among us.

¹³ In addition to all these things, the proof of the truth among us is strong, and the testimony from the Hebrew scriptures is important. In those writings, the prophets among the Hebrews proclaimed the promise of good things for all of mortal life for many thousands of years. They specifically mentioned the name of Christ and foretold his presence among people. They announced how his teaching would spread to all nations, predicting the coming disbelief and opposition from the Jewish nation. They also spoke of the actions taken against him and the immediate sorrows that would come upon them. I refer to the final siege of their royal city, the complete downfall of their kingdom, their scattering among all nations, and their slavery under enemies and foes, which they seem to have suffered according to the prophecies after the coming of our Savior.

¹⁴ Who would not be amazed, hearing the same prophets, after the coming of Christ and the downfall of the Jews, proclaiming the calling of the nations with bright and clear voices? This message also directly fulfilled the prophecies through the teaching of our Savior.

¹⁵ Through him, from every race of people, countless individuals, having turned away from the deception of idols, accepted the true knowledge and worship of the God above all. They believed only in the ancient prophecies, including the one spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, which says, "Lord, my God, nations will come to you from the ends of the earth, and they will say, 'Our ancestors have inherited lies, worthless idols that have no benefit. If a man makes gods for himself, they are not gods.'"

Book 1, Section 4

All these things confirm the trustworthy message about our situation, showing that it was not created by human effort, but was known by God beforehand and announced through the written prophecies. Even more, it has been revealed by our Savior to all people. It is also empowered by God and stands firm, shining brightly over the invisible demons and the visible rulers of this world, growing and increasing every day, and multiplying even more. This is due to the cooperation from the God of all, providing an unbeatable and victorious strength against our enemies through the name and teaching of our Savior.

² And from the same source, for the well-being of all people, it is shown not only through his clear words but also through a hidden power. How could it not be a sign of his divine strength? For the power that comes with his word is both divine and hidden, along with his teaching about the one rule of the God above all. Together with this, it stands against the many wandering and demonic forces, and it establishes the human race as free from the many rulers of the nations.

³ Indeed, in ancient times, each nation had kings and local rulers in power. In some cities, there were democracies, while in others, there were many rulers. Because of this, there were constant wars among various nations, with groups rising up against their neighbors. They were killing each other and being killed, and they were also preparing for sieges against one another. Because of all this, everyone living in the cities and those farming in the countryside were taught to fight from a young age, learning to wield swords in the streets, in villages, and in the fields.

⁴ But when Christ of God came, about whom it was long ago said through the prophets, "Righteousness and a multitude of peace will arise in his days. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into sickles, and nation will not lift sword against nation, and they will no longer learn to fight," following these prophecies, all the works immediately removed the many rulers of the Romans, with Augustus ruling at the same time as the appearance of our Savior. From that time on, you would not see, as before, cities warring against cities or nation fighting against nation, nor would life be wasted in the old chaos.

⁵ And yet, how is it not worthy of wonder to see what was once the case, when all the nations were oppressed by demons and many people were devoted to them? They were driven to fight wars against each other—sometimes Greeks against Greeks, sometimes Egyptians against Egyptians, and Syrians against Syrians, with Romans also waging war. They enslaved one another and wore each other down through sieges, just as the old histories show. But with the most pious and peaceful teaching of our Savior, the confusion of many gods was removed, and the divisions among the nations were immediately ended, freeing them from old evils. I consider this to be the greatest proof of the divine and hidden power of our Savior.

⁶ From the clear evidence of the benefits shown in his words, you would see that never before in history, nor under any of the ancient rulers, have the laws of all nations been so well established from his teachings, which have spread throughout the whole world. Those once wild and barbaric customs, like the Persians marrying their own students, or the Scythians practicing human sacrifice until the word of Christ reached them, or other barbaric peoples mixing daughters and sisters, or men engaging in unnatural pleasures, or placing their own dead before dogs and birds as they used to do, or hanging the elderly as they did before, or treating the bodies of their beloved dead according to ancient customs, or sacrificing humans to the demons as was done in the past, or slaughtering their dearest in the name of piety, have all been set aside.

⁷ For these were also related to many ancient customs that harmed human life. The Massagetae and Derbikes are said to have been the most miserable. They considered their own people who died naturally as unworthy, so they would sacrifice them and feast on their beloved dead. The Tibareni would throw the living elderly into pits. The Hyrcanians and Caspians would offer the living to birds and dogs, while others would do the same with the dead. The Scythians would bury the living and would burn those they loved the most. The Bactrians would also throw the living elderly to the dogs.

⁸ But these things were once true; now, however, it is no longer the same. The savage and inhumane customs of all these people have been healed by the power of the saving law of the Gospel.

⁹ Now, people no longer consider as gods either dead and silent wooden images, or the evil demons that act through them, or parts of the visible world, or the souls of long-dead mortals, or the most harmful of irrational animals. Instead, through the one teaching of the Gospel of our Savior, both Greeks and barbarians, who sincerely but not falsely accept this teaching, have reached such a high level of philosophy that they honor, praise, and speak of the one true God, who is above all, the universal king and lord of heaven and earth, of the sun and stars, and the creator of the whole universe. They live rightly and learn in such a way that they are taught even by what they see with their eyes, and they do not think about anything shameful with desire. They cut off every shameful passion from their minds. How could all this not lead to a good life for everyone?

¹⁰ And that there is no need to swear oaths, but rather to avoid swearing altogether, because one learns to speak the truth and to be honest in everything, is enough to say "yes" or "no," making one's intention more trustworthy than any oath. Also, one should not be careless even in simple words and everyday conversations, but should be precise and careful, so that no falsehood, insult, or shameful word comes out of one's mouth. This is important because of the command to give an account for every idle word on the day of judgment. What kind of extraordinary life does this lead to for a philosopher?

¹¹ And also, altogether, countless men, women, and children, both slaves and free, both the unknown and the famous, as well as barbarians together with Greeks, in every place, city, and region, among all the nations under the sun, are being taught the lessons we have just learned. They are encouraged not only to avoid shameful actions but also to reject shameful thoughts in their minds and to control their desires. The whole human race is being educated in a divine and pious way, learning to bravely and deeply confront the insults of those who rise up against them, and not to defend the wicked against the righteous. They become better than anger, rage, and all uncontrolled desires. Indeed, they also share with those who are in need and lacking, and they accept every person as a fellow human being, recognizing even the stranger as the closest brother according to the law of nature.

¹² Surely, if someone were to gather all these things together, how could they not agree that the greatest and truly good news is that all people have been blessed by our teaching? This teaching is also better for living well in the life given to humanity.

¹³ What do you think the whole human race is like, not just the Greeks, but also the most uneducated barbarians and those living at the ends of the earth? Should they hold back from wild and irrational behavior and instead prepare to embrace the ideas of philosophers?

¹⁴ For example, let us consider the teachings about the immortality of the soul and the life after this one, which is promised to those who love the divine. Through these teachings, they should not worry about this temporary life. Thus, we can show that children who have been guided in philosophy see death, often discussed, as just a game, celebrated by all philosophers. Among us, both women and caregivers, as well as poor men, believe that through the power and cooperation of our savior, the teaching about the immortality of the soul is proven by actions rather than words.

¹⁵ Just as for all people, those in every nation should learn from the teachings of our savior about God's care. They should learn to think healthily and strongly while observing the universe. They should understand the teachings on justice and God's judgment, live wisely, and carefully avoid the practices of evil.

Book 1, Section 5

You would understand the main point of the first and greatest gift of the saving message if you recognized the fearful deception of old idolatry, which long ago troubled all of humanity with demons. Just as from the darkest shadows, the divine power has brought both Greeks and barbarians together into the bright and true day of piety of the all-powerful God.

² And why should we need to prove to those who are trying to show that we have not devoted ourselves with unreasonable faith, when wise and helpful words show the way of true piety? In this situation, we encourage those who are able to follow the proofs of our words and to take care of their understanding. They should accept the proofs of the teachings more logically and be ready to explain to anyone who asks us about the reason for our hope.

³ Since not everyone is like this, and the message is friendly to all, with no one being turned away, all people are being healed by suitable remedies. Even the ignorant and ordinary are encouraged to follow better ways. It is fitting to guide those who are just starting out, like women and children, and the crowds of common people, toward a pious life, as if by a healing remedy. We embrace a healthy faith, teaching them correct beliefs about God's care, the immortality of the soul, and how to live a virtuous life.

⁴ Or do we not see that those who are suffering in their bodies are being healed by experts? They are often treated through extensive training and education, following medical advice and acting logically. But those who seek healing from them place their faith in these experts and rely on the hope of better outcomes. They may not know much about the science, yet they depend entirely on good hope and faith.

⁵ The best of the doctors, having found a balanced approach, knows what should be avoided and what should be done, just like a leader or master who gives orders with knowledge. The patient, like a subject to a king or lawgiver, trusts and believes that what is commanded will help them.

⁶ Students receive education from teachers, believing that their learning will be beneficial for them. Indeed, no one would commit to philosophy without first trusting that it will help them. Some choose the teachings of Epicurus, others admire the life of the Cynics, some study according to Plato, others according to Aristotle, and still others prefer the Stoics above all. Each person hopes for something better and believes that what they have chosen will bring them closer to what they love.

⁷ In the same way, people have turned to different skills. Some have chosen military life, while others have chosen trade, believing that these paths will provide for them. Marriages, too, begin with the first unions and partnerships based on the hope of having children, starting from a foundation of good trust.

⁸ Some people again venture into the unknown, having no other anchor for their safety than faith alone and good hope. One person farms, and after throwing the seed into the ground, sits and waits for the change of the season, believing that what is buried in the earth will rise again, just like coming back to life after being covered by heavy rains. Another person sets off on a long journey to a foreign land, taking hope and good faith along as guides.

⁹ What else is the entire life of people based on but these two things: hope and faith? Why do you wonder if even the better things for the soul are given to some through faith? For those who do not have the time to learn in a more logical way, others can also take part in the discussions and learn the reasons behind what is believed.

¹⁰ But indeed, in a small way, we do not prepare ourselves in vain for the first accusation, and we respond to those who ask who we are and where we come from. Since we are Greeks and think like Greeks, we have set ourselves apart from the superstitions of our ancestors, even if we have been gathered from many different nations like a young army. Furthermore, by referring to the Jewish books and gathering most of what is found in their prophecies, we do not believe it is right to live in the same way as those who are favored because of circumcision, and we would agree to this from the very beginning.

¹¹ It is time, then, to present the reasoning for these matters. How can we believe we have done well by leaving behind our ancestral customs if we do not first lay them out before us and bring them to the attention of those who are gathered? For in this way, the divine power of the gospel would become clear and evident to everyone if it were shown before their eyes what kinds of evils it promises to heal.

¹² How could the reasonableness of the Jewish persecution be shown without also proving their virtue? By what argument, while accepting their writings, can we rightly stray from the same way of life? And what is the foundation of our gospel, and what can be said to be the essence of Christianity, which is neither Greek nor Jewish, but a new and true wisdom of God, drawing its novelty from its very name?

¹³ Therefore, let us first examine the oldest and our ancestral theologies, which have been discussed in every city, even to this day. Let us consider the serious ideas of the noble philosophers about the creation of the world and the nature of the gods, so that we may understand whether we have rightly separated ourselves from them or not.

¹⁴ I will not share my own opinions in explaining those who are being revealed, but rather the views of those who have shown great piety toward the gods they mention, so that the argument may be free from any suspicion regarding our creation.

Book 1, Section 6

Therefore, the Phoenicians and Egyptians are the first among all people to declare the sun, moon, and stars as gods, claiming that they alone are the causes of the creation and destruction of everything. After that, they brought the worship of these gods and their origin stories into everyday life.

² Before these people, no one knew anything more about the things that appear in the sky, except for a few men mentioned among the Hebrews. These men, with the clearest minds, looked beyond all that is seen and honored the creator of the world and the maker of everything, amazed by the great wisdom and power they saw in the works. They were convinced that there is only one true god, and they taught this true, first, and only piety, passing it down from father to son and keeping it safe.

³ But the rest of the people, having turned away from this one true piety, looked at the shining bodies in the sky with foolish eyes, like children. They were amazed and called these things gods, offering sacrifices and being filled with wonder. They did not fear temples or the images of mortals made from wood and stone, but instead looked up to the sky and the heavens, reaching out with their souls to what they could see.

⁴ But this false belief in many gods did not end with these people and later generations. It led them deeper into a pit of evils, worse than the wickedness of disbelief. The Phoenicians, and then the Egyptians, were the first to spread this deception. It is said that Orpheus, the son of Oeagrus, learned the mysteries of the Egyptians and shared them with the Greeks, just as Cadmus brought Phoenician knowledge, including the art of writing. For at that time, the Greeks did not yet know how to use writing.

⁵ First, let us examine the earliest account of the creation of the world, as it is presented. Next, we will look at the first and oldest superstitions of human life. Third, we will consider the beliefs of the Phoenicians, and fourth, those of the Egyptians. After that, we will discuss the Greeks, starting with their ancient and confused beliefs. Then, we will move on to the more serious and natural philosophy about the gods, and after that, we will explore the remarkable oracles. In this, we will also examine the important aspects of the noble philosophy of the Greeks.

⁶ After we have clarified these matters, we will move on to the Hebrews, the first and truly Hebrew people, and those who later came to be known as Jews. Over all these topics, we will add our own conclusions as a final touch to everything.

⁷ We must remember the history of all these things, so that by showing the wonders found everywhere, we can prove the truth. Whatever we choose to present will be clear to those who come across it.

⁸ But let us first return to the beginning. Where will we find trust in the proofs? Not from our own writings, so that we do not appear to be favoring our own words. Instead, we will rely on witnesses from the Greeks themselves, both those who take pride in their philosophy and those who have studied the history of other nations.

⁹ So then, the Sicilian Diodorus writes about the ancient theology of the Egyptians. He is a well-known figure among the most learned Greeks, as if he has gathered all the historical writings into one work. From this, I will first share what he has said about the creation of the entire world, presenting the views of the ancient historians in this way.

Book 1, Section 7

Regarding the gods, the earliest thinkers had certain ideas that honored the divine. As for the myths about each of the immortals, we will try to gather many of them individually, since this topic requires a lot of discussion. Whatever we believe fits with the histories we have will be presented in summaries, and nothing worthy of attention will be overlooked.

² Regarding the race of all humans and the events that have occurred in the known parts of the world, we will write accurately about these ancient topics, beginning from the earliest times.

³ Regarding the first creation of humans, there are two opinions from the most respected natural philosophers and historians. Some of them claimed that the world is uncreated and eternal, and that the human race has existed from the beginning, with no start to their generation. Others, believing that humans are created and mortal, stated that humans came into being at specific times, just like those before them.

⁴ According to the original structure of everything, there is one idea of both heaven and earth, mixed together in their nature. After that, when the bodies separated from each other, the world contained all the visible arrangement within it, while the air became a continuous movement. The fiery part rushed to the highest places, since such a nature is light. For this reason, the sun and the other stars were left in the whole whirl, while the muddy and cloudy part settled together with the liquids because of its heaviness. The water formed the sea, while the more solid parts created the soft, clay-like earth.

⁵ At first, when the fire of the sun shone down, it caused a freezing. Then, because of the heat warming the surface, some of the liquids began to evaporate in many places, forming thin layers of moisture around them. This can still be seen today in marshes and ponds, when suddenly hot air forms above the cold ground, without a gradual change.

⁶ As the liquids were brought to life by the heat, they absorbed food at night from the mist that fell around them, while during the day they solidified under the warmth. Finally, when the living things reached their full growth and the layers of moisture were burned away and broken apart, all kinds of animals began to emerge.

⁷ Of these, the ones that absorbed the most heat became birds and flew to higher places. Those that stayed on the ground were classified as reptiles and other land animals. The ones most connected to the wet nature gathered together in the same area and were called aquatic creatures.

⁸ The earth, becoming more solid from the heat around the sun and the winds, could no longer create any larger living things. Instead, each of the living beings was formed from the mixing of different kinds.

⁹ It seems that even Euripides agrees with what has been said about the nature of everything, as he was a student of Anaxagoras the natural philosopher. In his "Melanippe," he explains that the sky and the earth were once one form. But when they were separated from each other, they gave birth to everything and brought forth light: trees, birds, wild animals, and those that the sea nourishes, as well as the race of mortals.

¹⁰ And about the first generation of everything, we have said this: they say that the first humans lived in a wild and beastly way, scattered as they went out to the pastures. They would gather the most pleasant plants and the fruits that fell from the trees on their own. While being attacked by wild animals, they learned to help each other out of necessity. When they came together out of fear, they began to recognize each other by their small differences.

¹¹ As for speech, which was unclear and confused, they began to form words little by little. They created symbols for each of the things around them, helping themselves to understand everything better.

¹² As these systems developed throughout the whole world, not everyone spoke the same language. Each group arranged their words in their own way. Because of this, many different kinds of dialects emerged, and the first languages of all nations became unique.

¹³ The first humans lived without any useful discoveries for their survival. They were naked, unskilled in building homes or making fire, and completely unaware of how to find daily food. They did not know how to gather wild food, so they made no plans for the fruits they could collect. Because of this, many of them died during the winters from the cold and the lack of food.

¹⁴ From this, little by little, they learned through experience to seek shelter in caves during the winter and to store the fruits they could gather. As they discovered fire and other useful things, they gradually developed skills and other methods to improve their daily lives.

¹⁵ For the needs of everyone, experience became a teacher for humans, guiding each person to learn naturally, like a well-suited creature with hands, speech, and a quick mind. As for the first generation of humans and their ancient way of life, we will be content with what has been said, keeping in mind the balance of things.

¹⁶ The author mentioned all of this without even recalling the name of the god in the creation of the world, suggesting a somewhat random and automatic arrangement of everything. With this, you would find agreement with most of the philosophers among the Greeks, whose views on the beginnings and their disagreements with each other I will share with you, based on reflections rather than direct understanding, drawing from Plutarch's "Stramata" for this discussion. But do not rush; instead, take your time and think carefully about the differences among the ideas presented.

Book 1, Section 8

Thales is said to have been the first to suggest that water is the source of everything; for everything comes from it and returns to it.

² After him, Anaximander, a companion of Thales, said that the infinite has the entire cause of the generation and destruction of everything. From this, he claims, the heavens were separated, and all worlds are infinite. He stated that destruction happens first, much earlier than generation, from the endless cycle of all things. He says that the earth is shaped like a cylinder and has a depth that is one-third of its width. He also says that from the eternal, hot and cold elements were separated in the creation of this world, and that a sphere of fire surrounds the air around the earth like the bark of a tree. When this was broken and closed off into certain circles, the sun, moon, and stars were formed. He further claims that in the beginning, humans were born from different kinds of animals, since all other creatures quickly take care of themselves, but humans need a long time of nurturing; therefore, in the beginning, they could not survive as they were. This is what Anaximander said.

³ Anaximenes is said to have stated that the beginning of everything is air, which is infinite in nature but defined by its qualities. Everything is generated by a certain thickening of this air and then becomes thinner again. He claims that movement has existed from eternity; he says that the earth was first formed from condensed air and is very broad, which is why it is said to float on the air. He also states that the sun, moon, and other stars have their origin from the earth. He explains that the sun is formed from the earth, and because of its rapid movement, it becomes very hot.

⁴ Xenophanes of Colophon, taking a different path and differing from all those mentioned before, does not leave out generation or destruction, but says that everything is always the same. For if this were to change, he claims, it would be necessary that there was nothing before it; and what is not cannot come into being, nor can anything be made from what is not. He also states that our senses are deceived, and along with them, he undermines reason itself. He claims that over time, the earth is continuously moving into the sea little by little. He says that the sun is formed from many small fiery particles. He also states about the gods that there is no leadership among them; for it is not right to be ruled by any of the gods, nor to need any of them at all. He says that we hear and see as a whole and not in parts. He claims that the earth is infinite and is not surrounded by air in any part; everything comes from the earth, and he says that the sun and the other stars come from the clouds.

⁵ Parmenides of Elea, a companion of Xenophanes, both opposed his views and argued for the opposite position. He claims that everything is eternal and unchanging, according to the truth of things. He says that it is one, unique, and unshakable, and that it has no origin. He rejects the idea of generation as false and dismisses the senses as misleading. He states that if anything exists outside of what is, then that cannot be considered real; and what is not does not exist at all. Thus, he concludes that what is cannot come into being. He also says that the earth was formed from the dense flowing air.

⁶ Zeno of Elea did not present any unique ideas of his own, but he explained these matters in more detail.

⁷ Democritus of Abdera proposed that everything is infinite because it is not created by anything. He also says that it is unchanging. He explains that, in general, everything that exists does not have any starting point for the causes of what is happening now. Instead, everything simply comes from infinite time and necessity. He claims that the sun and moon were formed separately, and they do not yet have any warm nature, nor are they very bright. However, they are similar to the nature around the earth. Each of these things was formed first from some individual arrangement of the world, and later, as the circle around the sun grew larger, the fire was left behind in them.

⁸ Epicurus, the Athenian son of Neocles, tries to calm the confusion about the gods. He says that nothing comes from what does not exist, because everything always is or will be like this. He claims that nothing new is created in the infinite time that has already passed. He believes that everything is a body, and it is not only unchanging but also infinite. He states that the ultimate good is pleasure.

⁹ Aristippus of Cyrene says that the ultimate good is pleasure, and the ultimate bad is pain. He describes other natural things, saying that the only useful thing is to seek whatever is made in homes, both good and bad.

¹⁰ Empedocles of Akragas says there are four elements: fire, water, air, and earth. The causes of these elements are love and strife. He claims that when the elements mix, the air surrounds them in a circle, and then fire rushes out, having no other place to go but up, pushed by the air around it. There are two half-spheres moving in a circle around the earth: one is entirely fire, and the other is a mix of air and a little fire, which he thinks is what we see at night. He believes that the beginning of movement happens when things come together through gathering, pushed by the fire. He says the sun is not fire itself, but a reflection of fire, similar to what happens with water. He claims that the moon is formed from the leftover air that was cooled by fire; it freezes like hail. The light of the moon comes from the sun. The ruling part of a person is not in the head or chest, but in the blood. Therefore, wherever a part of the body is larger, the ruling part is spread out, and he thinks that people are better in that part.

¹¹ Metrodorus of Chios says that everything is eternal. If it were created, it would come from nothing. He believes that the infinite is eternal because it has no beginning, no end, and no limit. He also says that everything does not take part in movement. It is impossible to move without changing location, and it must change to either a full place or an empty one. When the air becomes dense, it forms clouds, then water, which can fall on the sun and extinguish it; and again, when it becomes thin, it ignites. Over time, the sun freezes from the dry air and makes stars from bright water, creating night and day from the extinguishing and igniting, and in general, causing eclipses.

¹² Diogenes of Apollonia says that air is an element. Everything is in motion, and there are infinite worlds. He explains how the universe is created: from everything that is moving, some parts become thin while others become dense. Where the dense parts gather, they create a spiral, and in this way, the lighter parts rise to the top, forming the sun.

¹³ This is how the wise Greeks, the natural philosophers, talked about the creation of everything and the first origin of the universe. They did not suggest that there was a creator or a maker of all things, nor did they mention a god at all. Instead, they believed that everything happened by blind chance and automatic movement.

¹⁴ Such was their opposition to each other, with none agreeing among themselves, and everything filled with conflict and disagreement. For this reason, the remarkable Socrates showed them all to be foolish, saying that those who were angry did not differ at all. Indeed, if you have a reliable witness, Xenophon, in his Memorabilia, says this.

¹⁵ "No one ever saw Socrates doing or saying anything disrespectful or wrong. For he did not talk about the nature of everything or other matters, as most people think. Instead, he focused on how the world, which is called by the sophists, is arranged and what necessities cause each thing to happen in the heavens. He also showed that those who worry about such things are foolish." And he continues next.

¹⁶ But if it is not clear to them that it is impossible for humans to discover these things, since even those who think the greatest thoughts do not agree with each other about these matters, but are similarly angry with one another. Among the angry, some do not fear terrible things, while others fear things that are not frightening. And among those worrying about the nature of everything, some believe that only one thing exists, while others believe in countless things. Some think that everything is always moving, while others believe that nothing ever moves. Some believe that everything comes into being and perishes, while others think that nothing ever comes into being or perishes.

¹⁷ This is what Socrates said, as Xenophon testifies. Plato also agrees with this in his work on the soul, writing that he said, "For I, Kebes, when I was young, greatly desired this wisdom, which they call the study of nature. I thought it would be impressive to know the causes of each thing: why each thing comes into being, why it perishes, and why it exists. Many times I turned my thoughts upside down, first considering such things: Is it when heat and cold take hold of something, as some say, that living things come together? Is it the blood that we think with, or is it air, or is it fire? Or is it none of these, but the brain, which gives us the senses to see, hear, and smell? From these, memory and opinion arise, and from memory and opinion, knowledge is formed about these things."

¹⁸ And again, while thinking about the destruction of these things and the changes in the heavens and the earth, I came to believe that I was completely foolish for thinking there was any value in this kind of thinking. But I will give you a strong example: I, who had once clearly understood what I thought I knew, was so blinded by this very thought that I forgot even those things I believed I understood before.

¹⁹ This is what Socrates himself, who is well-known among all Greeks, thought about the nature of the things mentioned. It seems right to me that we should also avoid disbelief in all these things, since even the mistakes of polytheism do not seem to be different from what has been said. This will be examined at the right time, when we will show that Anaxagoras was the first among the Greeks to understand the mind in relation to the cause of everything. But now, let me turn to Diodorus and see what he says about the earliest theology of humans.

Book 1, Section 9

The people in Egypt, looking up at the world and being amazed by the nature of everything, believed that there were two eternal and primary gods: the sun and the moon. They named the sun Osiris and the moon Isis, based on some true meaning behind each name.

² When these names are translated into Greek, Osiris is called "the one with many eyes," which makes sense; for he sees the whole earth and sea by casting his rays everywhere, just like many eyes. The poet also agrees with this when he says, "Helios, who sees everything and hears everything."

³ Some of the ancient storytellers among the Greeks call Osiris Dionysus and playfully refer to him as Seirios. Eumolpos says in his Bacchic poems, "the starry Dionysus with fiery rays." Orpheus also calls him Phanites and Dionysus. Some say that his robe is made from the colorful patterns of the stars.

⁴ Isis, when translated, is an ancient name for the moon, coming from her eternal and ancient origin. They also place horns on her, based on her appearance, which looks like a crescent moon at any time she exists, and from the sacred cow associated with her by the Egyptians. These gods are thought to govern the entire universe.

⁵ Such things are indeed so. In Phoenician theology, the Phoenicians believed that the first natural beings were the sun, the moon, and the other wandering stars, along with the elements and the gods connected to them. They thought these were the oldest beings to whom they dedicated the plants of the earth, believing them to be gods, and they worshipped them. From these, they believed all beings came into existence, as did those who followed them, and all those before them. They performed libations and offerings. They also purified with pity, sorrow, and weeping for the plants of the earth that were dying, and they honored the birth of animals from the earth, both first and last, through which life began.

⁶ These were indeed the inventions of worship, similar to their weakness and the timid nature of their souls. This will be shown in the writings of the Phoenicians, as will be explained later. But also, that same person, who is honored among us despite slander, wrote about "The Departure of Living Beings," and he recalls the memory of ancient times in this way, using Theophrastus as a witness.

⁷ Time seems to be countless, from which the most thoughtful race of all began, as Theophrastus says, and they settled in the sacred land built by the Nile. The first people began to offer sacrifices to the heavenly gods at their hearths, not with offerings mixed with myrrh, cinnamon, or saffron. Many generations later, these practices were forgotten, and man, becoming a master of his necessary life, began to offer these things to the gods with much effort and tears.

⁸ Therefore, they did not offer these things first, but instead, they took some kind of green growth from the fertile earth with their hands. For indeed, the earth produced trees before animals, and much earlier than the yearly grass. From this, they gathered leaves, roots, and all the shoots of nature, and they burned them, offering the visible heavenly gods their sacrifices, and they made the honors of fire eternal for them.

⁹ For they kept the fire immortal in the temples, as it was most similar to them. From the offerings of the earth, they called the incense burners, the act of sacrificing, and the offerings. We mistakenly hear these as the later flood, referring to the care through animals as a sacrifice.

¹⁰ The ancients cared so much about not breaking the custom, as it went against the old ways that were fading away. When they introduced something new, they would call the incense offerings by the names of the scents they had gathered.

¹¹ Having said this, he adds in other words, "Far from the offerings of first fruits, as people move toward wrongdoing, the most terrible neglect of sacrifices has arisen, full of cruelty. It seems that the curses mentioned before have now reached their end, with people being slaughtered and the altars soaked in blood."

¹² Porphyrius said just as much as Theophrastus. A confirmation of this idea can be found in Plato's Cratylus, where he talks about the Greeks, saying, "It seems to me that the first people around Greece consider only these as gods, just like many of the barbarians today: the sun, the moon, the earth, the stars, and the sky. Since they see all these things always moving and rushing, they named these as gods based on this nature of divine beings."

¹³ But it is clear to anyone who thinks about it that the earliest and oldest people neither built temples nor had statues made. At that time, there was no art of painting, sculpting, or making statues invented, nor was there any building or architecture established.

¹⁴ It is clear that there was no memory of the gods and heroes named after this time. There was no Zeus, no Cronus, no Poseidon, no Apollo, no Hera, no Athena, no Dionysus, nor any other male or female god like those that came later among the many barbarians and Greeks. Also, no good or evil spirit was admired among people. Only the visible heavenly stars were worshiped, as they say, and not even these were honored with sacrifices from animals or later offerings. Our argument does not come from us, but the testimony from the Greeks themselves will provide proof through the words presented and those that will be shared next.

¹⁵ This is what the sacred teachings tell us. They say that all nations share the honor of the visible lights, but only the Hebrew people are given the understanding of the creator and maker of all things, along with the true piety toward him.

¹⁶ So, there was no account of Greek or barbarian creation myths among the earliest people, nor any establishment of lifeless statues, nor the many empty tales about the names of male and female gods that we have today.

¹⁷ If indeed the names and titles created by people later were not known among them at that time, then there were no calls for unseen spirits or demons, no myths about gods and heroes, no secret rituals of sacred ceremonies, and nothing at all of the many foolish superstitions of later people.

¹⁸ These were inventions of humans and imitations of mortal nature, more like tricks of shameful and immoral behavior, according to our sacred teaching that says, "the beginning of prostitution is the idea of an idol."

¹⁹ Indeed, the widespread belief in many gods among all nations appeared long after, starting with the Phoenicians and Egyptians, and then spreading from them to other nations and even to the Greeks. This is also what the oldest history shows, which is worth examining, beginning with the Phoenicians.

²⁰ These things are recorded by Sanchuniathon, a very ancient man from the time of the Trojan War, as they say, who is noted for the accuracy and truth of Phoenician history. Philo, not the Hebrew, translated his entire work from the Phoenician language into Greek. Our own scholar mentions these things in the fourth part of his work, providing evidence for this man's words.

²¹ Sanchuniathon of Berytus tells the most truthful things about the Jews, noting that both their places and names are very similar. He took his notes from Hierombalus, the priest of the god Jove, who presented the history to Abibalus, the king of the Berytians, and accepted it from him and those who examined the truth. The times he speaks of are before the Trojan War and are almost close to the time of Moses, as they mention the line of the silent kings of Phoenicia. Sanchuniathon, in the Phoenician dialect, truthfully gathered and wrote all the ancient history from the city records and the inscriptions in the temples. He wrote about Semiramis, the queen of the Assyrians, who is said to have existed before the Trojan times or around that period. Philo of Byblos translated Sanchuniathon's work into Greek.

²² These things show both truth and ancientness, as the theologian testifies. However, he does not speak of the god above all, nor of the gods in the sky. Instead, he talks about mortal men and women and the foolish way they are seen as worthy of praise or imitation for their virtue, even while being wrapped in all kinds of baseness and wickedness. He indeed testifies that these are the same ones who are still regarded as gods by everyone in the cities and regions. Also, consider the proofs from their writings.

²³ Philo, after dividing the entire work of Sanchuniathon into nine books, begins the first book with these words about Sanchuniathon.

²⁴ With these things in mind, Sanchuniathon, a very learned and curious man, wanting to know everything from the beginning, from which all things were made, carefully investigated the history of Taautus. He knew that Taautus is the first of those things that happened under the sun. He invented the writing of letters and began the writing of records. From this point, as if laying a foundation for his speech, the Egyptians called him Thoth, the Alexandrians also called him Thoth, and the Greeks translated his name as Hermes.

²⁵ Having said this, he criticizes those who came after him for interpreting the myths about the gods in a forced and untrue way, using allegories and natural explanations. He then continues by saying...

²⁶ But the very latest priests dismissed the actual events from the beginning. They invented allegories and myths, creating mysteries by linking them to worldly experiences. They became very proud, making it difficult for anyone to see the true events. However, he connected with the hidden writings of the Ammonians, which were not known to everyone, and he taught the knowledge of all things himself. Finally, he added to the work, clarifying the original myth and the allegories, revealing the true intention. Later, however, the priests wanted to hide this again and restore it to the mythical. From this, the secret emerged, which had not yet reached the Greeks.

²⁷ Next, he says, "We have carefully discovered what the Phoenicians desire, having explored much material, not the kind from the Greeks; for this is different and more disputed by some than it is arranged according to the truth."

²⁸ And in addition to other matters, it has been shown to us that it is as he wrote; they see the disagreement among the Greeks. Regarding this, three books have been highly valued by me, titled "Of Strange History."

²⁹ And again, he adds, "It is necessary to clarify for better understanding and to recognize that the oldest of the barbarians, especially the Phoenicians and Egyptians, from whom other people also gained knowledge, believed that the greatest gods were those who provided for daily needs or did good things for the nations. They considered these beings as benefactors and the sources of many good things, worshipping them as gods. They built temples in their honor, offering pillars and staffs in their names, showing great respect for them, and the Phoenicians held the greatest festivals for them. Particularly from their own kings, they added names of the cosmic elements and some of the recognized gods. They recognized only the natural ones, like the sun, the moon, and the other wandering stars and elements, along with the gods associated with these, so that for them, some were mortal and others were immortal gods."

³⁰ These things, having been outlined in the introduction, Philo then begins the interpretation of the work of Sanchuniathon, explaining Phoenician theology in this way.

Book Two

He suggests that the origin of everything is a dark and misty air, or a breath of dark air, along with chaotic, murky darkness. These things are infinite and have no end for a long time. But when, he says, the spirit desired its own beginnings, a mixture occurred, and that intertwining was called desire. This is the beginning of the creation of all things. It did not recognize its own creation, and from the intertwining of the spirit, Môt came into being.

² Some say this is mud, while others say it is the decay of a watery mixture. From this came all the seeds of creation and the generation of everything. There were some creatures without sensation, from which intelligent beings came into being, and they were called Zoëphasmín, meaning "watchers of the sky." They were shaped like an egg, and Môt shone forth, along with the sun, the moon, and the great stars.

³ Such is their creation of the world, which introduces outright godlessness. But let us now see how it also discusses the generation of life.

⁴ And when the air became clear, through the heating of the sea and the earth, spirits and clouds came into being, along with the greatest downpours and floods of heavenly waters. When everything was separated, and its own place was divided because of the sun's heat, everything came together again in the air, and they joined as one. Thunder roared, and lightning flashed. At the crash of the thunder, the intelligent creatures that had been mentioned woke up, and at the sound, they stirred, both male and female, in the earth and the sea.

⁵ Such is their generation of life. The same author continues, saying, "These things were found written in the creation of the world, in the notes of that one, from thoughts and evidence that his mind has seen and discovered, and he has enlightened us."

⁶ Next, after mentioning the names of the winds, the south wind and the north wind, he adds, "But these were the first to dedicate the plants of the earth and believed in gods. They worshiped these gods, from whom they themselves were born, along with those who followed them and all those before them. They made offerings and sacrifices."

⁷ And he adds, "These were the inventions of worship, similar to their weakness and the cowardice of their souls. Then he says that they were born from the South wind and the woman Baaut, which means night, Aion and Protogonos, mortal men, thus called; for Aion is found to mean nourishment from trees. From these, those born were called Race and Generation, and they settled in Phoenicia. When they were thirsty, they raised their hands to the sky towards the sun. For they believed this god to be the only lord of heaven. They called him Baalshamin, which means lord of heaven among the Phoenicians, but Zeus among the Greeks."

⁸ After these things, he blames the Greeks for their confusion, saying, "For we have not been scattered in vain in many ways by names, which the Greeks, not knowing, accepted differently, being misled by the uncertainty of translation."

⁹ Next, he says, "From the Race of Aion and Protogonos, mortal children were born again, whose names are Light, Fire, and Flame. These, he says, found fire by rubbing wood together and taught others how to use it. These sons were larger and stronger, and their names were given to the mountains they conquered, so they were called Cassius, Lebanon, Antilebanon, and Brathy. From these, he says, Samimromus was born, who is also called Hypsuranios and Ousoo. He says that they were enriched by their mothers, from the women of that time who mingled freely with whoever they met."

¹⁰ Then he says, "Hypsuranios settled in Tyre and invented huts made from reeds, rushes, and papyrus. He stood by his brother Ousoo, who was strong in body. Ousoo was the first to use animal skins to capture wild beasts. When heavy rains and winds came, he rubbed the trees in Tyre to start a fire and burned the wood there. Taking a tree, Ousoo first dared to enter the sea. He set up two pillars with fire and spirit and worshipped, pouring out blood from the beasts he had captured."

¹¹ When these died, he says, the survivors dedicated staffs to them, worshipped the pillars, and held festivals for them every year. Many years later, from the lineage of Hypsuranios, Agrea and Haliea were born, who discovered hunting and fishing, from whom came the names hunters and fishermen. From them were born two brothers, the discoverers of iron and its uses. One of them was Chrysoor, who practiced words, songs, and prophecies; he was called Hephaestus. He also invented the hook, bait, anchor, and net, being the first among all men to sail. For this reason, they honored him as a god after his death.

¹² He is also called gentle Zeus, and they say that his brothers invented walls made of bricks. After this, from this lineage, two young men were born, one called Technites and the other Geinos. These two thought to mix clay with straw and dry the bricks in the sun, and they also discovered roofs. From them came others, one called Alros and the other Agrueiros or Agrótis, who had a very revered statue and a temple carried on a yoke in Phoenicia. Among the Byblians, he is especially named the greatest of the gods.

¹³ They also thought to add courtyards to the houses, as well as fences and caves. From these came farmers and hunters. They are also called Aleitai and Titans. From them were born Amynon and Magon, who taught how to build villages and raise livestock. From these came Misor and Sudyk, which mean easy and just. These two discovered the use of salt.

¹⁴ From Misor came Taautos, who discovered the writing of the first elements. The Egyptians called him Thoth, the Alexandrians also called him Thoth, and the Greeks called him Hermes. From Sudyk came the Dioscuri, or Cabiri, or Corybantes, or Samothracians. These are said to be the first to discover ships. From them, others were born who also found herbs, healing for wounds, and spells. Among them is one called the Most High, Helion, and a woman named Thelia from Beirut; they also lived around Byblos.

¹⁵ From these comes the Earth-dweller, who was later called Uranus. Because of him, the element above us is named heaven due to its great beauty. He has a sister born from those mentioned before, who is also called Earth. Because of her beauty, they say they named the land after her. Their father, the Most High, was honored after the end of the beasts, to whom the children made offerings and sacrifices.

¹⁶ Then Uranus took the rule from his father and went to marry his sister Earth. With her, he had four children: Helios, who is also called Cronus, Baitylus, Dagon, who is Siton, and Atlas. From other wives, Uranus had many descendants. Because of her jealousy, Earth mistreated Uranus, hoping they would be separated from each other.

¹⁷ But Uranus, having separated from her, would often come close to her again, only to pull away once more. He also tried to destroy the children he had with her. Earth often defended herself, gathering allies to help her. Then Cronus, having grown into a man, used Hermes, his greatest helper and advisor, for he was his secretary, to defend against his father Uranus, seeking to avenge his mother.

¹⁸ Cronus had children named Persephone and Athena. The first was a maiden. With the advice of Athena and Hermes, Cronus made a sickle and a spear out of iron. Then Hermes spoke to Cronus's allies, using magical words to stir their desire for battle against Uranus on behalf of Earth. So, Cronus engaged Uranus in war, drove him from power, and took the kingdom. During the battle, Uranus's beloved partner, who was pregnant, was captured, and Cronus gave her in marriage to Dagon.

¹⁹ She gave birth to the child she carried from Uranus, who was named Demaroon. After this, Cronus surrounded his home with a wall and built the first city, Bublon, in Phoenicia.

²⁰ After this, Cronus suspected his own brother Atlas and, with Hermes's advice, threw him deep into the earth. During this time, the Dioscuri built ships and sailed. After hiding around Mount Cassius, they dedicated a temple there. The allies of Cronus were called Helouim, as they were known as Cronians in honor of him.

²¹ Cronus had a son named Sadidon, and he used iron to harm him, suspecting him. He took away the child's soul, becoming the killer himself. In the same way, he cut off the head of his own daughter, so that all the gods would be affected by Cronus's will.

²² As time passed, Uranus was in hiding, and he had a daughter, the virgin Astarte, along with two other sisters, Rhea and Dione. He secretly urged Cronus to kill them. Cronus took them and made them his wives, since they were his sisters.

²³ Knowing this, Uranus gathered allies against Cronus, including Fate and Hour. Cronus, having made them familiar with him, kept them close. It is also said that the god Uranus created living stones. From Astarte, Cronus had seven daughters, known as the Titanides or the Artemides.

²⁴ And again, from Rhea, seven children were born, the youngest of whom was dedicated at birth. From Dione, there were daughters, and from Astarte, there were also two sons named Desire and Love.

²⁵ But Dagon, when he found grain and a plow, was called Zeus the Plowman. With Sudykos, who is known as Just, one of the Titanides came together and bore Asclepius.

²⁶ Three children were also born to Cronus in Peraea: Cronus, who had the same name as his father, Zeus Belus, and Apollo. From these, Pontus, Typhon, and Nereus, the father of Pontus, came into being.

²⁷ From Pontus comes Sidon, who, because of her beautiful voice, was the first to create a hymn of songs, along with Poseidon. To Demarounte, Melkathros is born, who is also known as Heracles.

²⁸ Then again, Uranus fights against Pontus, and after separating from Demarounte, he adds to him. Demarounte persuades Pontus, but Pontus turns him away. In response, Demarounte prays for a sacrifice to help him escape.

²⁹ In the thirty-second year of his own rule and kingship, Helos, who is Cronus, ambushed his father Uranus in a certain middle place. He took a sickle and cut off his genitals near the springs and rivers. There, Uranus was honored, and his spirit was separated. His blood dripped from his genitals into the springs and the waters of the rivers, and to this day, the place is shown.

³⁰ So much for Cronus, and such are the sacred stories of the life of those who lived during his time. They say these people were the first golden race of mortal men, from that blessed old happiness. Again, the writer adds to these stories, saying:

³¹ Astarte, the greatest, along with Zeus Demarous and Adodos, king of the gods, ruled over the land of Cronus by their will. Astarte placed a bull's head as a symbol of kingship on her own head. As she traveled around the world, she found a star that soared through the sky, which she took and dedicated on the holy island of Tyre.

³² The Phoenicians say that Astarte is Aphrodite. And as Cronus traveled around the world, he gave the kingdom of Attica to his daughter Athena.

³³ When a plague and destruction struck, Cronus completely sacrificed his only son to Uranus, his father. He also cut off his own genitals, forcing his allies to do the same.

³⁴ Not long after, he dedicated another son of his, named Muth, who died from Rhea. The Phoenicians call death Pluto.

³⁵ On top of this, Cronus gives the city of Byblos to the goddess Baaltis, who is also called Dione. He gives Beirut to Poseidon and the Cabiri, as well as to the farmers and fishermen, who dedicated the remains of the sea to Beirut.

³⁶ Before this, the god Thoth, imitating the appearances of the gods present, created the sacred symbols of the elements in the likeness of Cronus, Dagon, and the others. He also invented royal signs for Cronus: four eyes on the front and back, two that were closed, and on his shoulders, four wings—two that looked like they were flying and two that looked like they were folded down.

³⁷ The symbol represented that while Cronus was sleeping, he could still see, and when he was awake, he would fall asleep. Similarly, with the wings, when he was resting, he would fly, and when he was flying, he would rest. For the other gods, each had two wings on their shoulders, as they were linked to Cronus. For him, there were also two wings on his head—one on the most commanding part of his mind and one for his senses.

³⁸ Then Cronus went to the southern region and gave all of Egypt to the god Thoth, so that it would become his kingdom. These events, he says, were first recalled by the seven Cabiri children and their brother Asclepius, as the god Thoth had commanded them.

³⁹ All these things were passed down by Thoth, who was the very first hierophant of the Phoenicians from ancient times, using allegories about natural and cosmic experiences. He delivered them to the initiates and the leaders of the rituals. They, wanting to increase the confusion, handed them down to their successors and followers. One of these was Isirios, one of the three followers. He was the discoverer and the brother of Khnum, who was the first to be renamed Phoenician.

⁴⁰ Next, he chooses to say again, "The Greeks, being naturally gifted, first created many things from their own ideas, and then they decorated them in various ways with embellishments, hoping to delight in the pleasures of myths and to make everything colorful. From this, Hesiod and the circular poets created their own versions of the Theogony, the Gigantomachy, and the Titanomachy, and by adapting these, they overcame the truth."

⁴¹ But the stories that came from their creations have become our listeners, and after being passed down through many ages, they keep safe the tradition of the myths that they accepted, just as I mentioned at the beginning. This tradition, having developed over time, has made its hold hard to escape, so that the truth seems like nonsense, while the tale appears to be the true reality.

⁴² Let these things come from the writing of Sanchuniathon, which was interpreted by Philo of Byblos and confirmed as true by the testimony of Porphyry the philosopher. He also writes about these matters concerning Cronus in his work about the Jews.

⁴³ Thoth, whom the Egyptians call Thoth, brought wisdom to the Phoenicians and was the first to organize the matters of piety from the confusion of the common people into a scientific understanding. After many generations, the god Surmubelos and the renamed Thuro, now called Eusarthis, followed him and shed light on the hidden theology of Thoth, which was overshadowed by allegories.

⁴⁴ "And shortly after, he says, 'It was a custom among the ancients, during great disasters, to offer the beloved children of those who ruled a city or a nation as a sacrifice to the avenging spirits, as a ransom for all. Those who were given were secretly slaughtered. Therefore, Cronus, whom the Phoenicians call El, ruled over the land, and after the end of his life, he was established as a star of Cronus. He had a unique son from a local nymph named Anobret, whom they called Iedoud for this reason. The only-begotten is still called this by the Phoenicians. When the greatest dangers from war seized the land, he, adorned in royal form, built an altar for his son and gladly poured a libation.'"

⁴⁵ He himself again, shifting the topic to the Phoenician elements from Sanchuniathon, talks about the crawling creatures and those that bring poison. These creatures do not provide any good use for humans; instead, they cause destruction and harm to those whom they sting with their painful and harsh venom. He also writes about these things in this way.

⁴⁶ Therefore, Thoth himself described the nature of the dragon and the serpents, and after him, both the Phoenicians and Egyptians followed suit. This creature is the most spiritual of all reptiles and was handed down as fiery by him. It also shows unmatched speed through its spirit, without feet, hands, or any other external parts that other animals use for movement. It can take on various shapes and moves in a twisting manner according to the speed it desires.

⁴⁷ And it is very long-lived, not only shedding its old age to become young again, but it also has a nature that allows for growth. When it has filled its set measure, it consumes itself, just as Thoth arranged in the sacred writings. For this reason, this creature is included in sacred places and in mysteries.

⁴⁸ It has been said to us about it in the writings of the Ethothians, where it is explained that it is immortal and that it consumes itself, as stated. This creature does not die a natural death unless it is struck by some violent blow. The Phoenicians call it a good spirit, and similarly, the Egyptians name it 'Kneph.' They also add a hawk's head to it because of the hawk's practical nature.

⁴⁹ And the Epēios speaks in allegories (he who is called the greatest hierophant and scribe among them, translated by Areios of Heracleopolis) as follows: "The first being is the most divine serpent, having the form of a hawk, very graceful. If it looks up, it fills the whole place with light in its original land; but if it looks down, darkness comes."

⁵⁰ The Epēios, giving an indication, says that it is also fiery because of the saying "it shines brightly." For light is its own clarity. Among the Phoenicians, Pherecydes took the starting points and spoke about the god called Ophiōn and the Ophiōnids, which we will discuss again later.

⁵¹ Moreover, the Egyptians, from the same ideas, depict the universe as a round shape that is airy and fiery, with a serpent in the middle that has the form of a hawk. The whole shape resembles the letter theta; the circle represents the universe, while the serpent in the center symbolizes the good spirit that connects it.

⁵² And Zoroaster, the magician, in the sacred gathering of the Persians, says literally, "the god has the head of a hawk. He is the first, immortal, eternal, without a beginning, most unlike anything else, the charioteer of all that is beautiful, not one to receive gifts, the best of the good, the wisest of the wise; he is also the father of order and justice, self-taught, natural, perfect, wise, and the only discoverer of sacred nature." The same things are said by Ostanes about him in the work titled "Octateuch."

⁵³ All took their starting points from Thoth and explained things as follows. First, they built temples in hidden places using serpents and dedicated them. They held festivals and sacrifices for these and performed rituals, believing them to be the greatest gods and the leaders of all. This is how much they said about the serpents.

⁵⁴ But indeed, the theology of the Phoenicians follows this path: it seeks to escape unchangeably and to pursue the cure for the madness of the ancients, as the saving message proclaims.

⁵⁵ That these are not myths or mere inventions of poets, but instead hold a deeper meaning from wise and ancient theologians, as they themselves claim, is clear. They provide true testimonies that are older than all poets and writers, revealing the truth of their words from the cities and villages of Phoenicia, where the names and histories of the gods still hold power, and where each group performs its own mysteries. It is evident that there is no need to forcefully search for the nature of these things, as the evidence from them is clear. Such is the theology of the Phoenicians; now it is time to turn and examine that of the Egyptians.

Introduction

Introduction. The theology of the Phoenicians follows the path mentioned earlier; it seeks to escape unchangeably and to pursue the cure for the madness of the ancients, as the saving message proclaims.

² It is clear that these are not myths or mere inventions of poets, but instead hold a deeper meaning from wise and ancient theologians, as they themselves claim. They provide true testimonies that are older than all poets and writers, revealing the truth of their words from the cities and villages of Phoenicia, where the names and histories of the gods still hold power, and where each group performs its own mysteries. There is no need to forcefully search for the nature of these things, as the evidence is clear. This is the theology of the Phoenicians; now it is time to turn and examine that of the Egyptians.

³ For these things, as mentioned earlier, the voices made it clear that there is no longer a need to forcefully search for the nature of these matters, since the evidence from them clearly reveals the truth of the facts.

⁴ Such is the theology of the Phoenicians. Now it is time to turn and examine that of the Egyptians, to understand clearly and closely whether their teachings are not hidden and whether they are reasonable. This can only be done through clear evidence, first from the Egyptians themselves, and then from those who share similar views.

⁵ Therefore, the entire history of Egypt has been included in the writings of the Greeks, especially the sections about their theology by Manetho the Egyptian, both in the sacred book he wrote and in his other writings.

⁶ But also Diodorus, mentioned before us, gathered histories from many sources and accurately reported what is most important about each nation. He is a well-known man who has gained great respect for his knowledge among all scholars. He collected the entire ancient history and connected the earlier events with those that follow, making the beginning of his whole work based on the theology of the Egyptians. I believe it is better to present the information about the topics at hand in this way, as it will be more familiar to the Greeks from this writing. He indeed records these things word for word.

Book 2, Section 1

The Egyptians say that the first humans came to be in Egypt because of the good conditions of the land and the nature of the Nile. This river, being very fertile and providing food naturally, easily nourishes the living things that grow.

² They say that the gods were once humans who became mortal but gained immortality through their wisdom and the good they did for people, some of whom became kings. When translated, some of these gods have the same names as the heavenly ones, while others have their own unique names. They mention Helios and Cronus, as well as Zeus, who is called Ammon by some. Along with these, they include Hera, Hephaestus, Hestia, and finally Hermes.

³ And first, they say that Helios ruled over those in Egypt, sharing the same name as the star in the sky. However, some of the priests say that Hephaestus was the first to rule, as he was the discoverer of fire.

⁴ After this, they say that Cronus began to rule and married his sister Rhea. According to some, he fathered Osiris and Isis, but according to most, he fathered Zeus and Hera, who ruled over the entire universe because of their goodness.

⁵ From these, five gods came to be: Osiris, Isis, Typhon, Apollo, and Aphrodite. They say that Osiris is the same as Dionysus, and that Isis is the same as Demeter. After marrying her, Osiris took over the kingdom and did many good deeds for the benefit of all.

⁶ He founded a city in the land of Thebes with a hundred gates, which some call the city of Zeus, while others call it Thebes. He also established a temple for his parents, Zeus and Hera, and built golden temples for the other gods, to whom he assigned honors. He appointed priests to take care of these temples.

⁷ Osiris was the first to discover the vine, and he used it in its natural form. He also taught the other people about farming.

⁸ He was especially honored by Hermes, who had a unique nature that helped improve common life. For Hermes was the first to discover writing, arrange sacrifices for the gods, invent the lyre, and teach the Greeks about these things. Because of this, he was named Hermes.

⁹ He also discovered the olive tree plant. When Osiris arrived, he established Bousiris in Phoenicia, and in Ethiopia and Libya, he set up Antaeus. He gathered an army with the brother of Apollo, who is said to be the first to discover the laurel plant.

¹⁰ Osiris gathered his two sons, Anubis and Macedon, and he also welcomed Pan, who was especially honored by the Egyptians and for whom the city of Pan was named. He was troubled by the race of Satyrs around Taphosiris.

¹¹ Being fond of music, he surrounded himself with a crowd of musicians, including nine maidens who could sing and were skilled in other arts. The Greeks called them the Muses, with Apollo as their leader.

¹² Since every nation honored Osiris as a god for his good deeds, they left monuments to him everywhere.

¹³ They also built many cities in India.

¹⁴ They also approached the other nations in Phrygia and crossed over to Europe across the Hellespont. They left the son of the king of Macedonia behind but entrusted the farming in Attica to Triptolemus.

¹⁵ After this, those who changed from humans to gods were honored by Isis and Hermes, along with the other most famous gods. They also revealed these rituals and taught many secret things about him.

¹⁶ He was killed by Typhon, his brother, who was wicked and impious. After tearing the body of the slain into sixteen pieces, he wanted to give each of those who attacked him a share, hoping that all would take part in the secret.

¹⁷ Isis, who was both the sister and wife of Osiris, went to avenge the murder, with her son Horus fighting alongside her. She killed Typhon and those who had helped him near the village now called Antaeus in Egypt.

¹⁸ She found all the parts of Osiris's body except for the private ones. They say she shaped each part into a human-like form, similar in size to Osiris, using perfumes and wax, and gave them to the priests throughout all of Egypt as an honor. She also established that any animals born among them could be whatever they wanted.

¹⁹ The sacred bulls, one called Apis and the other Mnevis, were dedicated to Osiris, and all the Egyptians were shown to honor them as gods. For those who found the grain harvest were thought to help with planting and farming in general.

²⁰ They swore that Isis would accept no more union with any man. After she changed, she was honored among mortals with divine honors and was buried in Memphis.

²¹ They say that the parts of Osiris that were found were honored in the way mentioned. They claim that the private part was thrown into the river by Typhon, but that it was still honored by Isis with the same honors as the other parts.

²² In the sacred places, they created an image of him to display honors, rituals, and the sacrifices made to this god, making them the most respected. Therefore, the Greeks who came from Egypt honored the rites and the Dionysian festivals, referring to this part in the mysteries and the rituals and sacrifices of this god as 'phallus'.

²³ They say that the god was born in Thebes of Boeotia from Semele and Zeus. When Orpheus traveled to Egypt and participated in the rituals and the Dionysian mysteries, he was loved and honored by the Cadmeans, and he shared with them the story of the god's birth as a gift. The crowds, some out of ignorance and others wanting to name the god as a Greek, welcomed the rituals and the mysteries with kindness.

²⁴ Orpheus had reasons for changing the story of the god's birth and rituals in this way: Cadmus, being from Thebes, was said to have been born of the Egyptians along with other children and Semele. This woman, however, was believed to have become pregnant by someone, and after seven months, she gave birth to a child, similar to those who are thought to have been born in Egypt as Osiris.

²⁵ When Cadmus died, he turned the child into gold and offered sacrifices to him. He also honored the birth by dedicating it to Zeus, making Osiris sacred, and removing the blame for the woman's death. Therefore, among the Greeks, it was said that Cadmus's daughter Semele gave birth to Osiris by Zeus.

²⁶ Then, as the storytellers arrived, they filled the theater and created a strong and lasting belief among those who listened. In general, it is said that the Greeks selected the most famous heroes and gods from Egypt.

²⁷ For indeed, Heracles, being of Egyptian descent, was said to have brought great strength to the world. People became familiar with him, and there was also another Heracles among the Greeks who was born later, different from the one who was the son of Alcmene.

²⁸ They also say that Perseus was born in Egypt, and that the story of Isis was brought to Argos by the Greeks. While telling stories, they claimed she was Io, who was transformed into the shape of a cow. Some called her Isis, others Demeter, some the Bringer of Law, and still others Selene and Hera.

²⁹ Some called Osiris Sarapis, others Dionysus, some Pluto, others Ammon, and still others Zeus, while some thought of him as Pan.

³⁰ They say that Isis discovered many medicines and the science of healing. She also found the potion of immortality, which helped her son Horus, who was attacked by the Titans and found dead in the water. Not only did she bring his soul back to life, but she also allowed him to share in immortality.

³¹ They say that Horus, being the last of the gods, ruled over Egypt. They also say that he is the same as Apollo, who was taught healing and prophecy by his mother Isis, so he could help others through oracles and healing.

³² Most people agree that during the time of Isis, some large giants started a terrible war against the gods, including Zeus and Osiris. They also made laws for the Egyptians to marry their sisters because Isis was married to her brother Osiris.

³³ And this is what they say about these things. As for the sacred animals in Egypt, they have a story: Some say that the first gods were few in number and were overpowered by the many and the wickedness of the native people. They became like irrational animals and thus escaped. Later, to show gratitude for their salvation, they dedicated the natures of those animals to the gods they resembled.

³⁴ They say that in their battles against enemies, the leaders wore images of the animals they honor now on their heads, and this was a sign of their authority. After their victories over their foes, they would dedicate the images of those animals as a way to show gratitude for their success.

³⁵ Others offer a third reason, saying that the animals are honored because of their usefulness. The female cow gives birth and helps with plowing, while the sheep provides wool and food from milk and cheese. The dog is kept by people and serves as a guard. That is why the god they call Anubis has the head of a dog, showing that he was a protector of those around Osiris and Isis.

³⁶ Some say that the dogs were in front of Isis when she searched for Osiris, keeping away the wild animals and anyone who came near.

³⁷ The cat is well-suited to be near shields and catch other small reptiles, while the tracker crushes the eggs of crocodiles. He kills the crocodiles by rolling in the mud and jumping on them with open mouths, also tearing apart the dead inside their bellies.

³⁸ Of the birds, the ibis is helpful against snakes, locusts, and caterpillars, while the hawk is useful against scorpions and horned creatures, as well as small biting animals. They are also involved in divination. The eagle is valued for its royal nature.

³⁹ They say that the goat is special, just like Priapus among the Greeks, because of its reproductive organ. This animal is considered the least desirable for mating, but the organ that causes generation is honored as if it were the source of all living things. In general, the private parts are not only honored by the Egyptians, but also by many others in their rituals, as the cause of the generation of living things.

⁴⁰ The priests who take on the ancestral priesthood in Egypt are initiated into the worship of this god. They say that Pan and the Satyrs are honored by people for the same reason. That is why most people place their images in the temples, arranged to resemble the nature of the goat. This animal is considered very active in mating.

⁴¹ The sacred bulls, Apis and Mnevis, are honored like the gods, both for their role in agriculture and for being linked to the discovery of the harvests.

⁴² Wolves are honored because they are similar to dogs in nature. They say that long ago, when Isis was about to compete with Typhon for her son Horus, Osiris came as a helper from the Underworld, appearing like a wolf to his child and wife.

⁴³ Others say that the Ethiopians, when they marched against Egypt, were chased away by a pack of wolves. That is why the area was called Lycopolis. They also say that the crocodile is honored because it does not dare to cross the Nile to attack thieves from Arabia and Libya.

⁴⁴ They say that one of their kings, chased by his own dogs, fled to the lake. Then, strangely, he was taken by a crocodile and carried across to the other side.

⁴⁵ Some say there are other reasons for the honor given to irrational animals. When the many kings of old stopped ruling and agreed not to rule anymore, they thought of providing different kinds of worship for these animals. This way, each animal would be honored by some people but looked down upon by others, so that they could never all agree together in Egypt.

⁴⁶ When one of these animals dies, they cover it with a linen cloth and, crying out in sorrow, bury it in sacred tombs. Anyone who willingly kills one of these animals faces death, unless it is a cat or an ibis. However, if someone kills a cat or an ibis, whether on purpose or by accident, they will definitely face death.

⁴⁷ But indeed, in any house where a dog is found dead, everyone shaves their entire body and goes into mourning. Even if wine, grain, or anything else necessary for life is lying in the house, they will not use it anymore.

⁴⁸ They feed the Apis in Memphis, the Mnevis in the city of Heliopolis, the goat in Mendes, and the crocodile in the lake of Moeris. They keep the other wild animals in sacred enclosures, bringing them fine flour or cooking barley in milk, and offering various kinds of cakes made with honey, along with meat, some of which they boil and some they roast.

⁴⁹ To those who eat raw meat, they offer many kinds of birds, and they raise the most beautiful females of each animal, which they call their concubines.

⁵⁰ When the Apis dies, they bury it with great ceremony and look for another one that is similar. When it is found, the crowd is freed from mourning, and the calf is first taken to the city of the Nile. Only then do the women see it face to face, standing and showing their private parts, while at all other times they are not allowed to approach this god. They say that the soul of Osiris moves into this calf after its death.

⁵¹ Such is the shameful atheism of the Egyptians, even more than their theology, which is also shameful to oppose. And rightly so, we have turned away from it, finding no redemption or freedom from such great evils except through the teaching of salvation and good news, which has given sight to blind minds.

⁵² We will soon look at their more serious theories and natural philosophy, after we discuss the Greek ones. Thus, the ancient myths of the Egyptians, mixed with those of the Phoenicians, have rightly dominated the superstitions of most nations.

⁵³ But we must also talk about the Greeks. The serious parts of Egyptian mythology have been included as mentioned before, while the Greek ones are often fragments and misunderstandings of these. This has been said many times through the insights of earlier writers.

⁵⁴ Indeed, it would also be clear from Greek theology itself, since those who write about the gods at home say nothing, while they are influenced by myths from outside.

⁵⁵ For they show that the offerings and the mysteries are similar, as we can learn from the history of these things. This history, which I mentioned earlier when bringing together the libraries, is discussed in the third and fourth parts of its work, starting the history from the times of Cadmus.

⁵⁶ The accurate chronologies show that Cadmus came after Moses, as we will demonstrate in due time. Therefore, it is clear that Moses is earlier than the Greek gods, since he lived before Cadmus, while those gods appear to be younger than Cadmus. So, pay attention to the words of the author.

Book 2, Section 2

They say that Cadmus, the son of Agenor, was sent from Phoenicia by the king to search for Europe, whom Zeus had taken. Not finding her, he came to Boeotia and founded the Thebes there. He married Harmonia, the daughter of Aphrodite, and had Semele and her sisters with her.

² When Semele was with Zeus, she was encouraged to ask for the same things as Hera. But when he came to her in a divine manner with thunder and lightning, Semele, who was pregnant, could not handle it and lost the child. She died because of the fire.

³ After Zeus took the child, he gave it to Hermes to be sent to the cave in Nysa, which is located between Phoenicia and the Nile. There, Dionysus was raised by the nymphs and became the discoverer of wine, teaching people how to grow the vine.

⁴ He also discovered the drink made from barley, called beer. He gathered not only men but also women into his camp, and he punished the unjust and impious among people. He campaigned in India for three years.

⁵ From there, the Greeks offered three-year sacrifices to Dionysus and believed that the god made appearances to people during this time. Everyone honored him because of the gift of wine, just as they honored Demeter for the discovery of grain for food.

⁶ They say there was another Dionysus, much earlier than this one, called Sabazius, who was born from Zeus and Persephone. His birth, sacrifices, and honors were celebrated at night and in secret because of the shame that came from the gatherings.

⁷ They say he was the first to try to yoke an ox, and from that, they introduced the horn. The one born from Semele was younger, delicate in body, and was said to be attractive in appearance and easily drawn to pleasures of love. During his travels, he was said to lead a crowd of armed women who accompanied him.

⁸ They say the Muses traveled with him, being young maidens who were well-trained, and they entertained the god with songs and dances. His tutor, Silenus, was said to greatly help him become virtuous. To relieve headaches from too much wine, he would wrap his head with a band.

⁹ They call him "twice-born" because there are two Dionysuses: one from his father and one from his mother. They also connect him with the thyrsus because when the ancients drank unmixed wine, they would become wild and strike each other with staffs, as if to kill some. This is why they show that the thyrsus is used instead of wooden sticks.

¹⁰ He is called Bacchus from the Bacchae, Leneus from stomping the grapes in the wine presses, and Bromius from the scent that arose during his birth.

¹¹ They say that he is surrounded by Satyrs in the dances and tragedies, bringing him joy and pleasure, and that he created a theater and a system of musical performances. These are the things about Dionysus.

¹² They say that Priapus is the son of Dionysus and Aphrodite because those who are drunk are thought to be drawn to the pleasures of love. Some say that the ancients called the genitals of men Priapus.

¹³ Some say that the generative organ is the reason for the birth of humans, and for this reason, it is said to gain immortal honor throughout all time. Just as the Egyptians claimed that the limbs of Osiris were searched for, unable to find his genitals, they honored him as a god and placed them in the temple as a sacred offering.

¹⁴ But among the Greeks, this god receives some honor not only in the Dionysian festivals but also in all other celebrations, being welcomed with laughter and play during the sacrifices. This is similar to Hermaphroditus, who was born from Hermes and Aphrodite and received this name.

¹⁵ They say that this god appears among humans for certain periods and is born with a nature that is a mix of both man and woman. Some claim that such beings exist, being born rarely and sometimes representing bad things, while at other times, they represent good things.

¹⁶ Some say that the Muses are the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, while others believe they are the daughters of Uranus and Gaia. Most people describe them as maidens, and they get their name from a word that means to teach humans, which refers to teaching beautiful things.

¹⁷ About Heracles, the Greeks say this: Perseus was born from Danaë, the daughter of Acrisius, and Zeus. From Perseus and Andromeda came Electryon, and from him was born Alcmene, who, after being with Zeus, gave birth to Heracles. When Zeus was with her, he made the night three times longer. This union with Zeus was not for the sake of romantic desire, like with other women, but mainly for the purpose of having children.

¹⁸ Hera, while she was walking, tried to delay Alcmene's labor pains and to bring Eurystheus into the world before the right time, since Zeus had foretold that the one born on that day would rule over the lineage of Perseus.

¹⁹ Alcmene, while giving birth, brought forth the baby, as they say, in fear of Hera. Athena, admiring the baby, persuaded Hera to let him nurse from her. But when the child pulled harder than expected and caused Hera pain, she threw the baby away. Athena then took him and told his mother to care for him.

²⁰ After this, Hera sent two dragons to destroy the baby, but the child, not afraid, squeezed the necks of each and killed the dragons. When he grew up, Eurystheus, who ruled over Argos, ordered Heracles to complete twelve tasks.

²¹ When he fell into great confusion, Hera sent him madness, and he, feeling troubled in his heart, fell into a rage. As his madness grew, he turned against his friend and cousin Iolaus, wanting to kill him. But when Iolaus fled, he shot his own children, who were born to him by Megara, the daughter of King Creon, as if they were enemies.

²² And after this, he quietly helped Eurystheus with the twelve tasks. He also killed the Centaurs, including Chiron, who was known for his healing skills.

²³ They say that something special happened in the birth of this god. For Zeus first mingled with the mortal woman Niobe, daughter of Phoroneus, and lastly with Alcmene, the mother of Heracles. They trace her lineage back to Niobe through sixteen generations. In her, he ended his relationships with mortal women.

²⁴ But after completing the labors, Heracles married his wife Megara to Iolaus, his cousin, because of the misfortune concerning their children. He himself asked for Iole, the daughter of Eurytus, to marry, but when her father refused, he became ill. He received an oracle saying he would be cured of his illness if he first sold himself into servitude.

²⁵ Then, after sailing to Phrygia, he was sold by one of his friends and became a slave to Omphale, who was ruling the Maiones at that time, now known as the Lydians. During his time as a slave, a son named Cleolaus was born to him. After marrying Omphale, he had a child with her.

²⁶ When he returned to Arcadia and stayed with King Aleus, he secretly mingled with the king's daughter and made her pregnant, then he went back.

²⁷ And after that, he married Deianira, the daughter of Oeneus, after Meleager had already died. He captured the daughter of Phyleus, mingled with her, and had a son named Telephus. While dining with Oeneus, he killed a servant who accidentally hit him with a club.

²⁸ When he was traveling and came to the river Euenus, he found Nessus the Centaur ferrying people across. First, he ferried Deianira across, and because of her beauty, he tried to force himself on her. When she cried out, her husband Heracles shot the Centaur with an arrow. As Nessus was dying from the wound, he told Deianira to give her a potion so that Heracles would desire no other woman.

²⁹ Then he urged her to take the child that had fallen from him, and after mixing it with oil and the blood dripping from the arrow, to anoint Heracles' cloak. After doing this, Deianira kept the potion with her.

³⁰ Again, Heracles took the daughter of Phyleus as a captive and had a son named Antiochus with her. Then, he took Astyaneira, the daughter of King Armenius, as a captive and had a son named Ctesippus with her.

³¹ Thespios, the son of Erechtheus from Athens, had fifty daughters from different women. Wanting to have children with Heracles, he invited him to a sacrifice and hosted him splendidly. That night, he slept with all of his daughters and became the father of those known as the Thespian women.

³² After taking Iole as a captive and performing a sacrifice, he sent a message to his wife Deianira, asking for a cloak and a tunic that she usually wore for sacrifices. She anointed the tunic with the potion given to her by the Centaur and sent it back.

³³ Heracles, putting on the tunic, fell into a great misfortune. The poison from the arrow of Echidna was deadly, and the heat from the tunic was burning his skin. In pain, he killed the servant who had brought it, and then, following the prophecy, he gave himself to fire, thus ending his life. And these events happened to Heracles.

³⁴ They say that Asclepius is the son of Apollo and Coronis. He became so skilled in the art of medicine that he could heal many desperate patients in surprising ways. This made Zeus angry, and he struck him down with a thunderbolt. Apollo, enraged by the death of his son, killed the Cyclopes who had made the thunderbolt for Zeus. After these events, Zeus ordered Apollo to serve Admetus and to accept punishment for these actions.

³⁵ These things are presented by Diodorus in the fourth book of his libraries. He also says that the same man borrowed the rest of theology from other nations and wrote this in the third book of his history.

³⁶ They say that the Atlanteans first had Uranus as their king, and that he had children, more than five with the forty women. They claim there were eighteen from a woman named Tepaios, who, after her death, was honored as a goddess for her wisdom and for being the cause of many good things, and was renamed Earth.

³⁷ Daughters were born to Uranus, named Basileia and Rhea, who is also called Pandora. Basileia, while raising her brothers, was called their mother for showing them kindness.

³⁸ Later, after the death of Uranus, she lived with her brother Hyperion and had two children, whom they named Helios and Selene.

³⁹ Rhea's brothers, fearing her, killed Hyperion and drowned Helios in the river Eridanus. When Selene learned of this, she threw herself from a rooftop. Her mother, driven mad, wandered through the land with her hair unkempt, inspired by the sounds of drums and cymbals, and she herself became completely invisible.

⁴⁰ The crowds, amazed by what had happened, decided to place Helios and Selene among the stars in the sky. They also thought of their mother as a goddess and built altars for her, honoring her with rituals involving drums and cymbals.

⁴¹ The Phrygians say that Maion became king of Phrygia and married Cybele, who was the first to discover the flute and was called the mountain mother. Marsyas, the Phrygian, had a friendship with her and was the first to make flutes. He played them until the end, filled with endless joy.

⁴² When Cybele gathered with others, she became pregnant with Attis. When this became known, her father killed Attis and the nurses. Cybele, driven mad, jumped into the land and there continued to wail and beat the drums.

⁴³ Marsyas came to her. He had entered a music contest against Apollo and, after being defeated, was flayed alive by Apollo.

⁴⁴ Apollo, who had fallen in love with Cybele, fought with her all the way to the land of the Hyperboreans. He ordered that the body of Attis be buried and honored Cybele as a goddess. For this reason, even today, the Phrygians do this: they mourn the death of the young man and have set up altars to honor Attis and Cybele with sacrifices.

⁴⁵ Later, in Pisinus of Phrygia, they built a grand temple and displayed the most splendid honors and sacrifices.

⁴⁶ After the death of Hyperion, the children of Uranus divided the kingdom, among whom the most famous were Atlas and Cronus. They chose Atlas, who became the best astrologer in the lands by the Ocean. He had seven daughters, known as the Atlantids. By mingling with the greatest gods, they became leaders of the largest race, giving birth to gods and heroes. Among them, the eldest, Maia, bore Hermes with Zeus.

⁴⁷ Now Cronus, driven by greed and lust, married his sister Rhea, and together they had Zeus. There was also another Zeus, the brother of Uranus, who ruled over Crete, according to the fame left behind by the later one.

⁴⁸ This one ruled over the entire world, while the other ruled over Crete, and he fathered ten children, known as the Curetes. They say that even now his tomb can still be seen in Crete.

⁴⁹ Cronus ruled over Sicily, Libya, and Italy. His son Zeus, wanting to live a life opposite to his father's, took the kingdom. Some say that he received it willingly from his father, while others say he was chosen by the people because of their hatred for Cronus.

⁵⁰ When Cronus marched against him with the Titans, he fought Zeus and attacked the entire world. Zeus was meant to bring strength and other virtues to humanity, making every effort to punish the wicked and help the good. Because of this, after the change among humans, he was called Zeus, as he was seen as the reason for living well.

⁵¹ These are the main ideas about the gods according to the Atlanteans. They also say that the Greeks are included among them.

⁵² Diodorus writes these things in the third book of his histories. He also confirms the same ideas in the sixth book, quoting from the writings of Eumenius of Messene.

⁵³ About the gods, the ancients passed down two ideas to later generations. They say that some are eternal and unchanging, like the sun, the moon, and the other stars in the sky, as well as the winds and others of a similar nature. Each of these has an eternal origin and existence. They also say that other gods are earthly, and because of their good deeds toward humans, they have become immortal and received honor and glory, like Heracles, Dionysus, Aristaios, and others like them.

⁵⁴ About the earthly gods, many different stories are passed down by both historians and mythographers. Among the historians, Eumenius, who created a sacred record, wrote down his ideas in detail. Among the mythographers, Homer, Hesiod, Orpheus, and others like them created more fantastical myths about the gods. We will try to briefly cover what is written by both groups, looking at their similarities.

⁵⁵ Eumenius, a friend of King Cassander, says that he was forced to leave for a great journey because of royal needs and was sent away to the ocean in the south. After he set sail from the blessed land of Arabia, he spent many days crossing the ocean. He came to some islands in the sea; one of them is called Pangaea, where the inhabitants, the Pangaeans, live with great piety, honoring the gods with splendid sacrifices and valuable offerings of silver and gold.

⁵⁶ There is also a sacred island of the gods, along with many other wonders, both for their ancient history and for the skill in their construction. We have written about some of these in the earlier books.

⁵⁷ There is also a very high hill on the island, where there is a sacred site of Zeus Trifilius, built by him during the time he ruled over all the world while still being human. In this sacred site, there is a golden pillar, on which are written in Pangaean letters the main deeds of Uranus, Cronus, and Zeus.

⁵⁸ After this, he says that first there was Uranus, a noble and generous man, who was also an expert in the movement of the stars. He was the first to honor the heavenly gods with sacrifices, which is why he was called Uranus.

⁵⁹ He had sons with the Titaness Hestia and Cronus, and daughters with Rhea and Demeter. After Uranus, Cronus became king, and he married Rhea, with whom he had children: Zeus, Hera, and Poseidon.

⁶⁰ After Zeus took over the kingdom from Cronus, he married Hera, Demeter, and Themis. From these marriages, he had children: the Curetes from the first, Persephone from the second, and Athena from the third.

⁶¹ After arriving in Babylon, he was welcomed by Bel. Then he went to the island of Pangaea, which lies by the ocean, and there he built an altar to Uranus, his ancestor. From there, he traveled through Syria to the ruler Cassius, after whom the mountain Cassius is named. After reaching Cilicia, he defeated the Cilician governor in battle. Many other nations also honored him, and he was declared a god.

⁶² These things and similar ones, as he talks about mortals, he also mentions the gods, saying, "And concerning Eumearus, who wrote the sacred record, we will be satisfied with what has been said. But about the myths among the Greeks concerning the gods, we will briefly explore what Hesiod, Homer, and Orpheus have written. Then, he will add the myths of the poets."

⁶³ But let us take so much from the theology of the Greeks, so that we can connect the rituals and secret mysteries of the same gods in the temples. We should think about whether they truly provide some divine evidence of genuine theology, or if they come from a distant and demonic delusion, bringing laughter or even more shame, and are more deserving of pity for those who are still blinded.

⁶⁴ These things, Clement the wonderful clearly reveals in his work 'Exhortation to the Greeks.' He, having gained understanding through experience, points out the deception, so that he may be freed from evils through the saving message and the teachings of the Gospel. Therefore, listen briefly to these things.

Book 2, Section 3

So, do not meddle with the unholy mysteries, nor with the mouths full of monstrous tales, or the cauldrons of the Thesprotians, or the tripod of Delphi, or the bronze of Dodona, or the shrine honored by sandy deserts and the oracle at the oak tree. Leave behind the myths that have grown old.

² Indeed, the spring of Castalia is silent, and the other spring of Colophon has also dried up, just like the other prophetic waters. And truly, the empty places of the fog have been examined, yet they are still tangled in their own myths.

³ Tell us about the other prophecies. Focus more on the useless oracles, like Clarian, Pythian, Didymean, Amphiaraus, Apollo, and Amphilochus.

⁴ If you want, you can also include the monster-seers and the bird-seers, along with the dream interpreters. Gather them by the Pythian, leading the flour-diviners and barley-diviners, as well as those still honored by many as ventriloquists. Yes, indeed, the hidden practices of the Egyptians and Tyrrhenians have been passed down in darkness as necromancies; these are truly the tricks of untrustworthy people and the deceitful games of shameless gamblers.

⁵ Partners in this sorcery are the goats trained for divination and the crows, which are used by people and taught by humans.

⁶ What if I were to reveal the mysteries to you? I won't dance around like Alcibiades, but I will clearly expose the hidden sorcery to them, and even those you call your gods, whose secret rituals I will present like a performance on the stage of truth.

⁷ The Bacchae rage for Dionysus with wild feasting, leading the sacred festival with flesh-eating. They complete the meat offerings for the murders, adorned with serpents, shouting "Euan Euan" for her, for whom the deception followed and death came after. A sign of the Bacchic rites is the serpent that has been completed.

⁸ Indeed, in the precise language of the Hebrews, the name Eua is interpreted as the female serpent. A secret drama has already been born from Demeter and Persephone, and Eleusis reveals to them the deception, the abduction, and the grief.

⁹ It seems to me that the rites and the mysteries should be explained. Some come from the anger of Demeter towards Zeus, while others arise from the secret events surrounding Dionysus. If it also comes from some Attic Myoun, whom Apollodorus says was killed during a hunt, there is no jealousy among you for the mysteries to be honored with a solemn voice and respect.

¹⁰ There are also other stories for you to think about, which relate to the letters of the mysteries. They pursue these stories, even if there are others, but indeed, the myths of the Thracians are the most barbaric, those of the Phrygians are the most foolish, and those of the Greeks are the most superstitious.

¹¹ Therefore, let the one who started this deception among people be destroyed, whether it was Dardanus who revealed the mysteries of the gods, or Aetion who upheld the rites and ceremonies of Samothrace, or that Phrygian Midas, who learned from the Odrysians and then passed on a clever trick to those beneath him.

¹² For the Cyprian, the islander Kinyras, would never convince me to dare to reveal the nighttime rites concerning Aphrodite, as he was eager to honor a city-dwelling prostitute.

¹³ Others say that Melampus, the son of Amythaon, brought the festivals of Demeter from Egypt to Greece, celebrated with mourning. I would call these people the original evildoers, the fathers of meaningless myths and harmful superstitions, planting the seeds of wickedness and decay into life through the mysteries.

¹⁴ Now, the time has come for me to expose your rituals, which are full of deception and wonders. And if you have been initiated, you will only laugh more at these honored myths of yours. I will openly reveal the hidden things, not ashamed to speak of what you do not feel ashamed to worship.

¹⁵ Therefore, I speak of Aphrodite, born of foam and Cyprus, beloved by Kinyras. She has not come from any of those things cut off from Heaven, those lustful things, or those forced into waves after the cutting, as if the fruit of Aphrodite is worthy of your lewdness. In the rituals of this oceanic pleasure, the evidence of the mother is the salt of the sea, and the phallus is offered to the initiates as a symbol of adultery. The initiates bring her a token as if she were a companion for lovers.

¹⁶ The mysteries of Dionysus and the connections to his mother Demeter are filled with pleasures and anger. I do not know what else to say, whether about a mother or a woman, of Dionysus, who is said to be called Brimo in her honor. There are prayers to Dionysus, drinks made from bile, heart-pulling rituals, and secret rites.

¹⁷ These are the rituals the Phrygians perform in honor of Attis, Cybele, and the Corybantes. They say that when Zeus took the ram, he threw the twins into the lap of Demeter, as a false punishment for the violent union, as if he were cutting himself off.

¹⁸ I know that the symbols of this initiation come from abundance, and they will bring laughter and not mockery because of the trials. They ate from the drum, drank from the cymbal, and carried the grain under the cover. Are these symbols not a form of arrogance? Are the mysteries not a joke?

¹⁹ What if I add the rest? Demeter is pregnant, the daughter is being raised, and this Zeus mingles again with his own daughter Persephone after their mother Demeter, forgetting the earlier mysteries, and he becomes a dragon, who was revealed.

²⁰ Indeed, the symbol of the mysteries of Sabazios is the god through the womb for those being initiated. This dragon comes from the womb of the completed rites, a test of Zeus's lack of self-control. And Persephone is pregnant with a child in the form of a bull.

²¹ A certain poet carelessly says, "The bull is a dragon, and the father of the bull is a dragon. In the mountain, the hidden herdsman is the center." I think the center is pastoral, calling the thyrsus, which the Bacchae indeed turn upside down.

²² "I will tell you about the flowers of Persephone, the basket, the abduction by Hades, the chasm of the earth, and the pigs of Eubouleus that are offered to the goddesses. For what reason do they drive out pigs during the Thesmophoria?"

²³ Women celebrate this mythology in various cities: the Thesmophoria, the Skirrophoria, and the Arretophoria, telling the story of the abduction of Persephone in many ways. The mysteries of Dionysus are completely inhuman, as he was still a child, dancing with armed Curetes. The Titans, using trickery, deceived him with childish toys. These are the Titans who tore him apart while he was still an infant, as the poet of the rites, Orpheus the Thracian, says: "A cone, a wheel, and games with curved shapes, and beautiful golden apples from the sweet-voiced Hesperides."

²⁴ And for us, it is not pointless to present the symbols of this rite for understanding: an astragalus, a ball, a top, apples, a wheel, a mirror, and a tuft.

²⁵ Therefore, Pallas Athena, having taken away the heart of Dionysus, was called "the one who strikes the heart." The Titans, who also tore him apart, placed some cauldrons on tripods. After putting the limbs of Dionysus in them, they first boiled them, then skewered them and offered them to Hephaestus.

²⁶ Later, Zeus appeared — if he was a god, perhaps having taken part in the smell of the roasted flesh, which the gods say you have the honor to receive — and he struck the Titans with a thunderbolt. The limbs of Dionysus were entrusted to Apollo's son to be buried. But he, not obeying Zeus either, carried the dismembered body and placed it on Mount Parnassus.

²⁷ If you want to see the rites of the Corybantes, these people, after killing their third brother, covered the head of the dead man with a red cloth. After preparing it, they buried it, carrying it on a bronze shield beneath the slopes of Olympus.

²⁸ And this is what they call the mystery of murders and graves. The priests of these rites, whom they refer to as the "royal finishers," take part in the disaster and strictly forbid placing celery on the table. They believe that celery has grown from the blood that flowed from the Corybantic sacrifice. Just as those who celebrate the Thesmophoria keep watch over the seeds of the pomegranate to eat them, they think that the fallen seeds have sprouted from the drops of Dionysus's blood.

²⁹ They call the Corybantes "Kabeiroi" and speak of the Kabeiric rites. They took the chest that held the sacred things of Dionysus and brought it down to Tyrrhenia, being merchants of good reputation. There, as fugitives, they spent time teaching the valuable lessons of piety, placing the sacred things and the chest before the Tyrrhenians. For this reason, some wish to call Dionysus "Attis," claiming he is without sacred things.

³⁰ And what is so surprising if the Tyrrhenians, who are considered barbarians, are initiated into such shameful experiences? I feel ashamed to speak of the myths about the goddess Demeter among the Athenians and the rest of Greece, as they are full of shame.

³¹ For the goddess Demeter, while searching for her daughter Persephone around Eleusis — which is a place in Attica — becomes weary and sits by a well, filled with sorrow. This is still forbidden to those who are initiated, so they do not appear to imitate her as she mourns.

³² The native people lived near Eleusis. Their names were Baubo, Dysaules, Triptolemus, Eumolpos, and Eubouleus. Triptolemus was a herdsman, Eumolpos was a shepherd, and Eubouleus was a swineherd. From these, the families of the Eumolpidai and the heralds, who held the sacred office, truly flourished in Athens.

³³ And indeed — for I cannot help but say — Baubo, having welcomed Demeter, offers her a drink of kykeon. But when Demeter refuses to take and drink it — for she was grieving — Baubo, feeling upset as if she were ignored, lifts her dress and shows her private parts to the goddess. Demeter is pleased by the sight, and she barely accepts the drink, feeling happy with the display.

³⁴ "These are the hidden things of the Athenian mysteries, and Orpheus also writes about them. I will share with you the verses of Orpheus, so that you have a witness to the boldness of the initiator. As she said this, she lifted her robes and showed everything of her body, not even caring about modesty. There was a child, Iacchus, whom Baubo tossed into her lap while laughing. When the goddess smiled, she felt joy in her heart, and she accepted the shining cup, in which the kykeon was placed."

³⁵ "And here is the secret of the Eleusinian mysteries: I fasted. I drank the kykeon, taking it from the basket. After working, I placed it back in the basket, and then from the basket into the chest." The sights are beautiful and fitting for the goddess.

³⁶ Indeed, the outcomes of the night are worthy, both of fire and of the great ones. However, they are even more fitting for the foolish people of Erechtheus, as well as for the other Greeks, who remain at the end of things they do not even hope for.

³⁷ What does Heraclitus of Ephesus prophesy for these people? For night-walkers, magicians, Bacchae, those at the Lenaea, and initiates; he warns them about what comes after death and speaks of fire for them. The things that are believed to be mysteries among humans are taught without being sacred.

³⁸ Therefore, the law and the empty belief about the dragon's mysteries are a deception for those who are truly initiated, and the unholy rituals are pushed by a false sense of piety.

³⁹ What kind of mysteries are these? — For it is necessary to uncover their sacred things and reveal the unspeakable — are these not sesame seeds, pyramids, tolupai, many-voiced popana, grains of salt, and the dragon's rites of Dionysus Bassaros? Are not pomegranates, along with these, and hearts, and the narthex and kittos, as well as phthisis and poppies? These are their sacred things.

⁴⁰ And besides, the unspeakable symbols of Themis: oregano, a lamp, a sword, a woman's dagger, which is a pleasing and secret part of femininity. Oh, the open shamelessness! Once, for those who were wise, the night was a cover for pleasure, silent; but now, for the initiated, the sacred night of self-indulgence speaks, and the fire reveals the passions being ignited.

⁴¹ Put out the fire, oh hierophant; have shame, torchbearer, for the lights; the light reveals your Iacchus. Allow the mysteries to be hidden by the night; let darkness honor the rites. The fire does not pretend; it is commanded to reveal and to punish.

⁴² "These are the mysteries of the atheists. I rightly call them atheists because they have ignored the true God while worshiping a child torn apart by Titans, a grieving woman, and secret parts that they shamelessly honor out of shame. They are doubly trapped by their disbelief: first, because they do not know the true God, not recognizing him as God; and second, because they believe that those who do not exist are real, calling these non-existent beings gods, which are not truly beings but exist only by name." So much for this.

Book 2, Section 4

Indeed, we rightly acknowledge that we have become free from all these things, as if we have been freed from a long-standing and terrible disease. First, by the grace and kindness of the all-powerful God; second, by the hidden power of our Savior's gospel teaching; and third, by using sound reasoning, we judge it to be impious and disrespectful to honor mortal men who have long been dead and to forget the memory of wise men. This is the ultimate sign of a lack of self-control and immorality, and it has been handed down as a warning to those who come after them.

² For how could it not be the most foolish of all to give the honor of self-control to the shameful and immoral, while offering respect to those who have lost their minds? And to grant the practice of justice and kindness to those who are held back by extreme wickedness, like child murder and patricide?

³ But what extreme impiety has not gone too far in throwing the sacred and most holy name of God into the secret parts of men and women, and into the irrational and beastly nature? Such shameful and inhumane things are spoken of as if they were the same as those committed by wicked people among humans. If they were to be accused, would they not face the unavoidable punishments of the laws?

⁴ And what is the need to prolong the message of freedom from the mentioned evils for both barbarian and Greek? This freedom from false gods brings reason into the light, whenever even the most superstitious among them, like those who have awakened from a deep sleep, open the eye of the soul and see the deep deception of their ancestral error. They then choose a different path, having turned away from their old ways.

⁵ Some of them, having moved away together, completely rejected the myths of their ancestors, laughing at them. But others, turning away from belief in the gods, neither upheld the earlier ideas nor fully abandoned them. They sought to flatter and support their own beliefs, claiming that the stories about the gods they had heard were true myths created by poets, while hiding the natural theories within them.

⁶ Although they provide no evidence of truth, it is still necessary for us to present a theory about those who are serious, so that we may understand their departure only through the reasonable teaching of our savior. Therefore, let us take up their arguments and examine them.

Book 2, Section 5

Concerning Greek theology, which is widespread, mythical, and much older than that of the Phoenicians and Egyptians, the way has been shown by the words of Greek writers. This has been rightly placed at the beginning of the current preparation of the Gospel for understanding and judgment for those who will encounter it. So that we may learn, both we and those who are still unaware of these things, what they were like in the past and what kind of ancestors they came from, being bound by many evils and trapped in ignorance and disrespect for God. We have been deemed worthy of renewal and freedom from all of this through the one teaching of the Gospel, which has been given to us only through the appearance of our savior, Jesus Christ, who is God.

² Who does not have a part of the earth, nor in any corner of a single nation, but throughout the whole world, where the greatest fear and deception have prevailed? Like the sun for rational and thinking souls, spreading its rays of light, it has brought all of humanity, both barbarians and Greeks, from the terrible and dark night of superstitious deception to the bright and clearest day of true piety of the all-sovereign God.

³ Indeed, the voices that have been clearly presented teach about the dead idols and the images of men who have long been settled. They show how, all around the many gods' deception, people in cities and villages were frightened and learned to worship and honor these false gods. The ancient people, through the extreme savagery of life at that time, paid no attention to the God, the creator of all, nor did they consider divine justice that punishes those who do wrong. Instead, they fell into all kinds of wickedness.

⁴ For at that time, there were still no laws by which people should live, nor was there an established civil order among humans. Life was still nomadic and savage. Those who were driven by their stomachs cared nothing for the consequences of their actions and were the first to follow a path of disbelief. Others, stirred by some natural thoughts, began to think of God and the power of God as something good and saving. Wanting to find this, they raised their souls up to the heavens and stood there in thought. Amazed by the beauty of the heavenly bodies and the stars that appeared, they declared these to be gods.

⁵ But others, having thrown themselves down to the earth, believed that those who were thought to have wisdom or strength in body and power over others were giants, tyrants, or even sorcerers and magicians. They believed these figures were made up of some divine essence and were skilled in harmful magic. These people, along with others who had provided some common and beneficial service, were declared to be gods, both while they were still alive and after their death.

⁶ From this, it is said that the tombs of the gods are the graves of the dead, as Clement mentions in his Exhortation to the Greeks, using the Greeks as witnesses to this story. If you wish, listen again to this writing in this way.

Book 2, Section 6

Therefore, it makes sense that superstition, starting from some evil and foolishness, became a source of many problems. Then, without stopping, it began to offer many gifts, becoming the creator of many demons. It made great sacrifices, held festivals, set up statues, and built temples. These temples—let me not be silent about this, and I will also prove it—are called temples with good names, but they have become graves; that is, the graves are called temples. But even now, if you forget about superstition, you should be ashamed to honor the graves.

² In the temple of Athena in Larissa on the acropolis, there is a tomb of Acrisius, and in the acropolis of Athens, there is one for Cecrops, as Antiochus mentions in the ninth of his histories.

³ What about Erichthonius? Is he not buried in the temple of Polias? And what about Immarus, the son of Eumolpus, and Daedalus? Are they not buried in the enclosure of Eleusis, beneath the acropolis? And what about the daughters of Celeus? Are they buried in Eleusis?

⁴ What should I tell you about the women from Hyperborea? Hyperoche and Laodice are mentioned, and they are buried in the temple of Artemis in Delos, while the one in the temple of Apollo in Delos is sacred.

⁵ Leander is said to be buried in Miletus at the Didymaion. Here, the tomb of Leucophryne is worth noting, as mentioned by Zenon of Myndus, who is buried in the temple of Artemis in Magnesia. Also, don't forget the altar of Apollo in Telmessus; it is said to be a tomb of Telmessus the seer as well.

⁶ Ptolemy, the son of Agesarchus, mentions in his first work about Philopator in Paphos that Kinyras and the descendants of Kinyras are buried in the temple of Aphrodite.

⁷ But as I approach, the tombs you worship are not enough for me, not even if I had all the time in the world. However, if no one feels shame for their bold actions, then you are walking around as if you completely trust the dead.

⁸ And after a little while, he says, "There is a new one in Egypt, and it is almost the same among the Greeks. The king of the Romans has respectfully honored the god, Antinous, who has become very beautiful, just as Zeus honored Ganymede."

⁹ For desire is not easily stopped when it has no fear. And now, people worship the sacred nights of Antinous, which the lover who kept watch found shameful. He adds, "Already the tomb of the beloved is a temple of Antinous and a city. Just as, I think, the temples are admired, so too are the tombs, with pyramids, mausoleums, and labyrinths. Other temples of the dead are like those tombs of the gods."

¹⁰ And again, after a little while, let us go and briefly visit the contests and celebrate these funeral games: the Isthmian, Nemean, Pythian, and the Olympic ones that follow. In Pytho, the Pythian dragon is honored, and the festival of the serpent is called Pythia. At the Isthmus, the sea has sadly washed up a wretched piece of debris, and Melicertes is mourned at the Isthmian games. In Nemea, another child, Archemoerus, is buried, and the tomb of the child is called Nemea. There is a tomb among you, O Panhellenes, of the Phrygian charioteer, and Zeus claims the offerings of Pelops at the Olympic games.

¹¹ These things are true. But you, starting the discussion from the beginning, should examine the nature of superstitious delusion. For by nature, and even more through divine teaching, it is good and helpful to understand the meaning of the name and essence of the god. All people have accepted common ideas, as the creator of all things subtly influences this in every rational and intelligent soul with natural thoughts.

¹² Indeed, they also chose according to their reasoning. There may be one person, or perhaps a second, or even some others with brief thoughts, whose memory holds words of the Hebrews. They did not apply the idea of god to anything visible, but with focused thoughts, they raised their minds to the creator of the entire universe and the great maker of all things. They understood him to be the only god, the savior of all, and the giver of only good things. The rest, however, were overwhelmed by various darknesses of the soul and were drawn down into the depths of impiety, establishing what is beautiful, beneficial, and good in the way of wild beasts, focused only on the pleasures of bodies and flesh.

¹³ In this way, as mentioned before, they call the discoverers of beautiful and useful things for the body, or even certain rulers and tyrants, or also sorcerers and skilled magicians, as if they were benefactors, saviors, and gods, even though they are mortal and subject to human misfortunes. They attribute to them a respectful idea that naturally exists within them, believing they have transferred the role of benefactors to those they thought were helpful.

¹⁴ Such a strong confusion of their minds held them that they did not consider any of the wrongdoings attributed to those called gods, nor did they feel ashamed of the disgraceful things said about them. Instead, they admired all those men for the benefits they provided or even for the powers and tyrannies that were first established at that time.

¹⁵ Indeed, as I have already mentioned, at that time there were no laws among people, nor were there punishments for those who sinned, such as adultery, the harm of others, illegal and unnatural marriages, murders, and parricides, or the slaughter of children and brothers. Yes, even wars and uprisings that truly happened against their own people were seen this way. They regarded and called these individuals gods, just as they remembered their achievements and bravery, leaving behind their memory as honorable and courageous for those who came after.

¹⁶ Such were the ideas of the old theology, which some young people, inspired both recently and in the past, claimed to think more rationally. They introduced a more natural view of the history of the gods, considering the myths to be more serious and reasonable. They neither completely escaped the faults of their ancestors' impiety nor did they endure the clear wickedness of those called gods.

¹⁷ These people, eager to correct their ancestral mistakes, transformed the myths into natural stories and theories. They claimed that the nourishing and growing aspects of the nature of bodies were what the myths truly revealed, as if they were uncovering something more mysterious.

¹⁸ From this, these people named the elements of the world as gods, not only the sun, moon, and stars, but also earth and water, air and fire. They included the mixtures and results from these, even the beautiful fruits of the earth and other plants for food, both dry and wet. They claimed these were the causes of life for bodies, naming Demeter, Persephone, Dionysus, and others like them, while presenting the embellishments of the myths as forced and untrue.

¹⁹ But these people, later on, feeling ashamed of their ancestors' theologies, came up with their own serious ideas about the myths concerning the gods. They did not dare to change the traditional beliefs, and they valued the ancient ways and the common upbringing they received in childhood.

²⁰ Indeed, those older than them organized the worship of gods among people and the honors for irrational animals, because they found usefulness in them based on the earlier reasons given. They dedicated the same kinds of worship to the irrational beasts, with offerings, sacrifices, and secret rituals, along with hymns and songs, just as they did for the deified men, raising their honors. They fell into such great evils that, due to excessive pleasure, they connected the shameful parts of the body with the same honors given to the gods, showing no concern for keeping the teachings of their theologians sacred.

²¹ We should remember that the ancients knew nothing beyond history, and they only testified to the myths. However, since we have been inspired to explore the serious and secret teachings of noble philosophers, let us also examine these ideas, so that we do not appear ignorant of their amazing natural explanations.

²² Before explaining these things, I think it is important to point out the contradictions among the great philosophers regarding their own views. Some tell their stories differently, and each one explains things according to their own perspective; they do not agree with each other in their natural explanations. Others more wisely reject the whole idea, dismissing not only the inappropriate stories about the gods from their own beliefs but also their interpretations. Sometimes, out of fear of punishment from the laws, they soften the myths.

²³ Listen to the Greeks, who at times reject the myths and at other times bring them back through one of the greatest of all. The remarkable Plato, when he reveals his own preferences, boldly forbids thinking and speaking about the gods in ways that the ancients have described, whether something hidden is suggested in their hints or whether it is stated completely without any hint. However, when he softens the laws, he insists that one must believe the myths about the gods, claiming that they reveal nothing hidden in their hints.

²⁴ At one time, having defined the theology of the ancient myths, he discusses the sky, the sun, the moon, and the stars, as well as the entire universe, explaining its parts separately. Then he speaks clearly and distinctly about the gods who were born in ancient times, as he does with these words in the Timaeus.

Book 2, Section 7

When it comes to the other spirits, it is more important to speak about and understand their origin than it is to focus on ourselves. One must believe what has been said before: that they are descendants of the gods, as they claim, and they clearly know their own ancestors. Therefore, it is impossible to disbelieve the children of the gods, even though they speak without clear and necessary evidence. However, they say that one should believe what they declare as their own, in accordance with the law.

² So, let our account of the origin of these gods continue and be told. I was born of Earth and Sky, from Oceanus and Tethys. From them came Phorcys, Cronus, Rhea, and all those who are with them. From Cronus and Rhea came Zeus, Hera, and all those we know, who are all called their siblings, along with other descendants from them.

³ Plato says that one must believe these things, following the law, even though they are presented without clear and necessary evidence. It should be noted that there is nothing secret about the names and genealogies of the gods, as they are clearly shown in natural explanations.

⁴ Again, in another place, the same person, revealing his own choice, uses these words: "First of all, if I were to say that the greatest and most important thing is a lie, I would not have spoken well, since Uranus did what Hesiod says he did, and Cronus punished him. But what are the deeds and sufferings of Cronus by his son? Even if they were true, I would think they should be shared easily with foolish and young people, but instead, they should be kept silent. If it were necessary to speak, it should be heard in secret, as very few people do, offering not a common sacrifice, but something great and difficult to give, so that only a very few might hear."

⁵ For indeed, he says, these words are difficult. And they should not be spoken, dear Adeimantus, in our city; nor should they be shared with a young listener, as committing the worst wrong would not seem surprising, nor would punishing a father in any way be just, but rather it should be avoided. This is what I think about the first and greatest of the gods. It does not seem right to me to speak of it.

⁶ "Nor indeed," I said, "is it true that the gods wage war against one another, plot against each other, and fight. For if we must think of the city we are about to protect, it would be the most shameful to easily hate one another. We should tell many stories about the battle of the giants, as well as about other conflicts and various enmities among the gods and heroes against their relatives and kin. But if we are to convince others that no citizen ever hated another, and that this is not sacred, such things should rather be spoken to children right away, as well as to old men and those who have grown old, and poets should be encouraged to create stories that reflect these ideas."

⁷ The chains of Hera, thrown by her son and Hephaestus under their father while he was about to defend his mother from being struck, along with all the battles of the gods that Homer has created, should not be accepted in the city, neither as suggestions nor without any hints.

⁸ Clearly, through these ideas, the philosopher teaches that the old myths about the gods and their meanings should be understood as natural explanations. He says that we should no longer speak foolishly about them and that the lessons from these myths should not be dismissed when it comes to the message of our savior, especially regarding our own people.

⁹ From this, I am convinced that the ancient Romans admired how they described all the Greek ideas about the gods, which were strange and useless. They saw these ideas as forced and chaotic. Instead, they created their own myths about theology. You can learn this from Dionysius of Halicarnassus's work on Roman antiquities. In the second book, he talks about Romulus, the first founder of Rome, and discusses his achievements as well as how he writes about these topics.

Book Three

But he understood that important laws and the pursuit of good things create a city that is pious, wise, and just, and that they lead to good outcomes against enemies. He had great foresight in this, beginning with respect for the divine and the spirits.

² Therefore, he established sacred places, temples, altars, and statues, along with their shapes, symbols, powers, and gifts, through which our people were blessed. He also arranged festivals for each of the gods or spirits, and sacrifices, which bring joy to those who honor them among people. He set up peace treaties, gatherings, and rest from work, along with all such things, in the same way as the best laws among the Greeks.

³ He rejected the myths passed down about them, which contain some blasphemies or accusations, seeing them as wicked, useless, and shameful, and not worthy of the gods or even of good people. He encouraged people to speak and think the best things about the gods, not allowing any unworthy practices that go against the nature of the blessed.

⁴ It is not said among the Romans that Uranus was castrated by his own children, nor that Cronus hid out of fear of their attack, nor that Zeus overthrew Cronus's rule and imprisoned his father in Tartarus. There are no wars, wounds, chains, or servitude of the gods among people.

⁵ No festival is held among them that is dark or mournful, filled with the wailing and lamentations of women for the gods who have vanished, like those celebrated by the Greeks for the abduction of Persephone and the sufferings of Dionysus, along with other similar events.

⁶ Nor would anyone see among them, even though their customs are already corrupted, any divine processions, no crown-wearing rituals, no Bacchic celebrations or secret rites, no all-night vigils in the temples of the gods with women, nor anything else similar to these strange practices. Instead, everything done and said about the gods is done with respect, just as it is neither among the Greeks nor among the non-Greeks.

⁷ What I especially marvel at is that, although countless nations have come to the city, where there is a strong need to honor the ancestral gods according to local customs, none of the foreign practices have been adopted publicly by the city, which has already happened to many others. Even if some sacred things have been introduced according to oracles, they have been adapted to the local customs, completely removing any mythical elements, just like the sacred rites of the holy goddess.

⁸ Every year, the generals hold sacrifices and contests for her according to Roman laws. A man from Phrygia and a woman from Phrygia serve as her priests, and they go around the city celebrating the festival, as is their custom. They wear symbols on their chests and sing the songs of the mother while beating drums.

⁹ But among the native Romans, no one goes through the city celebrating the festival, dressed in colorful clothing, nor do they honor the goddess with Phrygian rituals according to law or council decree. In this way, the city treats non-local customs about the gods with great respect, and everything else is seen as foolishness, lacking any beauty.

¹⁰ And let no one think that I am unaware that some of the Greek myths are useful to people. Some show the works of nature to bring sorrow, while others are created to comfort people in their misfortunes. Some help calm the soul's disturbances and remove fears and false beliefs, while others are made for some other benefit.

¹¹ But even though I know these things, I still feel cautious about them, and I prefer the theology of the Romans. I believe that the good things from the Greek myths are minor and can help only a few people, specifically those who seek them out for their own reasons.

¹² Few are those who have embraced this philosophy; instead, the large and unphilosophical crowd tends to accept worse ideas about it. They either scorn the gods, as if they are trapped in great misfortune, or they do not shy away from the most shameful and unlawful things, seeing them as linked to the gods.

¹³ But let those who only practice the theoretical part of philosophy focus on these matters. As for the government established by Romulus, I believe it is worthy of study. The ideas presented to the greatest philosophers, as well as the ancient ones and the early Roman leaders regarding Greek theology, were such that they accepted nothing about the gods from natural philosophy, nor did they accept the showy and clever tricks. Since we have been motivated to examine these matters, let us explore their interpretations and theories, and see what they claim to be serious and divine. We will use none of our own ideas, but will focus entirely on their words, so that we may learn their teachings once again.

Introduction

Introduction. The ideas presented to the greatest philosophers, as well as the ancient ones and the early Roman leaders regarding Greek theology, were such that they accepted nothing about the gods from natural philosophy, nor did they accept the showy and clever tricks.

² Since we have once been inspired to examine these matters, let us look at their interpretations and theories, and see what they claim to be serious and divine. We will use none of our own ideas, but will focus entirely on their words, so that we may learn their teachings once again.

³ Many others who claim to be philosophers have put in a lot of effort on these matters, coming up with different ideas and arguing that each of them holds the truth. However, for me, it is enough to provide evidence from the clearest and most well-known sources, and to contribute to the strong reputation of philosophy among the Greeks.

⁴ First, read the words of Plutarch about the matters at hand, where he seriously discusses the myths that he claims are mysterious theology. He reveals that Dionysus represents drunkenness, no longer the mortal man described in the earlier history. He portrays Hera as the union of husband and wife. Then, as if forgetting the previous explanation, he connects another story, naming Hera not as before, but as the earth, and he mentions Leto as forgetfulness and night. He also states that Hera is the same as Leto in magic. After this, Zeus is allegorically associated with him in the heavenly realm.

⁵ And why should I anticipate these things when I can hear from the man himself, who wrote about the hidden matters in Plataea, revealing to many the secret natural philosophy concerning the gods?

Book 3, Section 1

That the old natural philosophy, both among the Greeks and the non-Greeks, was a natural explanation hidden in myths, often expressed through riddles and hints, is clear. The things that are spoken are clearer to most than the things that are kept silent, and the silent things are more suspicious than the spoken ones. This is evident in the Orphic writings and in the Egyptian and Phrygian texts; especially in the rituals, the cries, and the symbolic actions in the sacred ceremonies, which reveal the thoughts of the ancients.

² Now, so that we do not stray far from the current discussion, they do not believe or consider it right to have a connection between Dionysus and Hera. They are careful not to mix the sacred things and say that the priestesses of Athena should not greet each other, nor should anything be brought into the temple of Hera. This is not because of mythical and foolish jealousies, but because the goddess is a bride and a guide for brides, while it is inappropriate for grooms to be drunk, and it is most unsuitable for weddings, as Plato says. For he claims that drinking without restraint causes disturbance to both souls and bodies, leading to bad things being poorly rooted and wandering. Again, those who sacrifice to Hera do not purify the bile, but they bury it beside the altar, as it is necessary for it to be without spirit, without anger, and free from all bitterness in the union of a woman and a man.

³ This symbolic form is more present in the stories and myths. For example, they tell of Hera being raised as a virgin in Euboea, who was stolen by Zeus and brought here to hide, with a certain shady nook and natural chamber provided by Cithaeron. When Makris came seeking her—she was a nurse of Hera—and wanting to investigate, she was not allowed to disturb Cithaeron or approach the area, as Zeus was resting there with Leto. After Makris left, Hera was hidden for a time, but later, as a favor to Leto, she was remembered and made a companion, so that Leto could also offer sacrifices in the hidden place; some say it was at night. Each of the names suggests something secret and forgotten. Some say that Hera herself secretly met with Zeus there, and thus Leto is said to be called 'Night.' When the marriages became clear and the gatherings around Cithaeron were first revealed, Hera was called complete and bridal.

⁴ But those who think more naturally and fittingly connect the myth of Hera with Leto in this way. Hera is the earth, as has been said, while Leto is night, which leads those who are going to sleep into forgetfulness. Night is nothing other than the shadow of the earth; for when it approaches the west and hides the sun, it darkens the air. This is the eclipse that happens during full moons, when the shadow of the earth touches and obscures the light of the moon.

⁵ That Leto is not different from Hera can be learned from this. We already call Artemis the daughter of Leto, but we also refer to Eileithyia by the same name. Therefore, both Hera and Leto are names for one goddess. Again, Apollo came from Leto, while Ares came from Hera; yet their power is one. Ares is called a helper in violent battles and fights, while Apollo is known for freeing people from bodily illnesses. That is why among the brightest stars, the sun is called Apollo, while the fiery Ares is named as such. It is not strange for the same goddess to be called a bride and to be thought of as the mother of Eileithyia and the sun. For marriage is the end of birth, and birth is the journey from darkness to the sun and light. The poet rightly said, "But when Eileithyia, the one who helps in childbirth, was brought forth before the light and saw the rays of the sun." The poet skillfully showed the pain of childbirth at the beginning, revealing the struggle of labor, and at the end of birth, he made it so that the sun could be seen. Therefore, the same goddess caused the marriage to happen, so that she could prepare for birth.

⁶ It may be necessary to tell the simpler myth. It is said that Zeus, when Hera was avoiding him and no longer wanted to be in the same place, was wandering around and, unable to find her, happened upon Alalcomeneus, a local man. He learned from him how to deceive Hera and decided to marry another. With Alalcomeneus's help, they secretly cut down a beautiful and generous oak tree, shaping it and decorating it like a bride. Then they began to sing the wedding song while the Nymphs of Triton brought baths, and they provided flutes and dances for Boeotia. When all this was finished, Hera could no longer wait and came down from Cithaeron, followed by the women of Plataea, filled with anger and jealousy, to go to Zeus. When the truth of the plan was revealed, they reconciled with joy and laughter, and she was led to the wedding. They honored the statue and called the festival 'Daedala,' but they still burned it, even though it was lifeless, out of jealousy.

⁷ Such is the myth, and this is the explanation. The conflict and strife between Hera and Zeus is nothing more than a bad mixture of elements and chaos when they no longer balance with each other in harmony. This leads to irregularities and roughness, breaking their union and causing the destruction of everything. If Zeus, representing the hot and fiery force, is the cause of this destruction, then drought overtakes the land. But if it concerns Hera, representing the moist and spiritual nature, then some kind of arrogance or excess occurs, bringing a great flood that overwhelms everything. Something like this happened in those times, especially in Boeotia, when the land was first submerged and the flood receded. The harmonious world that surrounded it was said to be restored by the agreement and reconciliation of the gods. First, the oak tree rose from the earth's plants, and people loved it because it provided food and safety in life. For it was not only for the pious, as Hesiod says, but also for those who survived the destruction; the top brings acorns, while the middle brings honey.

Book 3, Section 2

This is what Plutarch says. But from the voices presented to him, we see that the wonderful and secret nature of Greek theology does not suggest anything divine, nor anything great and worthy of respect or revival.

² For you have heard of Hera, sometimes called the goddess of marriage, representing the union of man and woman, and at other times referred to as the earth. Sometimes, she is known as the moist essence. Dionysus is linked to drunkenness, while Leto is associated with the night, and the sun is connected to Apollo. Zeus himself is seen as the hot and fiery force.

³ Therefore, considering the awkwardness of the myths, the seemingly more serious stories and nature do not point to any heavenly, intelligent, or divine powers, nor to logical and incorporeal essences. Instead, they return to themes of drunkenness, marriage, and human emotions, destroying the parts of the world with fire, earth, sun, and the other elements of matter, creating nothing divine.

⁴ This is also known to Plato. He clearly states in the Cratylus that nothing beyond what is seen in the world has been recognized by the earliest people of Greece, and that only the heavenly lights are considered gods, along with the other visible things.

⁵ He expresses it this way: "It seems to me that the earliest people around Greece considered only these as gods, just as many of the barbarians do now: the sun, the moon, the earth, the stars, and the sky."

⁶ But the Greek beliefs are like this. Let's also look at the oldest ones, which are Egyptian. They say that Isis and Osiris are the sun and the moon, and that Zeus is the spirit that moves through everything. Hephaestus is the fire, and the earth is called Demeter. The Egyptians think of the ocean as the water and the river they have, the Nile, where they also place the origins of the gods. They say that they call the air Athena.

⁷ These five gods—air, water, fire, earth, and spirit—are said to move through the whole world, sometimes taking on different forms and shapes of humans and all kinds of animals. Among them, the Egyptians have named mortal humans with the same names: Sun, Cronus, Rhea, and also Zeus, Hera, Hephaestus, and Hestia. Manetho writes more extensively about these, while Diodorus writes more briefly in his earlier works, telling the history like this.

Book 3, Section 3

They say that these gods, the Sun and the Moon, are Osiris and Isis according to the Egyptians. They govern the whole universe, nourishing and helping everything grow in three parts of the year, with an unseen movement marking the seasons: spring, summer, and winter. These seasons have opposite qualities, arranging the year in the best harmony.

² They say that the nature of these gods greatly contributes to the life of all living things: the fiery and the spiritual, the wet and the dry, and together they make up the air. Through these, everything is born and nourished. Therefore, the whole body of nature is made up of the sun and the moon, while its five parts are the spirit, the fire, the dry, the wet, and finally the airy. Just as we count the head, hands, feet, and other parts of a human body, in the same way, the body of the universe is made up of all these elements.

³ They believe that each of these gods has its own name, given according to its nature, by the first people who spoke the Egyptian language. Therefore, they call the spirit Zeus, which means the cause of life for all living things, and they see him as a kind of father to all.

⁴ They also agree that the most famous of the Greek poets referred to this god as "father of men and gods." They translate fire as Hephaestus, believing him to be a great god who plays a significant role in the creation and full growth of everything. They see the earth as a kind of vessel for growing things and call it mother. The Greeks similarly refer to this goddess as Demeter, with a slight change in the name over time.

⁵ In ancient times, they called the earth mother, just as Orpheus supports this by saying, "Earth, mother of all, Demeter, giver of wealth." They say that the wet element was called Ocean, which means "mother of nourishment." Some of the Greeks believe that Ocean was thought to be a source of life, about whom the poet says, "Ocean, both the source of the gods and mother Tethys."

⁶ The Egyptians believe that the river Nile is their Ocean, near which the births of the gods took place. In all the inhabited world, only Egypt has many cities built by the ancient gods, such as those of Zeus, Helios, Hermes, Apollo, Pan, Eileithyia, and many others.

⁷ They say that the air is called Athena, meaning she is thought to be the daughter of Zeus. She is also considered a virgin because the air is pure by nature and occupies the highest place in the whole universe. For this reason, it is said that she was born from the peak of Zeus. She is also named "Tritogeneia" because her nature changes three times each year: in spring, summer, and winter.

⁸ She is also called "glaukopis," not because some of the Greeks thought she had gray eyes. That would be a simple mistake. Instead, it is because she has the appearance of the air, which is bright and clear. They say that the five gods mentioned earlier travel throughout the whole inhabited world, appearing to humans in the forms of sacred animals, and sometimes even changing into human shapes or other forms.

⁹ And this is not a myth; it is possible if these beings are truly the ones who create everything. The poet, when he compared this to Egypt and shared it with the priests, seems to have made the earlier statement as if it were true. "And the gods, like strangers, are seen in many forms, watching over the pride and order of humans." So, the Egyptians say many things about the gods in heaven and their eternal nature.

¹⁰ They say that others came from these beings and became earthly, living as mortals. However, through their understanding and good deeds, they achieved immortality, and some of them became kings in Egypt. When they translate these names, some are the same as the heavenly ones, while others have their own unique names. They mention Helios, Kronos, and Rhea, as well as Zeus, who is called Ammon by some. Along with these, they include Hera, Hephaestus, Hestia, and lastly Hermes. First, Helios is said to rule over those in Egypt, being the star in the sky.

¹¹ So, this is what the writer has explained. Plutarch, in his writing about Isis, says the following word for word: "From another beginning, let us first consider what those who seem to be the most philosophical say. These are the ones who, like the Greeks, interpret Kronos as time, Hera as air, and the transformation of Hephaestus into fire as a change of air. In this way, the Egyptians say that the Nile is Osiris, who is joined with the earth, and Typhon is the sea, into which the Nile flows and disappears."

¹² After saying these things and similar ones, he again talks about the demons in the myths concerning the revealed gods. He explains them in a different way and interprets them once more.

¹³ It would be worth asking which gods' statues preserve the carved forms. Are they statues of demons? Or are they images of fire, air, earth, and water? Or are they representations of men and women, and shapes of wild animals and beasts?

¹⁴ Since it has also been said that some mortal men share names with the sun and the basic elements, and that these men are called gods, what could be the reason for claiming that the carved forms and images in the lifeless statues represent them? Are they representations of the basic elements, or, as is clearly shown by what we can see, of the mortals lying among the dead?

¹⁵ But even if they do not say it themselves, the truth cries out loudly, leaving aside only the sound, that those being shown are mortal men. Plutarch also notes the character of the shape of these bodies based on their abundance, speaking in this way in his work about Isis and the Egyptian gods.

¹⁶ For the Egyptians say that Hermes has a body like a fish, Typhon is red in color, Ares is white, and Osiris is dark-skinned, as if they were naturally human beings.

¹⁷ These things are also noted by Plutarch. Therefore, their entire idea of divinity is based on the dead; they are shaped by the laws of nature. For what need is there to create forms of men and women while also worshiping the sun, the moon, and the other elements of the world?

¹⁸ From which of these and starting from what things did they first give such names? For example, I mention Hephaestus and Athena, as well as Zeus, Poseidon, and Hera. Did these names come first from the general elements and then get given to mortals as the same names for the heavenly beings, or was it the other way around, with the names used by humans being later transferred to the divine beings?

¹⁹ And why should mortal names be used to honor the general natures? As for the mysteries of each god, the hymns, the songs, and the secret parts of the rituals, do they come from the general elements, or do they relate to the symbols of the ancient mortals who shared the same names as the gods?

²⁰ But indeed, how could one dedicate to the general elements things like deception, drunkenness, love, the destruction of women and men, plots, and countless other shameful and indecent mortal matters, which are truly human and flawed?

²¹ So, from this, it is clear that this wonderful and noble study of nature is not based on any truth, nor does it truly reveal anything divine. Instead, it is forced and hidden, presenting an outward appearance of seriousness. Listen then to what Porphyry says in his letter to Anubis about the same matters.

Book 3, Section 4

For Chairemon and others do not think anything different about the visible worlds, starting with some reasoning about the Egyptians. They mention no other gods except for the so-called wandering stars and those that complete the zodiac, along with all those that rise with them. They also discuss the divisions into the decans, the horoscopes, and the so-called powerful rulers, whose names are found in the Almenichian texts, along with remedies for ailments, the rising and setting of stars, and signs of the future.

² For they see those who claim that the sun is a creator, along with those about Osiris and Isis, and all the priestly myths. These myths either relate to the stars and their appearances, disappearances, and risings, or to the waxing and waning of the moon, or to the journey of the sun, or to the night hemisphere, or to the day, or to the river. In general, everything is explained in terms of nature, and nothing is interpreted as incorporeal and living beings. Many of them believe that the movements of the stars are bound by chains of necessity, which they call fate, having tied everything down and connected everything to the gods. Thus, they serve only the liberators of fate in temples, shrines, and other places.

³ Let these things then be taken from the stated letter, clearly declaring that the secret theology of the Egyptians speaks only of the stars in the sky, both the fixed stars and those called wandering stars. It does not introduce any incorporeal creator, nor a creative reason, nor a god, nor gods, nor any mental or unseen powers, but only the visible sun. Therefore, they attribute the cause of everything solely to the stars, linking everything to fate and the movements and changes of the stars, just as this belief still holds strong among them today.

⁴ If the Egyptians interpret only the visible elements of the world and nothing about incorporeal and living beings, and if the elements and all visible bodies are seen as lifeless and irrational, fluid by nature and perishable, then their theology has fallen into such a view, treating lifeless existence and dead, irrational bodies as divine. This is especially true since they do not mention anything about incorporeal and mental beings, nor do they refer to a creative mind or reason for everything.

⁵ Since it has been previously agreed that the Egyptians have passed their theology to the Greeks, it is time for them to align with the Greeks and explain the same things as the Egyptians. They should no longer be challenged for treating lifeless material as divine. For these were the serious beliefs of the Egyptians according to the writing of the mentioned author, who will again discuss similar ideas in what he wrote about the separation of living beings.

⁶ Starting from this practice and their connection to the divine, they understood that the divine did not come through just one human, nor did a soul settle in only one person on earth. Instead, the same divine presence passed through all living creatures. Therefore, they accepted every animal into their divinization, mixing together beasts and humans, as well as the bodies of birds and humans.

⁷ For among them, there are figures that are human-like up to the neck, but they have the face of a bird, a lion, or some other animal. There are also those with a human head and parts of other animals, some below and some above. Through these, they show that according to the will of the gods, these beings are connected to each other, and that the wild beasts have a divine purpose in relation to us.

⁸ For this reason, the lion is worshiped as a god, and a part of Egypt, which they call a nome, is named Leontopolis. Another is called Busiris, and another is called Cynopolis. They worship the power that comes from all the animals that each of the gods provided.

⁹ They honor water and fire, the most beautiful of the elements, because these are the most important for our salvation. They show this in their temples, and even now, during the opening of the holy Sarapis, healing happens through fire and water. The hymn singer pours out the water, and the fire shines when he stands at the altar and calls upon the god in the native language of the Egyptians.

¹⁰ Therefore, they honor these beings, especially those that are more closely connected to the sacred. All such animals are respected, since they also worship humans in the village of Anabis, where sacrifices are made to them and offerings are burned on the altars.

¹¹ After a little while, he would eat the food prepared for him as a person. Just as one should be free from a human, so too should one be free from the others.

¹² Moreover, due to an abundance of wisdom and their connection to the divine, some of the gods have a special fondness for certain animals more than for humans, like the sun's hawk. All of these beings have a nature made of blood and spirit, feeling pity for humans, and they cry out over a dead body while touching the ground. After a short time, he says,

¹³ But a beetle, being ignorant, would be disgusted if it existed among the divine. The Egyptians see it as a living image of the sun. Every beetle is male, and after leaving the noise in the mud and forming a round shape, it carries with its back legs, just as the sun receives the moon in the sky and the cycle of days.

¹⁴ Thus, they also think deeply about the ram, and something about the crocodile, as well as the vulture and the ibis, and generally about each of the animals. They aim to achieve reverence through understanding and great wisdom about the divine.

Book 3, Section 5

Such things are also said about the noble nature of the wise Egyptians, as the one who has revealed them has explained the hidden truths to us. They honor both water and fire, and they believe there is one essence that connects both rational and irrational bodies, as well as the soul. It seems reasonable to them that the gods are referred to as the beasts.

² And yet, how can it not be completely unreasonable to include the irrational and beastly nature in divinity, just because of the supposed equality in sharing a soul with humans? For, if that is true, then humans should also be seen as leaders, and they should share in the honor and respect that comes with being human.

³ But those who did not do this viewed the irrational beasts as part of that nature and gave them this name, believing they did not even deserve to be called humans. They did not see them as worthy of being accepted as human. Instead, they lowered the highest title of the universal king and creator of all to the level of beasts, calling them gods, a title that is not even fitting for humans in relation to that god.

⁴ Regarding this, you have heard about the mystical wisdom, through which the remarkable Egyptians honored wolves, dogs, and lions. You have also learned about the wonder of the beetle and the virtue of the hawk. Do not mock the gods any longer, for it reveals the great foolishness and carelessness of the wretched human race.

⁵ And indeed, consider all the good things that Christ, the giver from God, offers us. He has freed the souls of the Egyptians from such a long-lasting sickness through his gospel teaching, so that most of those in Egypt have already been released from this affliction.

Book 3, Section 6

But indeed, such things, along with those from the Egyptians, are mentioned even before all the Greeks. Therefore, you have both the mythical and the more natural theology of the Greeks and Egyptians, who long ago established their polytheistic beliefs. Among them, you have learned that nothing truly divine, whether incorporeal or spiritual, was recognized.

² However, let it be permitted for those who speak of the heavens to tell the truth, and let them find in the natural philosophy of the allegorized that the sun is sometimes Apollo, and at other times Horus, while Osiris is the same, along with countless others as they wish. Just as the moon is either Isis or Artemis, and however many others one might want to name.

³ Let these not be names of mortal men, but important titles of the heavenly lights themselves. Therefore, the sun, the moon, the stars, and the other parts of the world should be worshipped as gods.

⁴ And so, the noble philosophy of the Greeks has revealed, as if by a machine, raising the promise of the word to great heights, while turning below to the sensible and visible creation of the divine, the thoughts of the wise. It speaks of nothing more than fire and the warm essence, and the parts of the world, through the heavenly lights. Let there also be the moist, the dry, and the combination of bodies that are divine.

⁵ How then is the gospel of our savior Jesus Christ, the god, not great and wonderful? It teaches every kind of person to honor the god and master of the sun and moon, the creator of the whole universe, the one who is highest and beyond all, with appropriate thoughts of devotion.

⁶ And not the elements of bodies, but to praise the source of life itself and the provider of all good things. The visible parts of the world and everything that can be sensed by the flesh, though they are perishable, should not be feared. Instead, we should admire the invisible one in all these, the creative mind of the whole universe and each part. We should speak of that one divine power that governs and arranges everything, which is incorporeal and intellectual in nature, and even more so, ineffable and beyond understanding. This power moves through all things, both in the heavens and on earth, showing the lasting greatness of divinity. It is present to all invisibly and to us imperceptibly, governing the entire universe with words of unspeakable wisdom.

⁷ Since so many things have been shown to us as proof of the ungraspable wisdom or theology—both that which is called more mythical and that which is higher and more natural, which the ancient Greeks and Egyptians honored and demonstrated—it is now time for the new thinkers, who promise to philosophize among us, to examine these embellishments. They have taken ideas about the creator of all things and the incorporeal ideas and intellectual powers, which were developed later by those around Plato with careful reasoning, and they have mixed them with the theology of the ancients, raising the promise about myths to a greater blindness. Therefore, listen also to their natural philosophy, which is linked to Porphyry's arrogance.

Book 3, Section 7

"I will speak of what is just, but you, the unholy, close your doors. Show the thoughts of the wise theologian, by which men have revealed the invisible through visible images, announcing the powers of the god and the divine. They have created representations as if from the books of statues, learning about the gods, and they see nothing wonderful in wood and stone, considering the statues to be the most ignorant. Just as the foolish see the stones as pillars and the wood as tablets, they weave the papyrus into books."

² "Having arranged such things as an introduction, listen to what follows in the text: 'Since the divine is like light and exists in the flow of fiery ether, being invisible to the senses in relation to mortal life, it brings forth the idea of its own light through clear materials, such as crystal, Parian stone, or even ivory. And through gold, it leads to the understanding of fire and its purity, showing that gold does not stain.'"

³ "Many have also revealed the invisible nature of the divine using black stone, and they shaped the gods in human form, claiming that the divine is rational and beautiful, as beauty in them is pure. They used various shapes and ages, with thrones, postures, and garments, creating some as male, some as female, some as virgins, and others in the prime of marriage, to represent their differences."

⁴ "From this, they assigned everything white to the heavenly gods, including spheres and all spherical things, especially in relation to the cosmos, the sun, and the moon, wherever there is chance and hope. They linked circles and circular things with eternity and the movement in the sky, along with the living beings and the circles within it. They divided the segments of circles based on the shapes of the moon. They connected pyramids and obelisks to the essence of fire, and for this reason, to the Olympian gods. Just as they created a cone for the sun, a cylinder for the earth, and for seeds and generation, a phallus, and the triangular shape for the female form."

⁵ "The wonderful philosopher says that whatever might be more shameful, they treat shameful things with seriousness, and what could be more violent than lifeless materials, like gold, stone, and similar things, to carry images of the light of the gods and the heavenly and etherial nature? He argues that these ideas belong to the new thinkers. If you understood this, you would realize that the statues made of gold and the supposedly more luxurious materials were also rejected by the ancients. Thus, Plutarch expresses this in these words."

Book 3, Section 8

"The making of statues seems to be something ancient, especially if the first statue was wooden, created for Apollo in Delos by Erysichthon as a gift for the festivals. The wooden statue of Polias was set up by the locals, which the Athenians still protect to this day. Hera and the Samians had a wooden seat, as Callimachus says: 'Not yet was the work of Skelmos a fine offering, but you were a board carving a long-standing image.' This is how they established the gods back then; even in Lindos, Danaus set a stone seat for Athena. It is said that Peiras, the first priest of Hera from Argolis, made his daughter Callithyia a priestess, creating a statue of Hera by cutting down a tree from around Tiryns. They did not want to carve a hard, lifeless image from stone, and they thought gold and silver were colors of the earth that were barren and corrupted, with sickly spots like bruises from being struck by fire. But when they used ivory, they enjoyed its beauty wherever they applied it."

² "Plutarch says these things, and even earlier, Plato understood well that there is nothing serious or resembling divine nature in gold, stones, and ivory, which come from lifeless materials. Listen to what is stated in the Laws: 'The earth is the sacred home of all gods; therefore, no one should set up a second sacred offering to the gods. Gold and silver are coveted possessions in other cities, both privately and in temples, but ivory, once the soul has left the body, is not a fitting offering. Iron and bronze are tools of war.' I believe these words clearly show a reversal of the natural order, which we should also examine in other matters. So listen to what he says."

Book 3, Section 9

"Look at the wisdom of the Greeks as you think about this. They understood Zeus to be the mind of the universe, who created everything within it while possessing the universe itself. In their theology, those who spoke of Orpheus passed down these ideas about him."

² "Zeus came first, and Zeus is the last with bright thunder. Zeus is the head, Zeus is the middle, and from Zeus everything is made. Zeus became male, and Zeus is immortal like a nymph. Zeus is the depth of the earth and the starry sky. Zeus is king; he himself is the source of all beginnings.

'In strength, he became one spirit, the great leader of all. In his body, he is royal, surrounded by all these things: fire, water, earth, air, night, day, Metis, the first creator, and sweet Eros; for everything lies within the great body of Zeus.

Indeed, to see his head and beautiful face is to see the shining sky, which is surrounded by golden stars that sparkle. Oh, and on both sides are two golden horns, the rising and setting, the paths of the heavenly gods, and his eyes are the sun and the moon that meet. His mind is true, royal, and immortal air, which surrounds everything and knows all. There is no sound, nor voice, nor noise, nor even sight that escapes the great son of Cronus.

Thus, he has an immortal head and thought; his body is shining, limitless, city-like, and strong, with powerful limbs. His shoulders, chest, and broad back are like wide air, and wings have grown for him, with which he flies everywhere. A sacred belly surrounds him, and the earth is the all-nurturing mother, along with the high peaks of mountains.

In the middle is the heavy roar of the sea and the deep ocean; the bottom is the base, with roots deep in the earth, and Tartarus is wide, marking the farthest limits of the earth. Everything hidden will again bring light to the rich and will come forth from the heart, like a divine flow."

³ "Therefore, Zeus is the whole universe, a living being made from living beings and a god made from gods. Zeus, as the mind, is the source from which everything comes forth and creates through his thoughts."

⁴ "After the theologians explained this about the god, it was not possible to create such an image as the word suggested. Nor could anyone, if they thought of it, show the living, thinking, and caring spirit through the sphere."

⁵ "They have created a human-like image of Zeus, for he is the mind through which he made and completed everything with seed-like words. He sits as the foundation of power, hinting at his strength. He is bare above, as he is clear in the thinking and heavenly parts of the universe; he looks ahead, as he is hidden from those below. He holds the scepter in his left hand, which rules over the most important and thinking part of the body, the heart, for the creative mind is the king of the universe. In his right hand, he either holds an eagle, as he rules over the sky gods, like the eagle among flying birds, or he holds victory, for he has conquered everything."

⁶ "Porphyry tells you these things, and he says it is good to quietly and thoughtfully consider what they say about Zeus in the way mentioned. For I think of nothing other than the visible universe, made up of many parts, both those in the sky and the air, and the stars that appear in them, just like the head of a large body is arranged, along with those in the air, on land, in the sea, and in similar places."

⁷ "Parts of the universe include land, mountains, and hills, with the sea surrounding them like a zone in the middle. Fire and water, night and day, would also be parts of the nature of the universe. I believe these things clearly show the visible universe, unless I am mistaken, and that the whole is made up of parts."

⁸ "It says, 'For everything lies in the great body of Zeus.' And what are all these things? Fire, water, earth, and air, night and day. Indeed, you can see the head and beautiful features of the shining sky, which is surrounded by golden hair, and the wonderfully bright stars rise around it."

⁹ "And what follows from these things? It is said that the mind of Zeus is the air and nothing else. According to the Stoics, they claim that the fiery and warm essence is the ruling part of the universe, that the god is a body, and that the creator is nothing other than the power of fire. For I believe the same is said in the verses: 'And the mind is a true royal one, the imperishable air, which indeed surrounds and holds everything.'"

¹⁰ "Through these things, he clearly suggests that the great living being is the universe. By calling this being Zeus, he declared that the mind of this being is the air, while the body consists of the other parts of the universe."

¹¹ "Such is the Zeus that is described in the verses. The interpreter of the verses begins by saying that Zeus is the whole universe, a living being made of living beings, a god made of gods. Clearly, the one referred to as Zeus is nothing other than the visible and tangible universe, as explained in the verses."

¹² "The teaching of the Egyptians, from whom Orpheus also drew his theology, is that the universe is the god, made from many parts of gods. (For it has already been shown that the parts of the universe are also referred to as gods.) And nothing more has been clearly explained in the verses that have been presented."

¹³ "After the first explanation, he adds a second one, saying that the creator god, the mind of everything, is the one being discussed in theology."

¹⁴ "How could he speak of this one, whose beginning was not known even by the poet of the verses, whether he was Orpheus the Thracian or someone else? If indeed the teachings of theology came from the Egyptians or even from the earliest Greeks, then they have shown nothing understandable, nor anything that exists in an unseen and incorporeal essence. If Plato could convince anyone, he agreed in the Cratylus that the first humans in Greece considered only these as gods, just as many of the barbarians do now: the sun, the moon, the earth, the stars, and the sky."

¹⁵ "And Chairemon also testifies a little earlier that the Egyptians believed in nothing else before the visible world, nor in any other gods except for the wandering stars and the other stars. He explains that everything is understood in terms of the visible parts of the world and nothing in terms of incorporeal and living essences."

Book 3, Section 10

"Therefore, from where does the poet get the idea of the god beyond the world? How did he come to know this in his verses, and how was he able to speak of the creator of the sun, the moon, the stars, the sky, and the whole universe? And where does he gain knowledge of the incorporeal?"

² "But he knows nothing of these things. The creative mind of all things is not made up of many parts, nor could it have a head that is the sky, nor a body of fire, water, and earth. The sun and moon cannot be its eyes. How could there be shoulders, a chest, a back, and a belly for the god who creates all things, along with the vast air, the earth, and the high peaks of mountains? Or how could the ether be the mind of the creator of all things, or the creative mind itself?"

³ "Therefore, there is no need to say anything about how these things are explained by the interpreter of the verses. I truly believe it is very impious to claim that parts of the world are parts of god, and even more so to say that god is the same as the world. On top of that, it is wrong to consider the mind of the creator of all things to be the mind of the world."

⁴ "For it is pious to say that the poet is a different being from the world he has created. However, to claim that the mind of the world, like the soul of some animal, is completely united with it and that the whole is wrapped up in it would not be holy to say."

⁵ "And yet, his sacred words teach us that he is present in all things and cares for the world, speaking in a worthy and fitting manner. He says, 'Do I not fill heaven and earth?' says the Lord. And again, 'For God is above in heaven and below on earth.' And again, 'For in him we live and move and exist.' But this does not mean that he is a part of the world or that he exists within its soul and mind."

⁶ "But if it is necessary to use an example, the sacred word has spoken more fittingly and truthfully: 'Heaven is my throne,' he said, 'and the earth is the footstool for my feet.'"

⁷ "For if it is necessary to use a more human-like expression, it highlights the difference in theology. When he called heaven a throne, he distinguished the all-sovereign God as being above the throne and higher than all things, without separating the earth from his care. This teaches that his caring powers are also present in these things, which is why he says, 'And the earth is the footstool for my feet.'"

⁸ "But neither the footstool nor the throne is a body of the one who sits, nor could any part of him be said to exist. He called heaven the head of God and the air his mind, while the other parts of the world are his members and body. No one knows him as either a creator or a god."

⁹ "For he could not create himself, nor could the mind be called a mind if the air was its mind. What kind of god would he be whose parts are the earth and the mountains on the earth, which are just masses of lifeless bodies? And how could one call a reasonable god the brother and relative of fire, air, and water, which come from lifeless and perishable matter?"

¹⁰ "But if the mind of Zeus was nothing more than the air that was mentioned, and if the air is the highest and fiery part of the ether, which is what burns, then, as they say, it has taken this name. Both the air and the ether are bodies, so see where the mind of Zeus has gone."

¹¹ "And who would still call a god one whose mind was thoughtless and without reason, if such a nature belongs to all bodies? Therefore, in our discussions about the gods, we must consider everything that is the opposite of what has been said: neither heaven, nor ether, nor the sun, nor the moon, nor the entire group of stars, nor the whole universe itself is the true god. These are small and short-lived works of his hands, compared to the incorporeal and intelligent powers. For indeed, every body is perishable and without reason, and such is the nature of visible things. But the things beyond are rational and immortal, sharing in the blessed life of the all-ruling god, and they are much better than all the visible things."

¹² "Therefore, the divine sayings teach us about the visible parts of the world in this way: 'I will look at the heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have established.' And again, 'You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth at the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands.' And once more, 'Lift up your eyes on high and see who has made all these things.'"

¹³ "Let these things be said in the first interpretation of the verses; but let us also examine what comes next. Since it was not possible, he says, to create such an image as the word suggested, they made a human-like representation of Zeus, because there was a mind through which he created, and with seed-like words, he brought everything to completion."

¹⁴ "And how could it be possible to create such an image as the word suggested? The word pointed to the parts of the visible world: the heavens and what is in the heavens, the air and the earth, and what is in them. If, then, it is not possible to form an image of the visible parts of the world, since God is a mind, how could anyone create an image of him?"

¹⁵ "What could a human body have in common with the mind of God? For I do not even think it is similar to a human. The mind is without a body, unformed, and without parts, while the body is the work of mortal men and imitates the nature of a human body. It is an image made from lifeless matter and dead substance, mute and speechless."

¹⁶ "The rational soul is immortal, and the mind is without passion. It seems to me that this is rightly called an image and likeness of God, because it is immaterial and without a body, existing as a thinking and rational essence, capable of virtue and wisdom."

¹⁷ "If someone could create a statue and form of the soul in an image, they could also create something even greater. But if it is formless, unchanging, and without shape, then the human mind cannot grasp its essence through sight, reason, or hearing. Who would dare to claim that a statue of God could represent the highest form and likeness?"

¹⁸ "The nature of God is seen as beyond all mortal matter, understood by a clear mind and in silence by purified souls. However, the form of the visible Zeus would be a likeness of a mortal man, not the whole person, but rather a part that imitates the lesser, since it brings no trace of life from the soul."

¹⁹ "How could the God above all and the mind that creates everything be the same as Zeus made of bronze or dead ivory? The creative mind of all things must be different from that Zeus, the father of Heracles from Alcmene and of other men said to come from Zeus. These men have brought an end to mortal life for all humans, leaving behind lasting monuments of their own nature."

²⁰ "The Phoenicians, as we showed in the first writing, spoke of Zeus as the son of Cronus, born from a mortal man of Phoenician descent. The Egyptians, on the other hand, accepted this mortal man as well, agreeing with the Phoenicians on this matter."

²¹ "But the Cretans, by showing the tomb of Zeus among themselves, would also be the third witnesses to this. The Atlanteans and all those mentioned before, following their own history, all agreed that Zeus was mortal, declaring his actions to be human and ordinary, but not any noble or wise deeds. Instead, they wrote about all kinds of shameful acts and immorality."

²² "To those who promised to transform the myths into something more serious, at times Zeus was seen as a warm and fiery power, and at other times as a spirit. But now, I do not know how the creative mind of all things has been shown to them."

²³ "Therefore, one should ask who they would say is the father of this one and the ancestor of that father. Since all the theologians agree that Zeus is the son of Cronus, and the verses of Orpheus mention 'the mightiest son of Cronus,' while Cronus is the son of Uranus."

²⁴ "Let it be said then that Zeus is the god above all and the mind that created everything. So, who is his father? Cronus. And who is his ancestor? Uranus. If Zeus is truly the first creator of all, then it is necessary to name the second ones and those who were created by him after that."

²⁵ "For if time is indeed Cronus, born from Uranus, or if time existed alongside the sky, then Uranus would be the father of Cronus, and time would come after him. But before these, there is the cause of all things, the god who created both the sky and time. If this is true, then Zeus could not be the third from Uranus."

²⁶ "How then is the creator mind of all things counted as the third from Uranus by all the Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, and philosophers? Indeed, the philosopher's creation is made known, and it will be even more clearly shown from those he mentions, saying this:"

Book 3, Section 11

"They made Hera a partner to Zeus, calling her the power of the upper air and the atmosphere. For the upper air is the most refined form of air."

² "Earlier, it was shown that the upper air is the mind of Zeus. Now, the discussion is about how the upper air is defined, stating that it is the most refined form of air. However, air is a body, and the upper air is much older."

³ "Therefore, the mind of Zeus is shown to be a body, even if it is the finest of all. But how could body and mind be considered the same when they are different in nature?"

⁴ "Then, I do not know how, having forgotten the words of those who spoke clearly, it is said: 'The mind is indeed a true, royal, and imperishable upper air, which surrounds and contains everything. There is no sound, no noise, and no thing that escapes the notice of Zeus, the mighty son of Cronus.' Through these words, it is clearly stated that the upper air is the mind of Zeus."

⁵ "But he says that Hera is the upper and airy power. Then, breaking it down, he adds: 'The power of all air is named after Hera, coming from the air. The air that is lit and darkened by the moon is represented by Leto. I forget her because of the unconsciousness during sleep, and forgetfulness happens to souls that are born under the moon. For this reason, she is also the mother of Apollo and Artemis, who are the sources of light during the night.'"

⁶ "And in these things, he says that the air under the moon is the mother of the sun and the moon; for this is Leto. But how could the air be the mother of the sources of light, rather than being created itself or creating? For the sun and the moon change the air in different ways at different times."

⁷ "Then, continuing, he says: 'The ruling power of the earth is called Hestia, whose statue is placed on the hearth of fire. Since this power is fertile, they represent her in the form of a woman as a leader. Rhea is named as the power of the rocky and mountainous land, while Demeter is the power of the flat and fertile land. Demeter shares everything else with Rhea, but it is noted that she bears Persephone from Zeus, meaning the girl from the fruitful seeds. Therefore, her sheaf is tied to the ears of grain, and the poppy around her is a symbol of fertility.'"

⁸ "And here again, think about how Rhea is called the mother of the gods and how she has somehow fallen around the rock and the earth. He says that she is the same as Demeter in every way, except that it is noted that Demeter bears Persephone from Zeus, just as the flat land produces the girl from the fruitful seeds. Look, Zeus has once more transformed into the fruitful seeds."

⁹ "Next, he adds, saying: 'Since there is a power in the seeds that fall to the ground, which the sun draws down around the lower hemisphere during the winter solstice, the power that produces seeds is called the Maiden, while Pluto is the sun that goes underground and circles the hidden world during the winter solstice. He is said to seize the Maiden, whom Demeter mourns, hidden beneath the earth.'"

¹⁰ "And the power of the fruits and all the plants is called Dionysus. Also, take a look at their images. The Maiden carries symbols of the growth of the fruits that rise above the ground, while Dionysus shares the horns with the Maiden. He is androgynous, showing the mixed power of the fruits."

¹¹ "Pluto, the kidnapper of the Maiden, has a dog as a symbol of the hidden realm, and the short scepter represents the kingdom below. His dog symbolizes the growth of the fruits, which is divided into three parts: the planting, the receiving, and the raising. It is not that he has a dog to show the souls, but because of the act of giving birth, where Pluto is the guide when he seizes the Maiden."

¹² "Attis and Adonis are connected to the fruits. Attis represents the flowers that bloom in spring and those that fall before they fully open. This is why they say he was castrated, as the fruits did not reach their full growth. Adonis, on the other hand, symbolizes the cutting of the perfect fruits."

¹³ "Silenus is a symbol of spiritual movement, connecting with everything. The symbols are the ivy and the shining crown on his head, which represent the heavenly sphere, while the hair around his lower body shows the density of the air close to the earth."

¹⁴ "Since there is a power that takes part in prophecy, this power is called Themis, as she speaks about what is established and what is meant for each thing."

¹⁵ "Because of all these things, the earthly power that leads to understanding is worshiped. She is seen as a virgin and as Hestia, the center-bearer; as a mother, the nurturer; as Rhea, the stone-maker and mountain goddess; as Demeter, the one who brings forth grass; and as Themis, the one who speaks prophecies. This refers to the seed-like word that comes to her, which is shaped in Priapus. The one related to dry fruits is called Kore, while the one related to wet fruits and soft fruits is called Dionysus. Kore is taken by Plouton, the one who goes under the earth, during the time of sowing, and Dionysus experiences the powers of growth, starting from the earth, which is younger and more beautiful. The symbol of the power during flowering is Attis, while the symbol during the rituals of cutting is Adonis."

¹⁶ "And the spiritual power is transformed into Silenus, while the power that extends from them leads to Bacchus, just as the urge that stirs up desires comes through the Satyrs. Through these symbols, the earthly power is unveiled."

¹⁷ "Thus, I present these things, which I must explain, so that we do not remain ignorant of the important ideas of the philosophers. Therefore, according to what has been established, Kore is the one of the seeds, Dionysus is the power of the soft fruits, Attis is the symbol of the spring flowers, and Adonis is the symbol of the perfect fruits."

¹⁸ "Why then should we make gods out of the food for the bodies of the animals on the earth, which were created by the god of all? And why should we worship the earthly power, when our nature is a rational and immortal soul from the all-powerful god, seen with the eyes of a pure mind?"

¹⁹ "Hearing about Silenus, who is said to have a spiritual movement and a power that flows through everything, sometimes showing the heavenly orbit through his head, and sometimes revealing the heaviness in the air through the thick hair of his beard, how could anyone think that he deserves no respect or honor? He should be worshiped before all others, while Adonis and Dionysus, who represent the fruits and soft fruits, are being made into gods."

²⁰ "Who could stay quiet while listening to the serious talk about Satyrs and Bacchae, who reveal the shameful and uncontrolled passions in humans? The Satyrs show the urges that lead to sexual desires, while the Bacchae display the excesses that happen around these things."

²¹ "And why should we examine each part separately? We need to dive in so that nothing hidden escapes our notice, and to explore the following explanation of nature that the mentioned author presents, using this method."

²² "I referred to the entire power of the water-maker as Ocean, naming its symbol Tethys. Of this power, the one made of fresh waters is called Achelous, while the one of the sea is Poseidon, who is also known as the sea-maker, since Amphitrite is the one who gives birth to it. Some of the sweet waters are called Nymphs, while those of the sea are called Nereids."

²³ "Again, referring to the power of fire as Hephaestus, they created a statue of him that looks human. They placed a dark blue symbol of the heavenly circle around it, where the fire is both the original and the purest. However, the fire that was brought down to earth from the sky is weaker and needs support and a base on the ground; therefore, it is limited and requires the earth to rise above."

²⁴ "Considering the power of the sun, they named it Apollo, inspired by the brightness of his rays. Nine Muses sing to him, including the moon-like sphere, the seven planets, and one that is the wandering star. They placed a laurel around him, partly because the plant is full of fire and is therefore disliked by spirits, and partly because it burns when set on fire, symbolizing the god's ability to prophesy."

²⁵ "Since the sun protects against earthly troubles, they named him Heracles, because he calls out to the air as he moves from east to west. They spoke of twelve labors, naming them after the division of the stars in the sky. They placed a club and a lion's skin around him, with the club representing his strength and the lion's skin symbolizing his power among the zodiac."

²⁶ "The symbol of his saving power is Asclepius. They gave him a staff, which represents relief and rest for the sick, while the snake wraps around it, symbolizing the healing of both body and soul. (Indeed, the natural philosophers, explaining the world, attributed the thick and earthy substances of animals to the earth.) For living beings are very spiritual and shed the weakness of the body. He also seems to be very healing; for he discovered the medicine for the sourness of vinegar and is said to know of a plant that brings revival."

²⁷ "And for the dance and circular movement, in which the power of fire nourishes the fruits, he is called Dionysus, the power of the moist fruits, whether from the swirling or from the sun's journey across the sky. As the sun moves through the hours of the world and creates times and seasons, he is called Hora."

²⁸ "And for his agricultural power, which brings the gifts of wealth, the symbol is Pluto. Similarly, he also has a destructive power, which is why they connect Serapis with Pluto. They create a symbol of the purple robe of the one who has sunk beneath the earth and the broken scepter of the lower power, as well as the shape of the hand that reaches into the unseen."

²⁹ "But Cerberus is three-headed because there are three regions of the upper world: the east, the noon, and the west."

³⁰ "And they named the moon Artemis, taking from the brightness, like 'air-bright.' Artemis is also a protector of childbirth, even though she is a virgin, because the power of the new moon helps in the act of giving birth."

³¹ "What Apollo is in the sun, Athena is in the moon; for she is a symbol of wisdom, being a kind of gathering."

³² "Again, Hecate is the moon because of her transformations and the powers of her shapes; therefore, her power is threefold. The new moon brings the white robe, the golden sandals, and the lit torches. The basket, which she carries in the air, symbolizes the work of the fruits, which she nurtures according to the growth of light. The full moon is symbolized by the bronze sandals."

³³ "One could take fire from the branch of the laurel and seeds from the poppy, along with the many souls that gather to her like a city, since the poppy symbolizes a city. Artemis carries bows because of the sharpness of childbirth pains."

³⁴ "Again, the Fates relate to their powers: Clotho is for birth, Lachesis is for nourishment, and Atropos is for the unavoidable fate of the gods."

³⁵ "They also connect her with the generative power of fruits, which is Demeter, a power that brings her wealth. The moon is also linked to Persephone. They also associate Dionysus with her because of the growth of the horns and the place of the clouds that lies beneath the lower regions."

³⁶ "I saw the power of Cronus as slow, sluggish, and cold, so they assigned him the power of time. They also portray him as an old man to show that time brings aging."

³⁷ "The Curetes symbolize the seasons, guiding time, because time flows through the seasons."

³⁸ "The Hours are the Olympian ones of the sun, who open the gates in the sky, while the chthonic ones belong to Demeter. One group carries a basket with flowers, which symbolizes spring, and the other carries ears of grain, which symbolize summer."

³⁹ "Grasping the power of Ares, which is fierce and brings about wars and bloodshed, they made it capable of both harming and helping."

⁴⁰ "Seeing the star of Aphrodite as the source of life and the cause of desire and reproduction, they created a woman for the purpose of creation, beautiful like Hesperus, who is the most beautiful star in the sky."

⁴¹ "And they placed Eros for the sake of desire. He covers the breasts and the reproductive parts, since this power is the cause of reproduction and nurturing. He comes from the sea, an element that is both wet and warm, moving constantly and bubbling up because of the stirring, hinting at the seed."

⁴² "In this speech, which is both poetic and interpretive, Hermes serves as the representative. The extended Hermes shows harmony and also points out the seed-like message that runs through everything."

⁴³ "Next, there is a combined speech: Hermes in the sun, Hecate in the moon, and Hermopan in everything. For the seed-like and poetic is present in all things. Hermanuvis is also a blend, like a mix of Greek and Egyptian. Since this speech is about the power of desire, Eros represents it. Therefore, Eros is the child of Hermes, but he is childlike because of his sudden slips into desires."

⁴⁴ "They made Pan a symbol of everything, giving him horns to represent the sun and moon, and the fawn skin to symbolize the stars in the sky, or the variety of all things."

⁴⁵ "The Greek symbols are like this: the Egyptians say their creator has similar symbols. They call him Khnum, who looks like a human, with dark blue skin, holding a belt and a scepter, and wearing a royal wing on his head. This is because he represents a hard-to-find and hidden truth, which is not visible, and because he gives life and moves with thought. Therefore, the nature of the wing is placed on his head."

⁴⁶ "They say that this god sends forth an egg from his mouth, and from this egg, a god is born, whom they call Phtha, while the Greeks call him Hephaestus. The egg represents the world. A sheep is offered to this god because the ancients used to make milk from it."

⁴⁷ "They made a statue of the world like this: it looks human, with its feet joined together, and above the feet, it is covered with a colorful robe. On its head, it has a golden sphere because it does not change, and because of the colorful nature of the stars, as well as because the world is round."

⁴⁸ "They sometimes represent the sun as a man standing on a ship, with the ship resting on a crocodile. The ship symbolizes movement in water, while the crocodile represents the drinkable water in which the sun travels. Therefore, the sun signifies making a journey through moist and sweet air."

⁴⁹ "They call the power of the heavenly earth and the earthly land Isis because of their equality, which brings about justice. They say that the moon is heavenly, while the fruitful land, where we live, is earthly."

⁵⁰ "Demeter is the same as Isis among the Greeks and Egyptians, and Kore is the same as Dionysus among the Greeks, while Isis and Osiris are the same among the Egyptians. Demeter nourishes and cares for what is on the earth. Osiris, among the Egyptians, represents the power of fertility, which is celebrated in songs as it disappears into the earth during planting and is consumed by us as food."

⁵¹ "The power of the Nile River is also seen as a substitute. When they refer to the earthly land, Osiris represents the power of fertility, but when they refer to the heavenly, Osiris is identified with the Nile, which they believe comes down from the sky. They mourn for him as they see his power fading and being consumed. In the myths, Isis, the Egyptian goddess, is associated with Osiris as the earth. This is why she is considered equal, able to conceive, and produces the crops. Therefore, Osiris is called the husband, brother, and son of Isis."

Book 3, Section 12

"In the city of Elephantine, there is a revered statue. It is shaped like a man but seated, and it has a blue color. The statue has the head of a ram and royal horns like a goat, which have a circular disk on them. It sits next to a clay vessel, on which a figure can be formed. This statue shows that it has the face of a ram and the horns of a goat, representing the union of the sun and the moon. The blue color suggests that the moon is connected to water."

² "The second light of the moon is honored in the city of Apollo. Its symbol is a human figure with the face of a hawk, holding a hippopotamus that resembles Typhon. The statue is white, representing the brightness of the moon, while the hawk's face symbolizes being illuminated by the sun and receiving spirit. They dedicate the hawk to the sun; for them, the hawk is a symbol of light and spirit because of its swift movements and ability to soar high, where the light is. The hippopotamus represents the western region, as it swallows those who swim near it."

³ "In this city, the god Horus is honored. The city of Eileithyia worships the third light; the statue is shaped like a vulture in flight, with feathers made from valuable stones. The vulture represents the creative spirit of the moon; for they believe that from this spirit, the vulture conceives, representing all female forms."

⁴ "In the Eleusinian mysteries, the hierophant prepares for the image of the creator, while the torchbearer prepares for the sun. The hierophant stands at the altar for the moon, and the herald represents Hermes."

⁵ "In Egypt, a man is welcomed in the sacred places. Anabis is a village in Egypt, where a man is honored, and sacrifices are made to him, with offerings burned on the altars. After a little while, he would eat what has been prepared for him as a human."

⁶ "That no animals are considered gods, but rather images and symbols of the gods, is shown by the many times bulls are offered to the gods during holy days and in their worship. For they sacrifice bulls to the sun and the moon."

Book 3, Section 13

"But he who lies in the city of Helios, called Mneuis, is the greatest of the bulls, very dark, especially because the great sun darkens human bodies. He has a tail like other bulls, and his whole body is hairless, just as the sun makes the opposite pole shine. His testicles are very large, since desire for pleasure comes from heat, and the sun is said to make nature reproduce."

² "To the moon, they offered a bull, which they call Apis. He is dark like the others, but he carries signs of the sun and the moon, since the light of the moon comes from the sun. The sign of the sun is the blackness of the body and the beetle found under the tongue. The symbols of the moon are both the forked shape and the curved shape."

³ "Let these things be taken from the writing of the man mentioned above, so that nothing escapes us about the hidden aspects of Greek and Egyptian theology, of which we admit we are followers and exiles, having chosen these ideas with careful thought and reasoning."

⁴ "For the voice of the boastful will not scare me, saying, 'You who are unholy, do not approach the doors.' Indeed, we are not unholy, but those who claim that such shameful and improper myths about beetles and irrational beasts are the ideas of a wise theologian. They, as the remarkable apostle says, claiming to be wise, have become foolish; for they have changed the glory of the incorruptible god into the likeness of a corruptible man, and of birds and four-footed animals and creeping things."

⁵ "But since they have indeed lifted all the secret and more mysterious discussions about these things to incorporeal powers, it seems they no longer focus their divinity on the visible parts of the world, but rather on certain unseen and incorporeal powers. Let us think about whether we should not be amazed by this one divine power, but instead consider many."

⁶ "For since many shapes, parts, and members have been created within one body, we should not think that we have so many souls, nor should we believe there are so many poets and creators of the body. Instead, we should understand that one soul moves the whole body, and one creative power shapes the entire living being."

⁷ "Thus, in the whole universe, which is one and made from a single physical substance, while divided into many parts, there is one natural connection among all. The mixing and blending of the elements within it, along with their changes and transformations, show that the whole and everything together form one world and one harmony. Therefore, we should not assume there are many creative powers, but rather speak of the one true power of god and the wisdom of god."

⁸ "But he also shifts the Egyptian myths to incorporeal powers, hiding himself, the wisest one. He has heard how Chairemon and many others claimed that nothing else should be considered before the visible worlds, placing the Egyptians at the start of the discussion. They interpret everything in terms of the physical and nothing in terms of incorporeal and living essences."

⁹ "If, then, according to their own agreement, the Egyptians did not connect anything to incorporeal and living essences, but instead transferred everything about the gods to the physical parts of the universe, why do you attribute something that is not theirs to the Egyptians, claiming that they relate their theology to incorporeal powers? Therefore, all these points should be questioned."

¹⁰ "And about the specific points, I believe that examining their forced explanations will not take long to refute. For if someone were to overlook the Egyptian nonsense and their many empty and foolish claims in order to study the natural philosophy of the wise Greeks, who wouldn't blame those trying to misunderstand such things?"

¹¹ "Let Zeus no longer be seen as the fiery and etheric essence, as the ancients believed according to Plutarch. Instead, let him be the highest mind, the creator of all, who gives life to everything. How, then, can Cronus, whom they say represents time, be the father of this being, and Rhea the mother, whom the interpreter claims is the rocky and mountainous power? For I do not understand how Hera is called both the air and the ether, and is said to be both the sister and wife of the creator and life-giver of all."

¹² "But let Leto be called forgetfulness again, because of the unconsciousness during sleep, as they say, and because forgetfulness is said to affect the souls that come under the moon. How, then, could forgetfulness be the mother of the sun and the moon, when Apollo and Artemis, the children of Leto, have been associated with the sun and the moon?"

¹³ "What need is there to worship Rhea or Demeter as a goddess, if one is said to carry the symbols of the rocky and mountainous land, while the other carries the symbols of the plain? And why do they think it is necessary to honor Persephone, the maiden, with a respectful title, when they interpret her as a symbol of growth?"

¹⁴ "What need is there to worship the power that brings forth seeds, the generation of fruits, or the flowers that appear in spring and bloom before they fully develop? Why call them gods like Dionysus, Attis, and Adonis? Shouldn't we rather honor the human race, to which the creator god of all has given these things for use and nourishment?"

¹⁵ "Then, moving away from these ideas, you should also reject the others in the same way when it comes to noble nature. It is reasonable to criticize those who claim that the sun itself is Apollo, that Heracles is the same, and that Dionysus and Asclepius are the same as well."

¹⁶ "How could the same father be both Asclepius and Apollo as his son? And how could he be transferred again to Heracles, if indeed Heracles is said to be born from the mortal woman Alcmene? And how could the sun go mad and kill his own children, when these things are also attributed to Heracles?"

¹⁷ "But regarding the twelve labors that Heracles completed, they are said to be part of the division of the zodiac in the sky, which the sun is believed to circle and carry as a symbol. So who would Eurystheus be, who, like the sun, orders Heracles to complete these labors? How could the fifty daughters of Thestios and the other captured women rise up against the sun, if it is said that Heracles mingled with them, from whom mortal children were born, extending the line of generations for a long time? And who would the centaur be, whose blood Deianeira used to stain the sun's cloak, just as she did with Heracles? Would he not also be caught up in the same misfortune?"

¹⁸ "But let the sun not be Heracles for them; let him instead be Dionysus. What do these things have to do with Dionysus? Someone might say this makes sense. Who is his mother, whether it is said to be Semele or Persephone? How could Dionysus be the same as the sun and the power that brings forth wet fruits and nuts? And what would happen to the many women who accompanied him? Who is the sun's companion, just as Ariadne is for Dionysus? And why would Dionysus be more of a giver of wine, rather than of grain, legumes, and all the fruits from the earth, if he were to be associated with the sun?"

¹⁹ "If the sun is also Asclepius for them, how can he be struck by Zeus's lightning because of filthy greed? According to the Boeotian poet Pindar, he says something like this: 'He was turned into a man by gold appearing in his hands... and then the son of Cronus quickly threw him down, casting away the breath from his chest, and a fiery lightning struck him, sealing his fate.'"

²⁰ "Who are the Asclepiads from the sun, if they are preserved for a long time in life and are close to all human generations? Yet, just like by a trick, they avoid the shameful and mythical stories about the gods. Instead, the story would rush off to the sun, the moon, and the other parts of the world."

²¹ "If fire was Hephaestus for them, representing warmth, and Poseidon was the wet substance, and Hera was the air, then the earth was both the mountainous and rocky Rhea and the flat and fertile Demeter. Persephone was the bearer of seeds, and Dionysus was the power that brings forth fruits. The sun was Apollo, along with those mentioned, and the moon was sometimes Artemis, sometimes Athena, and also Hecate and Eileithyia. Therefore, they deny the creator of all creation, but do not speak of the creator himself. This is very uncertain, dangerous, and harmful to their own well-being."

²² "If they do not claim that the visible bodies of the sun, moon, and stars, or the sensible parts of the world are divine, but instead recognize the unseen powers within them, the one who is above all, (for one god fills everything with various powers, exists through all things, oversees all, being without body and unseen in all, and moves through all, and they say it is reasonable to honor this one through what has been revealed), then why do they not reject the shameful and inappropriate myths about the gods as unlawful and impious? Why do they not make the books about these things invisible, since they contain irreverent and immoral content? Instead, they sing praises to the one and only invisible god plainly, purely, and without any shameful entanglement?"

²³ "For those who know the truth, it was necessary to act this way, not to bring down and throw the reverent call of god into shameful and passionate speech. They should not shut themselves away in small houses and dark corners of men's buildings, thinking they would find god inside. They should not believe that they honor divine powers in lifeless statues made from material, nor think that they are pleasing god by performing rituals with the blood of animals and the remains of dead creatures."

²⁴ "Of all these things, as if freed from the bonds of error, it was necessary for the wise and those who study the heavens to share generously with all people the knowledge of nature. They should not merely proclaim the visible things to everyone, but instead marvel at the unseen creator of the visible things. They should worship his unseen and bodiless powers in an unseen and bodiless way, not by touching fire, nor by sacrificing a ram or a bull, nor by thinking they honor the divine with crowns, statues, and temple buildings. Instead, they should act with purified thoughts and correct, true beliefs, in a state of detachment of the soul, striving to become as virtuous as possible in relation to him."

²⁵ "But no one, neither barbarian nor Greek, has ever led all people to this truth except our own savior. He proclaimed to all nations the escape from the old error and offered everyone a way back to the true and only god of all. However, the so-called wise ones of life, boasting of their highest philosophy, as the divine apostle says, 'Although they knew god, they did not honor him as god or give thanks, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.' Claiming to be wise, they became foolish, and they honored and served the creation instead of the creator, who is blessed forever."

Book 3, Section 14

"After a long and extensive study of philosophy, as well as serious studies in meteorology and physiology, they fell from above, as if from the highest heights, and were dragged down with the masses, becoming entangled in the old error of many gods. They acted like most people, making sacrifices and bowing down to statues, pretending to honor them, while growing in strength and further reinforcing the common beliefs about the myths of the gods."

² "How then could they not be clearly seen by all, while speaking seriously about physiology and dressing up shameful things with words that twist the truth, yet by their actions promoting the mythical error and widespread superstition? And is it not surprising that they even write down their own gods according to the myths that suit them?"

³ "Listen to how Apollo himself teaches a hymn that he composed for himself, admitting that he was born on the island of Delos by Leto. And again, Asclepius in Trikka, as Hermes also admits he was born from Maia."

⁴ "Porphyry also writes this in his work on philosophy based on reason, where he mentions the oracles in this way: 'O great joy for all mortals, from the holy mother of sacred births.'"

⁵ "To which he adds: 'But when Leto was in labor, all the sacred places shook as the twin births were happening in the groves. The earth stood still, and the air stood still; the island was frozen, and the waves were still. Then, the seer Lycoreus, the skilled archer Phoebus, and the king of the oracle-giving tripods rose up.'"

⁶ "And Asclepius again speaks about himself: 'I am a god from Trikka, whom my mother once bore after being made pregnant by Phoebus, as the king of wisdom, Asclepius the healer. But what do you want to know?'"

⁷ "And Hermes says: 'I am the one you call, the son of Zeus and Maia. I have come as Hermes, leaving the starry lord behind.'"

⁸ "And they describe their own appearance in the shape, just as Pan himself says in oracles about himself, teaching: 'I pray, as a mortal, to the god Pan, with two horns, two feet, goat-like, enjoying life.'"

⁹ "These things are presented by the man revealed in the secret teachings of philosophy. So, Pan was no longer a symbol of everything, but a spirit like the one who gave the oracle. For indeed, not everything and the whole universe spoke about the matters at hand. Therefore, men imitated the shape that was written down, not the image of everything."

¹⁰ "And how would Hermes be understood, the creative and interpretive word of all things, acknowledging that his mother is Maia, the daughter of Atlas, while considering the mythology told about him, but not accepting the natural philosophy?"

¹¹ "So how could Asclepius be said to go to the sun, claiming that his homeland is Trikka and acknowledging that he was born from a mortal mother? And how could he, being the sun himself, be called the son of the sun again? After all, they also claimed that his father, Phoebus, was none other than the sun."

¹² "How could he not be the most laughable of all, being said to come from the sun and a mortal woman? Since even his father, the sun, whom they say is Apollo, how could it be likely that he was born on the island of Delos from a mortal mother, Leto?"

¹³ "Here, keep track of how many Greek gods they said were born from women, in case they ever try to mock the birth of our savior. And remember, these voices are not from poets, but rather the signs of the gods themselves."

Book 3, Section 15

"Poets, as they say, create myths about the gods, while philosophers study nature. It makes sense to look down on the poets and admire the philosophers as wise. It is better to accept the arguments of those who are more powerful rather than the nonsense of the poets. But when gods and philosophers compete, those in oracles speak about themselves, as if they know better and teach accurately. Meanwhile, the others twist their arguments into confusing and unproven ideas about things they do not understand. Who should we trust to speak the truth? Is this not worth asking?"

² "If the gods truly speak about human-like qualities, then those who reject them would be mistaken. But if the philosophers' ideas about nature are true, then the testimonies of the gods would be false."

³ "But even he, someone might say, Apollo once declared in oracles when asked about himself: 'I am the Sun, Horus, Osiris, the son of mighty Zeus, Apollo, the steward of seasons and times, of winds and rains, the charioteer of day and the many-starred night, the king of blazing stars and immortal fire.'"

⁴ "So, the myths of the poets and the ideas of the philosophers are related, as they both argue against each other. If they write about mortal mothers and acknowledge earthly fathers, how could they be correct about nature?"

⁵ "Let Apollo be the sun—again, the argument will return to the same points. How then could Delos, the island that still appears in the sea, be the homeland of the sun, and Leto be his mother? For the oracles of Apollo have just recently declared this as true. And how could the sun be the father of Asclepius, a mortal man, if he was born from a mortal woman? But let's set these things aside."

Book 3, Section 16

"The falsehood of the oracle can be shown in another way. The sun did not come down from the sky to fill the vessel and then deliver the oracle. It is neither possible nor right for such a powerful light to be subject to human needs. And even if they claimed that there is a divine and intelligent power within it, human souls could never accept such a thing."

² "The same argument would apply to the moon. If they say that Hecate is the same and is somehow drawn down by human needs, and that she is used through the vessel, it would make sense that she leads to shameful and erotic services, taking charge of wicked spirits. This is what the same writer agrees with, saying that we will prove this in due time."

³ "How could Pluto and Sarapis be connected to the sun when the same person claims that Sarapis is the same as Pluto, the ruler of wicked spirits? And how could the oracles of Sarapis say that they are the sun?"

⁴ "But indeed, from all these things, it is agreed that nothing true comes from the declared teachings; they are merely clever tricks of wise men and inventions."

Book Four

"Those who serve the oracles claim that the spirits are truly wicked, playing tricks on humans. Sometimes they mix their tales with more mythical stories for the general public, and at other times they support the tricks of philosophers, using both to deceive and manipulate. As a result, they are trapped from all sides and do not speak the truth at all."

² "After saying all this, it is now time to move on to the third type of Greek theology, which is said to be both political and lawful. This is especially believed to be enough to shock many people because of the well-known prophecies and the treatments and cures for those who are suffering, as well as certain investigations."

³ "They claim that through experience they have been convinced that they are pious and act justly toward the gods, while we are the ones who commit the greatest impiety, not honoring the clear and helpful powers with the proper treatments. Therefore, let us begin a new discussion in response to this."

Book 4, Section 1

Introduction. The third type of the many-god deception, through which we have been freed by the power and kindness of our redeemer and savior, is to be examined in this fourth book of the Evangelical Preparation.

² Since they divide all their theology into three main types, one being the mythical as told by the poets, another being the natural as discovered by philosophers, and the third being the political, which is claimed in each city and region, two of these parts have already been explained to us in previous writings: the historical, which they call mythical, and the one that revisits the myths, which is natural or theoretical or whatever else they like to call it. Now is the time to discuss the third type. This one is about the cities and regions and is referred to as political; it is especially related to the laws, as it shows both the ancient and native qualities and reveals the virtue of the powers being discussed.

³ Indeed, they have oracles and prophecies, cures and treatments for all kinds of ailments, and punishments for the wicked. Through experience, they have convinced themselves that by honoring the divine, they act justly, while we commit the greatest impiety by disregarding such clear and beneficial powers. They argue that each person should honor their ancestral traditions, not disturb what is unmovable, and follow the piety of their forefathers, avoiding meddling out of a desire for something new. For this reason, they say that the laws have rightly set death as the penalty for those who commit offenses.

⁴ The first type of theology is historical and mythical, which anyone can present as they wish, just like the second type from philosophers, which is explained through a more natural allegory of the myths. The third type, which should be honored and protected as both ancient and political, is said to be established by the rulers. They claim that no one should disturb it, neither poets nor philosophers, but that everyone should follow the ancient laws and stay in the fields and cities, obeying the ancestral traditions.

⁵ Therefore, it is time to present our account, offering a summary of the good news of our savior, which speaks against what has been mentioned and challenges the laws of all the nations.

⁶ Indeed, it has been shown in the first writing that lifeless statues are not gods and that there is nothing serious or divine in their mythical theology. Similarly, in the second and third writings, it is shown that even the interpretations of the more natural and philosophical myths do not provide a clear explanation for them.

⁷ Now let us think about the third point: what should we believe about the powers that dwell in the statues? Are they good and truly divine in a pleasant way, or are they the opposite of all these things?

⁸ Some might think that the discussion about these matters is just a deception, created by the tricks of sorcerers and the cleverness of men. They might argue that belief in these things is not about a god, nor even about an evil spirit. The poems and collections of oracles do not come from wise men; instead, they are clever tricks designed to deceive, mixed together in a confusing way. They do not truly match the expectations of their outcomes. Rather, the many deceptions that amaze people can be explained by natural causes.

⁹ There are many kinds of roots, plants, fruits, and stones, both dry and wet, that have different powers in nature. Some can repel and drive away, while others attract and draw in. Some can separate and scatter, while others can bind and hold together. Some can loosen and moisten, while others can preserve or kill. They can completely change things and shift from one state to another. Sometimes they work for a long time, and sometimes only for a short time. Some are effective in large quantities, while others work only in small amounts. Some lead to certain results, while others take different paths. They can work together, combine, or destroy one another.

Yes, there are also some that promote health, which are closely related to the knowledge of medicine, while others cause sickness and are poisonous. There are natural necessities that come into play, and they can connect with the moon and influence it, causing decay. There are countless oppositions among animals, plants, and roots, as well as many kinds of incense that can be stimulating or soothing, along with others that create illusions.

These substances can also be gathered from different places where events occur. There are tools and equipment that are carefully prepared for these practices. Many also receive help from outside sources of magic, with busy people arriving to meet the needs of each individual and what they seek. Many secrets are hidden in sacred places that most people cannot access. The darkness plays a significant role in their plans. Additionally, prior beliefs and superstitions about how they approach the gods, along with traditions passed down from ancestors, shape their views.

¹⁰ Let us also think about the foolishness of many people's minds, the laziness of their reasoning, and the untested beliefs of the crowd. On the other hand, there is the terrible and malicious nature of those who engage in this wicked practice. The tricks of sorcerers are deceitful and clever, sometimes promising pleasure to each person and offering hope for good things, while at other times they look to the future with uncertainty and try to predict the unknown. The understanding of oracles is filled with doubts and unclear statements, making it hard for anyone to truly grasp what is being said. This ambiguity allows them to escape criticism.

¹¹ Many other deceptions and wonders also occur, often involving certain chants that have a strange and foreign influence. This makes it seem as if people are eager for things that have nothing to do with them. Most of all, they shock many, especially those who think they are educated, with the creations of these oracles. These works are beautifully arranged in their wording, impressive in their grand style, and filled with the boastful flair of divine inspiration. Through their ambiguous voices, they almost manage to deceive everyone.

Book 4, Section 2

As for those oracles that seem to escape doubt, they do not predict the future based on knowledge, but rather are created through guesswork. Many times, or rather almost all the time, they fail to match the actual outcome of events, either contradicting what was said or not aligning with the intended results. Unless, perhaps, it happens rarely that one out of many comes true by chance at some moment, or that the prediction aligns with the expected future, people believe that the oracle has been fulfilled.

² This is why you might see people talking a lot, carving inscriptions on stones, and shouting everywhere on earth. They would say that if they happen to guess the right number, no one would want to remember it. But when something from the many predictions actually comes true, they boast about it. It's like if someone wins a lottery from many tickets; if they happen to win just once, they would be amazed that both the prediction and their guess led to the same number.

³ For it is true that from many predictions, only one might happen by chance. This makes those who lack depth in their souls extremely amazed by the oracle. It would have been much better for them not to be foolish and to consider how many others have caused death, conflict, and wars, as shown in the histories of old. They should see that even the greatest acts of virtue did not reveal any divine work when the Greeks were thriving, while the earlier predictions were being proclaimed. Now, these oracles no longer exist, yet they are still valued with great care and effort by the local people, who respect and honor their ancestral laws and mysteries.

⁴ And then, especially during the disasters of war, it became clear that nothing could be proven. The brave seers, unable to help, were trapped by the uncertainty of the oracles, deceiving the refugees. Just as we will show at the right time, they stirred up the minds of those fighting against each other. They did not even give clear answers about important matters, and while playing with the questions asked, they misled those who sought guidance through the oracles. They hid their ignorance in the darkness of confusion.

⁵ Consider for yourself, as you learn, how often they promise health, life, and safety to the sick. Once believed to be like gods, they collect large payments from this inspired trade. Those who were most often deceived were not gods but sorcerers. They did not escape the destruction of fate that caught those who were misled.

⁶ What can we say? Even to their own neighbors, who live in the same city, the wonderful seers did not provide help. You would see them with the sick, the disabled, and many others suffering in body. So why do they offer good hopes to those who come from far away, but not to those who live nearby, whom they should help first, like friends and fellow citizens? It seems they find it easier to deceive strangers who are unaware of their tricks, but not those who are familiar with their craft and know the games they play.

⁷ So, in everything, it was neither divine nor better than human thought. Even in the greatest disasters, which came from the all-powerful god against the wicked, their offerings and statues suffered the worst destruction, and their temples faced complete ruin.

⁸ Where is the sacred place at Delphi, praised by all Greeks since ancient times? Where is the Pythian? Where is the Clarian? Where is the Dodonaean? It is said that the Delphic oracle was burned down three times by the Thracians, and nothing of the oracle remained to know the future, nor could the Pythian protect its own. The same is said to have happened to the Capitol in Rome during the time of the Ptolemies, when it is reported that the temple of Hestia also suffered a fire. Around the time of Julius Caesar, it is said that the great statue of the Greeks and the Olympic statue, which was in Olympia, was struck by lightning from the god. It is also said that the temple of Jupiter on the Capitol was burned and that the Pantheon was destroyed by lightning, and that the one in Alexandria was similarly set on fire.

⁹ And among these, there are unwritten testimonies among the Greeks. It would take a long time to list each one if someone tried to show that the wonderful seers are said to be unable to help even their own sacred places. They are not even useful to themselves in times of disaster, and they would only be able to help others if they had the time.

¹⁰ And adding one more thing to what has been said, it would be very important to see that even among those who are deeply religious, especially the most sacred priests and theologians, there are many not only from long ago but also from our own time. These individuals, helping with this divine wisdom, revealed through torture and injustice in the Roman courts that the whole thing was a deception created by the tricks of men, admitting that magic was all there was. They also wrote down in their notes the entire process of the construction and the methods of the bad craftsmanship used against them.

¹¹ Therefore, they also revealed the value of the destructive deception by uncovering everything, trusting in their own actions as proof of what was shown. Who were these people? Do not think they were some rejected and hidden ones; rather, they were inspired by this wonderful and noble philosophy, those around the marketplace, and others from the city of Antioch, especially those who stood out during the persecutions against us. We also know that the philosopher and prophet remained the same as those mentioned earlier in Miletus.

¹² Someone gathering these things and even more could say that they are neither gods nor even demons, those responsible for the oracles in the cities. Instead, they are a deception and trickery of men who practice magic.

¹³ Indeed, among them, all the Greek schools of thought were guided by this philosophy, including those from Aristotle and all the followers of the Peripatetic school, as well as the Cynics and Epicureans, whom I especially admired. They were raised in the customs of the Greeks and, as children of their fathers, accepted the revealed gods. They did not change their beliefs; instead, they showed that the oracles and prophecies that everyone pursued brought nothing true. They declared that these were useless and even more harmful.

¹⁴ Since there are countless examples—and many have clearly shown the downfall of the oracles—I believe that the testimony of those mentioned is enough for now. I will present one of these examples related to Chrysippus about fate, which was based on the predictions of the oracles. The writer argues against him, showing that the oracle wrongly indicates fate, that in most cases the oracles of the Greeks are proven false, and that they rarely happen to be right by chance. He also states that their predictions are useless and harmful. So listen to what he says, word for word.

Book 4, Section 3

He also provides another proof in the previously mentioned book. He does not claim that the predictions of the oracles are true unless everything is included within fate. This idea is filled with great foolishness. For if it is clear that all the predictions of the so-called oracles come true, or if it is more likely that, with some allowance for this, everything happens according to fate, then it would not be the same if something false were said. Since the opposite is also true—that not everything comes true from what was predicted—most of them actually show their clarity.

² Thus, Chrysippus has presented his proof to us, building each part through mutual support. He wants to show that everything happens according to fate to prove that prophecy exists. However, he could not prove that prophecy exists in any other way unless he first assumes that everything happens according to fate.

³ But what could be a more miserable way to prove this? The fact that something happens according to the clarity of what the oracles say would not be a sign of prophetic knowledge. Instead, it would just mean that the outcomes happen to match the predictions by chance. This does not show us any real knowledge.

⁴ For we would not call an archer knowledgeable if he hits the target once by chance but often misses. Nor would we call a doctor knowledgeable if he fails to cure most of his patients but happens to save one. In general, we do not consider something to be knowledge if it does not succeed in all or at least most of its usual tasks.

⁵ That many things often fail for those called seers would be shown by the lives of all people. These same individuals who claim to have the art of prophecy do not rely on it to help themselves with their everyday needs. Instead, they use their own judgment and advice, and they gain experience from the cooperation of those skilled in each matter.

⁶ But regarding the idea that what we have called prophecy does not exist, we will provide a fuller explanation later, referring to Epicurus and related topics. For now, we will add this to what has been said: when those called seers sometimes speak the truth in their predictions, it is not because of knowledge but rather due to chance. It is not that they never happen to be right, but rather that they are not always right, nor mostly so, and not out of knowledge. When someone happens to be right sometimes, we have said that it is the work of chance, as they have taken clear ideas from each situation.

Furthermore, even if it were true in theory that prophecy concerns all future events, everything would be determined by fate, and its usefulness and benefit would never be demonstrated. This is why Chrysippus seems to praise prophecy the most.

⁷ For what good would it do us to know all the difficult things that will happen, which we would not even be able to avoid? How could anyone protect themselves from things that happen by fate? Therefore, there is no benefit to us from prophecy; instead, it would bring harm, causing people unnecessary sorrow about the difficulties that will inevitably come.

⁸ For no one would say that predicting future good things brings the same joy, since a person is not naturally inclined to rejoice over expected good things as much as to feel sadness over bad ones. Besides, we do not expect much for ourselves until we hear it; however, everyone tends to hope more for good things because of a natural connection to them. Many people have even hoped for greater things than what is possible.

⁹ From this, it follows that predicting good things does not greatly increase joy, because each person tends to hope for better things on their own, even without predictions. It may only slightly increase joy with the seeming certainty of the prediction, but often it can even lessen joy when what is hoped for turns out to be less than expected. On the other hand, predicting bad things, because they are naturally repulsive and sometimes exceed what is hoped for, causes great distress.

¹⁰ But even if this were not the case, it would still be clear that predictions are useless in any way. For if someone says that the usefulness of prophecy is to warn us about the difficult things that will happen unless we take care, it will not reveal everything that will happen according to fate, since it depends on us whether we take care or not.

¹¹ For if someone were to say that fate controls everything, then the usefulness of prophecy would be taken away again. We will take care if it is fated, and it is clear that we will not take care if it is not fated, even if all the prophets predict what will happen to us.

¹² Indeed, both Oedipus and Alexander, the son of Priam, as well as Chryseippus himself, say that their parents planned many things so that they would be killed, in order to protect themselves from the evil that was foretold to them.

¹³ Thus, he says that there is no benefit for them from the prediction of evils because of the cause of fate. This should be mentioned as an extra point, not only as being without foundation, but also as being useless for prophecy.

¹⁴ These things, indeed, the philosopher says. But you should think for yourself about how the Greeks, having received their education from a young age, understood the traditions about all the gods more clearly. All were Aristotelian, Cynics, and Epicureans, and those who thought like them laughed at the prophecies that were proclaimed among the Greeks.

¹⁵ And indeed, if the stories about the strange nature of oracles were true, it would be likely for these Greeks to be amazed, since they were Greeks themselves and knew their traditions well, not putting any of the important things to be known in a lesser position.

¹⁶ Therefore, bringing together these things and others like them to challenge the idea about oracles would take a lot of effort. But it doesn't seem to me that the current argument should go in that direction. Instead, as we were encouraged to start, we should speak the truth about those who guide them, so that from what is agreed upon among them, we can learn that the prophecies are true and the messages from the gods are trustworthy.

Book 4, Section 4

I think it is clear to everyone that examining the matters at hand is not a small task, but rather a very important and necessary part of the good news. For if, before the coming of our Savior Jesus Christ, all people, Greeks and non-Greeks, were shown not to know the true God, but instead praised what does not exist as if it does, or were led by wicked spirits and evil demons, being blind and dragged down into deep wickedness, what else could this be but being possessed by demons? How much greater would the mystery of the good news seem, calling everyone from the inherited deception of the demons' power through the voice of our Savior, and freeing people living at the ends of the earth from the everlasting deception that has held their whole lives? So that from that time until now, they might be released and cleansed from the old temples and idols of all the nations' deceptions, and truly holy and pious teachings might be raised up to the King of all, the Creator of everything, in cities and villages, by the power and goodness of our Savior throughout the whole world. And the sacrifices of true worship, offered with pure prayers, would be made, cleansed from all wickedness, in a state of peace for the soul and with all virtue, according to divine and saving teachings, to be continually performed every day by all the nations, which are indeed the only pleasing and acceptable sacrifices to the God above all.

² With these things in mind, how could we not show that we are thinking with sound judgment and not with foolishness? We have become rebels against inherited superstition, loving what is better with a just and true judgment, and we have become lovers of true and genuine piety. But that is enough about these matters; let us now turn to the issues at hand.

Book 4, Section 5

Those who have carefully examined Greek theology, in a different way than those mentioned before, divide everything into four categories. First, they identify the first god, claiming that this one is the first of all beings and the father and king of all gods. After him, they say there is a second category of gods, followed by demons, and the fourth category is heroes. All of these share in the idea of what is better, with some leading and others being led, and all are referred to as light because of their participation in it. However, they also say that the essence of what is worse is evil; this is the nature of wicked demons, which do not relate to what is good at all, but have power in the nature of opposites, just as God has in the superior beings. Everything of this kind is called darkness.

² Having made this distinction, they say that the gods are assigned to the heavens and the ether up to the moon; demons are associated with what is around the moon and the air, while souls are connected to the earth and what is underground. With this classification, they first say that we should honor the heavenly and etherial gods; second, the good demons; third, the souls of heroes; and fourth, we should avoid the wicked and evil demons.

³ While they make these distinctions in words, in practice they mix everything together, only honoring the evil powers instead of all those mentioned. And all are enslaved to these, as the argument will later show. Therefore, it is necessary for you to examine the powers that act through the statues to see whether they are gods or demons, and whether they are wicked or good, based on what will be presented.

⁴ For us, divine words do not call any demon truly good, but they consider all of them to be wicked, as they are part of this ending and have taken on this name. They say that there is no other true and rightful god except for the cause of all things. The good and gentle powers, being of a nature that is born and much higher than the wicked demons, are not called gods or demons. Instead, they are referred to as angels of God and ministering spirits, divine powers, and archangels, often named according to their roles. As for demons, if we are to explain their etymology, it is not as the Greeks think, that they are wise and knowledgeable, but rather from the word that means to fear, which is to be afraid and to frighten; thus, some are called demons.

⁵ Indeed, the divine and good powers, just like their nature, receive a name that is different from the term 'demon.' It would be the most unreasonable thing to consider them the same and to give them the same name, whether in their intention or in their nature.

Book 4, Section 6

Come then, let us examine what their way of oracles is, so we can learn what kind of power we should reject and whether we have rightly distanced ourselves from them or not. If I am to present my own criticisms of what is being shown, I know well that I will not leave out anything that could be challenged by those who enjoy arguing. Therefore, I will not share my own thoughts but will rely on testimonies from outside sources.

² Since there are countless writings among the Greeks by both writers and philosophers, I find the one who is friendly to demons particularly relevant to our topic, as he spreads false teachings about us. This person seems to have interacted with both demons and those he calls gods, and he has not only supported them but has also investigated their matters with much greater accuracy.

³ This person, therefore, in what he wrote, "On Philosophy from Reason," created a collection of oracles from Apollo and the other gods and good demons. He specifically chose them and considered them suitable for both proving the virtue of what is being discussed and for encouraging what he calls the wisdom of the gods.

⁴ From these approved writings and those considered worthy of remembrance, it is good to distinguish the oracles and to think about what kind of power they have. First, let us see how the man mentioned in the text begins by swearing to tell the truth, saying this:

Book 4, Section 7

Surely, the one who relies only on certain hopes of being saved, without taking anything away from them, is steadfast and constant. For I testify that I have neither added nor taken away anything from the meanings of the oracles, unless I corrected a mistaken word, changed it for clarity, filled in what was lacking, or removed anything that did not relate to the purpose. But I have preserved the pure meaning of what was said, being more careful of the impiety that comes from these things than of the punishment that follows from sacrilege.

² "This gathering will include a record of many teachings about philosophy, as the gods have established the truth. For a brief time, we will also touch on practical matters, which will help both understanding and the overall cleansing of life. If this gathering is helpful, those who have sought the truth will especially know that they can find rest from their confusion through the trustworthy teachings of what is said." Using such introductions, he testifies and warns not to share what will be said with many, saying this:

Book 4, Section 8

But if you try to keep these things from being made public, do not even share them with the unworthy for the sake of reputation, profit, or any other unholy flattery. The danger is not only for you who break these commands, but also for me, who easily believes in protecting someone who cannot do good deeds for themselves. Therefore, those who have dedicated their lives to the salvation of the soul should be supported.

² And after discussing other matters, he adds, "These things I must hide as more secret than secrets; for the gods have not revealed themselves openly, but through riddles."

³ Since the discussion has been raised in this way, let us now consider through the divine and prophetic words what kind of hidden powers are being talked about in theology; for there could also be a challenge from a person's own words and actions.

⁴ Therefore, the man who has been made clear in these matters, to whom he wrote "On the Philosophy from Words," presents oracles of Apollo, instructing that sacrifices be made through living beings, not only to the lesser spirits or local powers, but also to the heavenly and celestial beings.

⁵ In other places, he agrees that not all spirits are gods, to whom the Greeks offered sacrifices of blood and irrational animals; he says it is neither necessary nor holy to make sacrifices to the gods through living beings.

⁶ Therefore, listen to his first words, through which he gathers what is related to the Philosophy from Words, explaining how Apollo teaches that one should serve the gods. He also presents this by writing the following.

Book 4, Section 9

Following what has been said about piety, we would write down what was said about their service, which we have partially included in our discussion about piety. The oracle of Apollo serves as both a teaching and a division of the order of the gods.

² "Work, friend, as you come to this divine path, and do not forget the blessed ones. Offer sacrifices to those on earth, to those in heaven, and sometimes to the bright rulers of the sky and the moist air, as well as to all those of the sea and the underworld; for everything is filled with the fullness of nature.

As it is right for living beings to complete their purifications, you should write down the oracle for me on tablets, for those on earth and for the gods in heaven. Let the heavenly ones be bright, and let the earthly ones have a similar color. For the earthly ones, divide the sacrifices into three parts: bury the lower parts, pour blood into the pit, and pour honey and gifts for the nymphs and Dionysus.

As many as are always around the earth, fill this altar with blood, full of fire, and throw the body of the sacrificed creature into the flames. Mix honey with the barley flour from Demeter, and sprinkle with the steam of incense and the sacred herbs.

When you go by the sands, pour the blue sea from your head as a sacrifice, and throw the whole creature into the deep wave of the sea. After completing all these, go to the wide chorus of the heavenly ones.

Then, for the starry ones and the airy ones, let blood from the throats flow around the altars, and let the limbs be served to the gods at the feast. Give the best parts to Hephaestus, and let the rest be shared, filling everything with fragrant steam in the flowing air; and send prayers to the gods."

³ And after a little while, he explains the oracle, interpreting it as follows: "The sacrifices are to be done in this way according to the previously mentioned division of the gods. There are gods of the underworld and gods of the earth, with the underworld gods and the lower ones being one group, and the earth gods and the earthly ones being another. For these, it is generally commanded to sacrifice black four-footed animals, but the way of the sacrifice is different: for the earth gods, it is commanded to slay them on altars, while for the underworld gods, it is commanded to do so in pits, and indeed, it is also commanded to bury the bodies after sacrificing them."

⁴ "For when asked about these common offerings, he provided the following: 'These are the sacrifices for the earth and underworld gods: four-footed animals, specifically the young limbs of rams for the earth gods.'

For the airy gods, it is commanded to sacrifice birds, burning them completely and pouring the blood around the altars. For the sea gods, it is commanded to release living birds into the waves, specifically those that are black in color. The birds are meant for the sea gods, and the dark ones are for them."

⁵ He says that for all the gods, except for the earth gods, the birds are meant for the sea gods, and only the dark ones. For the heavenly and etherial gods, the tips of the white offerings are to be dedicated, while the other parts are to be eaten. You should eat only from these, but not from the others. Those he mentioned in the division as heavenly are the starry ones here.

⁶ Then, will it be necessary to explain the symbols of the sacrifices clearly for understanding? For the four-footed animals are for the earth gods and the land gods; like rejoices in like. The ram is earthly and therefore dear to Demeter, and in the heavens, it brings forth the fruits from the earth with the sun. As for the black ones, this is because the nature of the earth is dark. And three: these represent the three symbols of the physical and earthly.

⁷ "For the earth gods, it is necessary to sacrifice on the altars above; for they turn back to the earth. For the underworld gods, sacrifices are made in a pit and in a grave, where they dwell. The birds are for the other gods, since all are divine. The water is always moving in the sea, and it is dark; therefore, such offerings are suitable. For the airy gods, the offerings are white; the air, being clear by nature, is bright. For the heavenly and etherial gods, the lighter parts of the animals are to be offered, which are the tips, and one should share in the sacrifice. For these are givers of good things, while the others are preventers of evils." Such are the teachings from the wonderful wisdom of the philosopher.

Book 4, Section 10

Come, then, let us compare the opposing views of the same topic, as presented in what he wrote, "On the Departure of Living Beings." There, indeed, using sound reasoning, he first agrees that it is not right to offer anything at all, neither to burn incense nor to sacrifice to the god above all, nor to the divine and heavenly powers that follow him.

² Then, moving on, he criticizes the beliefs of many, saying that it is not right to think that the gods enjoy sacrifices made from living beings. He claims that killing animals is the most unjust act of all, and it is both impious and repulsive, and therefore not pleasing to the gods. By saying this, it would be clear that he is challenging his own god; for he states that the oracle commands not only the underworld and earth gods, but also the airy, heavenly, and etherial gods to receive sacrifices of living beings.

³ And Apollo says such things; but Theophrastus, in his testimony, does not say that the sacrifice of living beings is suitable for the gods, but only for the spirits. So, according to his and Theophrastus' words, Apollo is a spirit, not a god. Furthermore, all the gods recognized by all nations, to whom sacrifices of living beings are commonly made by both rulers and subjects in cities and regions, should be regarded as nothing other than spirits, based on what has been stated.

⁴ But if they say that these beings are good, how can they be good if the sacrifice of blood is impious, disgusting, and harmful? Would those who enjoy such sacrifices truly be good? And if not only these kinds of sacrifices, but also the extreme cruelty and inhumanity shown in killings and human sacrifices, how could they not be seen as murderers, belonging to all that is cruel and inhumane, and nothing more than wicked spirits?

⁵ Now that we have presented this evidence, I believe it is reasonable to step back from our conclusions. For it is neither holy nor pious to lower the sacred name of the god and the highest honor to wicked spirits, nor to give the royal worth that belongs to humans to thieves and robbers.

⁶ Therefore, we only honor the god who is above all, respecting him properly and also the divine and blessed powers around him. We do not bring anything earthly or dead, nor offerings of filth and blood, nor anything from corrupt and material existence. Instead, we offer a mind that is completely cleansed of all evil and a body adorned with purity and self-control, shining brighter than any garment. We follow correct and godly teachings, and in all these things, we sincerely strive to keep the piety passed down to us by our savior until death.

⁷ But now that we have clarified these points, it is time to move on to the proofs of what has been said. First of all, it makes sense to review what the previously mentioned author wrote in his work, "On the Departure of Living Beings." He states that one should not offer anything earthly, neither to the god above all nor to the divine powers that follow him, whether in sacrifices or offerings. Such things are not in line with true piety.

Book 4, Section 11

To the god who is above all, as a wise man said, one should not offer anything material, neither sacrifices nor naming things. For nothing physical is clean unless it is pure in spirit. Therefore, neither spoken words nor inner thoughts are suitable when the soul is tainted by suffering. Instead, we worship him through pure silence and clean thoughts about him. Thus, we must come together and align ourselves to offer a sacred sacrifice to the god, which is also a hymn and our salvation. This sacrifice is completed in the detachment of the soul and in the contemplation of the god.

Book 4, Section 12

To his offspring, the divine beings that are understood, we should also add a hymn from our words. For each sacrifice is a first offering of what has been given, and it nourishes us and holds our existence together. Just as a farmer offers the first fruits and the best of his harvest, so we will offer to them our good thoughts about them, thanking them for the vision they have given us, and for truly nourishing us through their presence, shining with our own salvation. These things are said by him. His sister and relatives speak about the first and greatest god in "On Sacrifices," which is sung by many, and it is said that the Tyanean Apollonius wrote such things.

Book 4, Section 13

Therefore, if anyone is to take proper care of the divine, I think they should be especially mindful of being gracious and favorable to him, the one who is above all. For it is necessary to know him, the first being we mentioned, who is separate from all, and not to offer any sacrifices, nor light any fire, nor name anything physical. For nothing is needed from the greater beings, just as we do not need anything from the earth that produces plants, or nourishes animals, or from the air, which has no impurity. Instead, one should always approach him with a superior thought, which I mean should not be expressed verbally, and ask the best of the best beings through the best within us. This thought is the mind, which does not need any instrument. Therefore, according to this, one should not sacrifice to the great god who is above all. With these points in mind, the earlier writer tells us about the practice of animal sacrifice, calling upon Theophrastus as a witness to his words.

Book 4, Section 14

Far from the proper offerings for sacrifices, the neglect of the most terrible rituals has been introduced, filled with brutal acts. It seems that the curses we mentioned before have now come to an end, with people being slaughtered and the altars soaked in blood. From this, they have resorted to bloodshed during times of famine and war. Therefore, the divine, as Theophrastus says, has taken revenge on both sides, and it seems fitting to impose the proper punishment. Some have become godless among humans, while others are more wicked in spirit than in their actions, as they would be judged, believing that the gods are weak and no better than us. Thus, some appear to be without faith, while others, being wicked and unlawful, have engaged in terrible acts.

² Again, the same author adds that, with these points in mind, Theophrastus rightly advises those who truly wish to be pious not to sacrifice living beings, citing other reasons as well.

³ And he adds, "Indeed, we should not sacrifice those things that do not harm anyone. For nothing is as harmless as the sacrifice itself. Some think that the fruits and animals given to us by the gods are no less valuable, but if we harm the animals, we bring some damage to ourselves, especially if we take away their lives. Therefore, these things are not true sacrifices; rather, they are a kind of offering that no one should make from what belongs to others, whether they receive fruits or not. For how can one be just when taking away what belongs to others? If someone sacrifices from the fruits of others, then those things are certainly more valuable than what is taken from someone else. For the terrible act becomes greater, and the soul is much more precious than the things that come from the earth, which, if taken away, harm the animals that have done no wrong."

⁴ And he adds, "Therefore, we should refrain from using animals in sacrifices." And again he says, "This is not right, neither in the offering nor in the act."

⁵ So, if we should refrain from using animals, we must do so for the sake of these principles. For we know that we should not act unjustly in our offerings. Should anyone think they gain honor by doing wrong through the first fruits, or rather, should they believe that such actions bring dishonor? In this way, we agree that by taking from those animals that have done no wrong, we are not acting unjustly. Therefore, for the sake of honor, we should not take anything from the other animals, nor should we give anything back to them for their services. For one who gives a fair return for work and creation should not provide these things by doing something wrong. It would seem no more just to repay than if someone were to steal something from a neighbor and then claim to give them honor or thanks.

⁶ But not even for the sake of some good. For one who acts unjustly is always suspicious of suffering and will not receive thanks even if they suffer well. Therefore, it is not right to sacrifice animals to the gods in the hope of receiving a favor. Indeed, while some humans might escape notice doing this, the gods cannot be deceived or overlooked. So, if we are to sacrifice for any reason, it should not be for the sake of any of these things. It is clear that animals should not be sacrificed at all to the gods.

⁷ And again, he adds: For both nature and the entire sense of the soul in humans are linked to actions. But the altar did not require the uncontrolled blood of bulls; this was the greatest filth among humans, as they would tear apart their hearts and let their limbs fall.

⁸ When a young person learns to greet the gods with lavish gifts, and, as they say, with the sacrifices of bulls and other animals, when will they willingly act with moderation? How can they think that offering these things to the gods is not unjust, believing that through the sacrifices they will be freed from their wrongdoing? If they are convinced that the gods do not need these things, and that the gods look to the character of those who approach them, taking the greatest sacrifice as the right understanding of themselves and their actions, how can they not be wise, just, and pious?

⁹ For the gods, the best offering is a pure mind and an untroubled soul. It is also fitting to offer a moderate amount of other things, not carelessly, but with all eagerness. For honors should be like the good things that come from leadership and gatherings, not from planned gifts.

¹⁰ Clearly, through these things, it was agreed among the Greeks and their philosophers that nothing living could reasonably be offered to the gods. For it is both impious and unjust and harmful to do so, not to mention that it is foreign to their mysteries. Therefore, there is no god, nor any truthful and good spirit, who would accept offerings of blood and fat, collected in small amounts beforehand, as a prophecy. Nor did those who received the prophecy command the sacrifice of living beings. Thus, one must say that the one who deceives and is a trickster is a spirit who lies, and the gods who do not exist are those who are mentioned, commanding not only the beings of the underworld but also the heavenly, ethereal, and starry beings to be sacrificed. So, who else but the gods mentioned would be considered appropriate? The author will explain this again through these points.

Book 4, Section 15

The one who cares about piety knows that no living thing is sacrificed to the gods, but to spirits, whether they are good or even lesser ones. What, then, is the reason for sacrificing to them, and for those who need them to a certain extent?

² And again, he says that the sacrifices made with blood are not for the gods, but for spirits, as those who have learned about the powers in the universe have confirmed, and this is accepted by the theologians. Moreover, some of these spirits are harmful, while others are good and will not cause us any trouble.

³ These things have been made clear. But since he said that there are only good and lesser spirits, let us see how it is that neither the good spirits nor the lesser ones, which are all considered gods, are caught. You could also take this as proof in the following way.

⁴ The good helps, but the opposite harms. If those who are called gods or spirits were to appear everywhere, then indeed, those who are honored by all, like Cronus and Zeus, Hera and Athena, and others like them, as well as the hidden powers and the spirits that act through the statues, not only rejoice in the sacrifices and offerings of irrational animals, but also in the killings of men and human sacrifices. In this way, they torment the souls of miserable humans. What worse harm could you imagine than this?

⁵ For if the sacrifice of irrational animals is said to be hateful and wicked by the philosophers, foul and unjust, and not harmless to those who offer it, and because of all this, unworthy of the gods, what should one think of the sacrifice of humans? Wouldn't this be the most impious and unholy of all? How then could it be said to be pleasing to good spirits, rather than to the most foul and destructive ones?

⁶ Come then, let us examine and show how much the confusion of polytheism troubled the lives of humans before the teaching of our Savior became known. For it was only during the time of Hadrian, when the light of Christ's teaching was already shining everywhere, that it began to be loosened and removed.

⁷ Indeed, it is not us, but their own voices that will testify against those who do not think like us, openly declaring the great wickedness of those earlier times. They were so fearful that they went beyond the limits of nature, driven mad by destructive spirits and acting like demons, believing that the murderous powers could be appeased with the blood of their most beloved and countless other human sacrifices.

⁸ And some father sacrificed his only son, while some mother offered her beloved daughter to the demon. The dearest ones killed those who belonged to them, like irrational and foreign animals. They sacrificed to the gods in cities and regions their fellow citizens and neighbors, sharpening their kind and compassionate nature to become cruel and inhuman, truly revealing a mad and demonic way of acting.

⁹ You would find, then, by examining both Greek and barbarian history, that some sons and some daughters, and even themselves, were offered in sacrifices to the demons. But I also present to you a witness from these same accounts, in which the sacrifice of irrational animals is declared an impious and very unjust act, agreeing with this statement.

Book 4, Section 16

And it is important to note that we are not speaking of these things simply, but with the full history in mind. For a man was sacrificed to Cronus in Rhodes on the sixth day of the month of Tnion. This custom, which had been long established, was changed; one of those condemned to death was kept until the Kronia festival. When the festival approached, they brought the man outside the gates, right in front of Aristobulus, and after giving him a drink of wine, they killed him.

² In present-day Salamis, which was formerly called Coronis, a man was sacrificed to Aphrodite in the month according to the Cypriots, to Agraulos of Cecryphus and the nymph Agraulis. This custom continued until the time of Diomedes; then it changed so that during the festival of Diomedes, the man was sacrificed. Both the temple of Athena and that of Agraulos and Diomedes were under one enclosure. The one being sacrificed was led by the youths, circling the altar three times; then the priest struck him in the stomach with a spear, and in this way, they burned him on the altar.

³ This custom was abolished by Diphilus, the king of Cyprus, during the time of Seleucus, as he became a theologian. He changed the practice from a human sacrifice to a sacrifice of cattle. The demon was then associated with a bull instead of a man.

⁴ Thus, the practice is equally valid. Amosis also abolished the law of murder in the city of Helios in Egypt, as Manetho testifies in his work on antiquity and piety. They used to sacrifice to Hera, and they were examined just like pure calves that are sought and sealed. They sacrificed for three days; instead of those, Amosis ordered equal offerings of honey cakes to be presented.

⁵ They also sacrificed a man in Chios to Omadios Dionysus, and in Tenedos, as Euhelpis the Carystian says. Apollodorus mentions that the Spartans also sacrificed a man to Ares.

⁶ The Phoenicians, during times of great disasters—whether from wars, plagues, or droughts—used to sacrifice one of their dearest by voting for Kronos. The Phoenician history is indeed full of sacrifices, written by Sanchuniathon in the Phoenician language and translated into Greek by Philo of Byblos in eight books.

⁷ Istrus says in the Synagogue of the Cretans that the Curetes used to sacrifice children to Kronos in ancient times. He mentions that human sacrifices were nearly completely abolished by Pallas, who gathered the best information about the mysteries of Mithras during the reign of Emperor Hadrian. They also used to sacrifice a virgin to Athena in Laodicea in Syria every year, but now they sacrifice a deer instead.

⁸ Indeed, the Carthaginians in Libya used to make sacrifices, which Iphicrates put an end to. The Dumatheni of Arabia also sacrificed a child every year, burying it under an altar, which they used as a statue.

⁹ The chieftain says that all the Greeks, before going out to fight their enemies, used to commit murder. He also mentions the Thracians and Scythians, and how the Athenians killed the daughter of Erechtheus and Praxithea. But even now, who does not know about the Great City, during the festival of Latarius Zeus, where a man is sacrificed?

¹⁰ And again he says, "From then until now, not only in Arcadia among the Lycaeans, nor in Carthage to Kronos, do all commonly sacrifice humans. Instead, at certain times, to honor the law, they always shed blood at the altars."

¹¹ Let these things be taken from the previously mentioned writing. From the first letter of Philo's Phoenician history, I will present this: "It was a custom among the ancients, in times of great disasters and dangers, to offer the beloved children of those in power, whether from the city or the nation, as a sacrifice to the avenging spirits, instead of allowing everyone to be destroyed. The ones offered were killed in secret. Therefore, Kronos, whom the Phoenicians call Hel, ruled over the land, and later, after his life ended, was honored as a star of Kronos. He had a unique son from a local nymph named Anobret, whom they called Jeoud. This only-begotten one is still called that by the Phoenicians. When the land was seized by the greatest dangers of war, he adorned his son in royal form and built an altar to make a sacrifice."

¹² These things indeed had this way. Therefore, it is reasonable that the wonderful Clemes, in his work to the Greeks called "Protrepticus," while criticizing these very things, speaks against the deception of humans, saying, "Let us add this: your gods are inhuman and hateful demons, not only rejoicing in the madness of humans but also enjoying murder. Now they provide pleasures from armed contests in the stadiums and countless sources of ambition in wars, so that they might have the most human bloodshed. Already in cities and nations, like plagues that have come upon them, they demanded sacrifices without delay. Aristomenes of Messene sacrificed three hundred to Zeus Ithomeus, thinking to offer such great and beautiful sacrifices; among them was Theopompus, the noble priest of the Spartans. The Taurians, the people living around the Tauric Chersonese, immediately sacrifice any strangers they capture to Artemis. Euripides portrays these sacrifices on stage. Monimos tells in the "Synagogue of Wonders" in Pellene of Thessaly that a man was sacrificed to Peleus and Chiron. The Lyctians, who are a people of Crete, are shown by Anticleides in the "Nostoi" to sacrifice men to Zeus, and the Lesbians bring a similar sacrifice to Dionysus, saying it is for Dosis. The Phocaeans—nor will I send them away—are recounted by Pythocles in the third book "On Concord" to burn a man wholly to the Tauric Artemis. Erechtheus of Attica and Marius the Roman sacrificed their own daughters; the former to Pherephatta, as Demaratus says in the first "Tragodoumena," and the latter to the averting deities, as Dorotheus recounts in the fourth "Italics." The demons appear to be humane; but how are the superstitious not unholy, some praised as saviors, while others ask for salvation from the overseeing spirits of salvation? They indeed seem to offer beautiful sacrifices while secretly killing men. For murder does not become sacred in that place; nor if someone sacrifices to Artemis and Zeus in a supposed holy place rather than in anger and greed, like others do to similar demons at altars, or if he kills a man on the roads, calling it a sacred offering; but such a sacrifice is murder and homicide."

¹³ What then, oh wisest of humans among all animals, do we flee from wild beasts? If we happen to encounter a bear or a lion, we turn away, just like someone who sees a dragon and quickly retreats from the mountain in fear, his limbs trembling as he runs away. But you do not hesitate or turn away from knowing and understanding that there are destructive and wicked demons, cruel and hateful, who are lurking?

¹⁴ So much for Clemes. I also have another witness to present to you about the murderous nature of the gods who are atheistic and inhuman: Dionysius of Halicarnassus, a man who has accurately laid out the entire history of Rome. He writes that both Zeus and Apollo once demanded human sacrifices, and those who were asked to sacrifice gave the gods a share of all their crops and livestock, but they also sacrificed humans because of various misfortunes. There is nothing surprising in hearing this from the author as he continues his account.

¹⁵ A little remained in Italy because of the care of the Aborigines. First, the land seemed to begin suffering from drought when no fruit was left on the trees, and only raw ones fell down. None of the seeds that were sown bloomed as they should, and no grass grew for the livestock. The waters were no longer worth drinking; some dried up in the heat, while others finally ran out. Many deaths occurred among the sheep and women; either the embryos were lost, or they were harmed during childbirth, which also affected the mothers. If any child escaped the danger of birth, it was either crippled, incomplete, or harmed in some other way, making it difficult to raise. Then the rest of the population, especially those in their prime, suffered greatly from diseases and deaths beyond what was expected. They consulted oracles to find out which gods or demons they had offended and what they should do to relieve their terrible suffering. The god revealed that those who had received what they wanted did not return what they had promised, but instead owed even more. The Pelasgians, facing a shortage of everything in the land, vowed to Zeus, Apollo, and the Cabiri to offer a tenth of all that would be born. After fulfilling their vow, they offered all the fruits and livestock to the gods, as they had prayed only to them. Myrsilus of Lesbos recorded these events, writing under the same names as I do now, except that he does not call the people Pelasgians, but Tyrrhenians; the reason for this will be explained shortly.

¹⁶ When they learned of the oracle's message, they could not agree with what was said. One of the older men, struggling to find a solution, spoke up, saying that they had all sinned if they thought the gods were unjustly accusing them. They had given all their first fruits to the gods correctly and justly, but they owed the gods a share of human life, which is the most valuable thing of all. If they were to receive their rightful share of this, the matter would come to an end for them. Some thought these words were correct, while others believed the message was made up out of malice. When someone suggested their opinion, they asked the god if he would accept a tenth from humans, and the god replied that this should be done.

¹⁷ From this, a conflict arose among them about how to give the tenth. The leaders of the cities were the first to be disturbed, and then the rest of the people began to suspect those in charge. There was no order in the uprisings; rather, as expected, they were driven by anger and fear of the gods, and many homes were destroyed in the chaos. Those in power did not allow their closest friends to be left behind but instead stayed with their worst enemies. First, these people, having moved from Italy, wandered greatly into Greece and among the barbarians. After the first group, others experienced the same fate, and this continued for many years. Those in power in the cities, always taking the first fruits, did not give what was right to the gods and feared uprisings from those who had been overlooked. There was also much hostility, disguised as a good reason, among the different groups. As a result, many uprisings occurred, and the Pelasgian people were greatly affected across the land.

¹⁸ And after a short time, he says, "They also say that the ancient sacrifices to Cronus are performed, just as in Carthage the city remained for a long time, and among the Celts this still happens today. In some neighboring nations, they kill men, but they wanted to stop the law of sacrifice to Heracles and set up an altar to Saturn, beginning to offer pure sacrifices on a clean fire. They should not have anything that causes fear among humans, as they have considered the sacrifices of their ancestors. They teach the local people, who are suffering from the anger of the god, to replace the humans, whom they bind and throw into the Tiber River, making idols in the shape of men, decorated in the same way as those. They throw them into the river, hoping that whatever was in the souls of all will be removed, and that the images of the old suffering will still be saved. This continued even until my time, with the Romans still acting a little later during the spring equinox, in the month of May, with the so-called images, wanting this to be the day when, having offered the sacrifices according to the laws, the so-called pontiffs, the most distinguished priests, along with the maidens who guard the immortal fire, and the generals and other citizens who are allowed to be present at the rituals, throw idols shaped like men, thirty in number, from the sacred bridge into the flow of the Tiber, calling them Argives."

¹⁹ So much for these things. Diodorus also writes similar things in the twentieth book of his Historical Library, after the death of Alexander the Macedonian, during the time of the first Ptolemy, about the Carthaginians being besieged by Agathocles, the tyrant of Sicily. He writes this word for word: "They also said that Cronus was opposed to them because, in earlier times, when they sacrificed to this god, they offered the strongest of their sons. But later, secretly buying children, they raised them and sent them for the sacrifice. When a search was made, some of the established priests were found to have been deceitful. Taking this into account, and seeing the enemies camped by the walls, they feared that they had broken the ancestral honors of the gods. They hurried to correct their mistakes, choosing two hundred of the most distinguished boys to sacrifice publicly, while others, being accused, willingly gave themselves, not fewer than three hundred. Among them was a bronze statue of Cronus, with outstretched arms raised towards the ground, so that the one who was offering the children would be prevented from falling into a pit full of fire."

²⁰ Such things he has handed down through his own history. Therefore, it is reasonable that the writing among the Hebrews also criticizes those who have been zealous for such things from the circumcision, saying, "And they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons; and the land was filled with blood, and it was defiled by their deeds." But I believe that through these things, it is clearly shown that a certain demonic origin was the very first establishment of the idols, and all the idolatry of the nations was not of good gods, but rather of the most wicked and base. This confirms the saying in the prophecies, "All the gods of the nations are demons," and also the apostolic saying, which states that "what they sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God."

²¹ Or if there was anything good among them, then it would be called a sharing of good things, and it would have been beneficial and a salvation for all, a friend of justice and a guardian of humanity. Being such, how could it take pleasure in human sacrifices? And how did it not stop people from doing such things through oracles? Surely it was worse and more base than humans—those who, through the punishments of laws, had put an end to the murderers. For it was not a god, but a human, who had long and deeply weakened the problem of human sacrifice.

²² That these demons were base and wicked would be even clearer to you if you considered the acts of their shameless and immoral prostitution still being carried out in the city of Helios in Phoenicia and by many other people. They say that for the honor of the gods, they must fulfill acts of adultery, destruction, and unlawful mixtures, as if it were a debt owed. They claim to offer the fruits of their adulterous and immoral actions to the gods, treating this disgraceful and shameless trade as if it were a good gift. For these things are similar to human sacrifices.

²³ If it is not fitting for a sensible person to rejoice in murders and in the shameful and unlawful acts with women who sell themselves for a price, then how much less should we say that the gods or good demons would accept such things? But if someone were to admit that these are indeed demons of the base kind, yet claim that there are other good ones whom they regard as saviors, one should ask where those good saviors were if they also worshiped them, so that they did not stop the wicked from acting in such ways against those seeking refuge. Where were the good demons who did not drive away those causing harm and did not help their worshipers? And why did they not openly declare to everyone that the rational and god-loving human race was being devoured by the cruelty of the base demons, instead of saying that all gods named should be avoided and turned away from as not being gods, but rather base demons who love what is cruel, inhuman, unlawful, and shameful?

²⁴ And if there was once a god in Rhodes who delighted in human sacrifices, the true god would declare that this one, if he were to stop such actions, is not a god but a base demon. Whether it was in Salamis, previously called Coroneia, where a man sacrificed to Aphrodite during the month dedicated to the Cyprians, the true god would have declared him to be a wicked demon, putting an end to what was impious and unlawful.

²⁵ And if in the city of Helios in Egypt, Amosis lifted the law against murder, the true god would have taught that humans are much greater than that. For he was not a god, but a demon who started the practice of murder. The true god would not have allowed the demon of Hera to be seen as anything but foul, since history shows that three people were sacrificed to him each day.

²⁶ What could be more demonic than the so-called Omadios Dionysus? They say that in Chios, he was worshiped by sacrificing a man who was torn apart by bees, or similarly in Tenedos, where they also honored him through human sacrifice. The true god would have forbidden sacrificing a person to Ares, the god of war and slaughter, and would have established laws against killing even one's own loved ones or those of others for him.

²⁷ And if every year a virgin was sacrificed to Athena in Laodicea in Syria, the true god would not have protected her, calling her a wicked demon. This is similar to the one in Libya, who was honored in the same way, and the one in Arabia, to whom a child was sacrificed each year and who was even buried under the altar.

Book 4, Section 17

The true and good god would have called all of them, including those who take pleasure in shameful practices and the unlawful corruption of women, as well as those who are happy in other kinds of madness, not to be considered gods at all. But no one, except for the one honored among the Hebrews, is remembered as the only true god.

² For this one, through the prophet and theologian Moses, proclaimed to everyone not to honor the worthless spirits as good demons, but rather to turn away from them and avoid them, since they are evil spirits. He also commanded the destruction of their temples and altars, along with their incomplete and false religions, completely erasing their memory among people. He established laws regarding the honor given to them. It was not even right to show respect to the worthless spirits that were cared for by the good ones.

³ Whether it is a leader or anyone else who tells the story of all the Greeks before they went to war to kill people, let him not hesitate to see this as proof of the demonic madness of the Greeks. Do not overlook those in Africa, as well as the Thracians and the Scythians, who act in the same way, showing that they are driven by the same madness of demons. This is also true for the Athenians and those in the Great City, if indeed they also sacrificed people during the festivals of the Great Zeus.

⁴ But if you gather the complete list of all those mentioned, you would find that the worship of the nations is based on these same human-killing spirits and evil demons. For in Rhodes, Salamis, and the other islands, in the city of Helios in Egypt, in Chios, Tenedos, Laconia, and Arcadia, in Phoenicia and Libya, and in all these places in Syria and Arabia, as well as among all the Greeks, especially the most distinguished Athenians, and in Carthage, Africa, Thrace, and among the Scythians, it has been shown that demonic human-killing practices were carried out in ancient times and continued until the time of our Savior. How could one not reasonably say that all these people were enslaved to evil demons, rather than stopping the many evils in their lives or shining a light on the teachings of our Savior? Indeed, these practices lasted until the time of Hadrian, and the account of history has shown this. This was especially the time when the saving teaching was flourishing among all people.

⁵ And indeed, it is not even possible for them to say that they are serving evil demons; for history has shown that the greatest gods were the ones to whom human sacrifices were made. They claimed to offer sacrifices to Hera and Athena, to Cronus, Ares, and Dionysus, and also to Zeus, who is above all, and to Phoebus, the most revered and wisest Apollo. These are the only greatest gods they call good and saviors.

⁶ So they would indeed be the evil demons. For if these gods took pleasure in such human sacrifices and killings, how could you not reasonably count them among the murderous spirits? Whether they themselves claimed to enjoy such things or allowed others to do them without objection?

⁷ For why should people allow themselves to be pleased by evil spirits? And why should they be so misled as to serve and flatter the wicked? And why should they be enslaved to those who are evil, when they should be striving for what is good and divine, staying far away from everything that is base and evil, and seeking guidance from a higher and more divine power?

⁸ Surely a good father would not allow his own child to be harmed by wicked men, nor would a sensible master overlook his servant being taken by enemies. A general would not let his own men be captured by the enemy while he is there to save them, nor would a shepherd allow his flock to be taken by wolves. But will the gods and good spirits allow the human race to be captured by the wicked and base?

⁹ And the countless guardians of human beings, who are indeed the shepherds and saviors, kings, fathers, and lords, will not hand over their dearest ones to enemies, foes, and wild beasts in such a cruel and harsh way. Instead, they will defend those who seek refuge and drive away the enemies and wicked spirits from the human flock, just as one would chase away wild and savage beasts. They will teach everyone to trust in the many good gods and spirits that are close by, and they will be devoted not only to those who are stronger but also to the greater and mightiest gods, so that they will not turn back at all from the weakness of the wicked spirits.

¹⁰ But when they did not do this, they were working against the good themselves, allowing the foretold human sacrifices through the oracles, and they rejoiced in all the shameful practices and their accompanying actions. It is clear, they say, that they did not change at all the nature of the wicked spirits; rather, they were driven by the same choices and opinions. Furthermore, it can be said that there was not even a single god or any good spirit worshipped by all the nations in their cities and lands.

¹¹ For how could the good ever befriend the wicked, if light and darkness could somehow become one? And how much greater is human reasoning than that of the established gods, so that one should not sacrifice even to the wicked spirits? Therefore, the writer mentioned earlier says that it is not necessary to sacrifice living beings, stating that one should not sacrifice to wicked spirits in this way.

Book 4, Section 18

Therefore, a wise and sensible person will be careful about using such sacrifices, as they attract those kinds of spirits to themselves. Instead, they will strive to purify their soul in every way, for a pure soul is not affected by them because of their difference. And if it is necessary to sacrifice for the cities, it does not concern us; for in those places, wealth, external goods, and physical benefits are considered important, while the opposite, which is evil, is valued less, and little attention is given to caring for the soul. Following this, he continues to say...

Book 4, Section 19

But we, as much as we can, will not ask for what these offer. Instead, we will make every effort, both from the soul and from outside, to be like the god and those around him. This happens through a lack of passion and a clear understanding of what truly exists, both in relation to them and in life itself. We aim to be different from wicked humans and spirits, and from everything that delights in the mortal and material world.

² The philosopher we mention stands apart from those outside, and we say that he will not be disturbed by spirits, nor will he ask for the help of seers or the entrails of animals. For oracles exist for these reasons, and he has practiced staying away from them. He does not seek marriage, nor will the seer disturb him about it; he does not seek trade, nor matters about household servants, nor about theft and other things that people consider important. As for what he seeks, no seer will help him, nor will the entrails of animals reveal the truth. Instead, he himself, as we say, approaches the god, who is established in his true essence, and he will receive guidance about eternal life, having gathered completely there.

³ Clearly, through these things, the argument shows what one should think about oracles and the inquiries made through sacrifices, as well as the predictions that many admire regarding the unknown. For all these things, which are called mere opinions, are dismissed as if they are influenced by wicked spirits.

⁴ The argument about lesser spirits continues, stating that the wise and temperate person should never give himself over to them, nor should he draw them to himself through sacrifices. Next, it adds that the philosopher should not need oracles, nor the entrails of animals, or similar things, as if to avoid the tricks of wicked spirits.

⁵ If, then, it is to be taken seriously that the wise and temperate person should avoid using such sacrifices, through which he would draw demons to himself—these being the sacrifices involving the pouring out of blood and the slaughter of irrational animals—no one could justly call a person who does these things wise and temperate, especially more so than those who sacrifice humans.

⁶ It is clear that almost all nations, before our savior was revealed to humans, sought the lesser, appeasing demons through human sacrifices made everywhere. Therefore, no one among them could be considered wise and temperate.

⁷ The common and human reason, following the right logic, clearly tells every wise and temperate person not to use sacrifices to appease wicked demons, but to strive to purify the soul in every way. A pure soul cannot be harmed because it is unlike them.

⁸ The god Apollo, who should again be compared to humans to show how far he strays from right reasoning, commands that sacrifices be made to the wicked demon, as if he were a friend to him. A bad thing is a friend to what is similar. This is supported by what he wrote earlier in his work "On Philosophy from Reason," which I recount here in detail.

Book 4, Section 20

When the prophet was eager to see the divine and Apollo was in a hurry, he said it was impossible to do such a thing without first giving a ransom to the wicked demon. He said: "Give a ransom to the noble inhabitant of the homeland. First, make libations, then offer a fire and dark blood from wine, along with the black streams of wine and white streams." He spoke more clearly about the same things: "Pour wine and milk and beautiful water, and use wood that bears fruit from divine trees; place the entrails with rich streams." When asked what prayer to use, he began to speak but did not finish, saying: "Demon, who brings ruin to souls, I have pierced the crown, beneath the airy depths and above the earth."

² These things come from the wonderful god, but even more from the wandering demon. The opposite of natural reasoning is to purify the soul, not to attract wicked demons with sacrifices, as he advises. A pure soul cannot be harmed because it is unlike them. If a wise and temperate man is rightly seen as careful and does not sacrifice to demons, who would reasonably think that he should sacrifice to the wicked ones based on the oracle? I leave it to you to think about this.

³ From here, it will be clear who had the nature of this way: those who rejoice in human sacrifices or those who have long been enslaved to all of humanity. If someone claims that the practice of human sacrifice is not wrong and that it was performed correctly by the ancients, then it is time to criticize everyone today, for no one is as pious as their ancestors.

Book 4, Section 21

If those among us have rejected the cruel and savage brutality, then none of the ancients were wise, as they tried to appease the wicked demons with human killings. Even a blind person can see that neither the gods nor the good demons, who were once worshipped by all nations, were far removed from goodness.

² Therefore, it is right that some are called god-fighters and impious, as they ruin all life from ancient times. No one, except our savior and lord Christ of God, has offered escape to all people, announcing healing from the ancestral sickness for both Greeks and non-Greeks, and freedom from bitter and ancient slavery. For this, the message of the gospel encourages us to strive, loudly calling to all, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to heal the brokenhearted." And to bring out those bound in chains, and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.

³ For these divine words were truly established long ago among the Hebrews, announcing the redemption of our souls, which were blind and bound by wicked demons with many chains. Therefore, it is fitting that those whose minds have been enlightened by the message of salvation become wise, respectful, and understanding, and free from all evils. We will neither sacrifice nor serve the gods of the nations, who indeed once oppressed us. Instead, being lifted up and brought to the teachings of our savior, we will regard the one true God, who is our master and provider, savior and benefactor, as well as creator and ruler of all. We will honor only this true God and give him the proper respect, worshiping him alone and being pious only toward him, not as friends of the demons, but as those sent to all people for salvation through his true gospel teachings.

⁴ In this way, while being God-fearing, we will drive away and remove the wicked demons from ourselves, and we must greatly fear them. We will do this through purity and a clean way of life that is wise and virtuous, as determined by our savior. A pure soul cannot approach what is unclean, and we will not seek out or ask for prophecies or oracles, nor will we investigate the insides of animals, nor will we meddle in anything stirred up by demonic activity.

⁵ For the reason that many strive for these things, the word of Christ has instructed us to turn away from them, but it encourages us to pursue only those things that truly matter. No soothsayer or examination of animal entrails can reveal the truth, but only the word of God, which truly dwells in the purest depths of those who have a completely clean soul. About this, it is said somewhere in the sacred writings, "I will dwell in them, and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people."

⁶ These things, then, are clear proof of the wickedness of the demons regarding sacrifices. Listen to what the author of the work on the departure of living beings says about the same matters, openly admitting that the evil demons take on many forms and shapes to deceive and mislead many people. He states that they disguise themselves as good beings and win over the crowds by igniting their desires, wanting to be praised as higher gods. He claims that they are so powerful that they can deceive even the wisest poets and philosophers of the Greeks, whom he acknowledges as the cause of the crowd's confusion. He says that all magic comes from them, and they bring pleasure to people through their actions. They want to appear as gods while being lowly demons, and their leading power seems to be the greatest god. All of this is reported by Porphyry in this way.

Book 4, Section 22

As for the souls that are not controlled by the continuous spirit, but rather are mostly influenced by it, they are easily led and carried away whenever the passions and desires of the spirit take hold. These souls could be called demons, and it would be fair to say they are evil doers.

² And these beings, both those and those of the opposing power, are invisible and completely beyond human senses. They do not have a solid body, nor do they all share one form; instead, they appear in many shapes. Their spirits take on forms that sometimes become visible and at other times remain hidden; sometimes they even change their shapes, especially the weaker ones.

³ Is the spirit bodily? It is passive and perishable. However, because it is so tied to the souls, its form can last for a longer time, but it is not eternal. It is likely to flow away and change constantly.

⁴ In balance, the good beings are like the bodies of those who appear, while the evil doers are unbalanced. They, being more passive, do nothing but commit evil. Their nature is violent and sneaky, lacking the protection of the stronger spirit. They are fierce and sudden, like traps, often causing people to stumble, sometimes trying to remain hidden and at other times acting forcefully.

⁵ And from here, it is said that these beings and similar ones want to change us from the true understanding of the gods and turn us back to themselves. They take pleasure in everything that arises in such a lawless and inappropriate way. Just as if they were wearing the faces of other gods, they enjoy our foolishness. They gather the crowds by stirring up human desires for love, wealth, power, and pleasures, as well as vanity, from which conflicts and wars arise along with their related troubles.

⁶ But the most terrible thing of all is that they rise up from here and persuade others about the greatest gods, even leading the best god into these wrongdoings. They claim that everything is disturbed and turned upside down. This suffering is not only felt by ordinary people but also by many who are involved in philosophy.

⁷ The cause has come about through one another. Among those who study philosophy, those who did not turn away from the new ideas joined with the crowds. Again, the crowds, agreeing with their beliefs, became even more convinced by those who appeared wise to think more about such matters concerning the gods.

⁸ The poetic has stirred up people's beliefs by using language that creates surprise and enchantment, leading to confusion and a belief in the most impossible things. It is important to understand that neither good ever harms nor evil ever helps. As Plato says, it is not cold that causes heat, but its opposite; and it is not heat that causes cold, but its opposite. In the same way, the just does not cause harm.

⁹ The divine is indeed the most just by nature of all things, since it would not be divine otherwise. Therefore, it is necessary to separate this power and role of the helpful spirits. To harm is naturally and willingly the opposite of being helpful; and opposites concerning the same thing could never occur.

¹⁰ And again, "Indeed, all magic is accomplished through opposites; for those who do evil through magic especially value these and their leader."

¹¹ For they are full of all imagination and can deceive through magic. Through these, the evil spirits create charms and love potions; for all wickedness and hopes for wealth and glory come through these, especially deceit.

¹² For falsehood is natural to them; they wish to be gods, and their leader seems to be the greatest god. These beings rejoice in offerings and incense, through which their spiritual and physical existence is nourished. For this thrives on steam and vapors, in various ways through different offerings, and is strengthened by sacrifices of blood and flesh.

¹³ For this reason, we have heard those who agree that not only the poets among the Greeks have sparked people's beliefs about the wicked spirits as if they were gods and good, but also those engaged in philosophy who seem to take the gods seriously. These philosophers do not worship true gods; instead, they surround the crowds and the people with the same kind of deception.

¹⁴ The argument has clearly stated that among those who seem wise, the crowds are encouraged to think more about the wicked spirits as if they were gods, based on their beliefs. This accusation does not come from us, but from those who understand their own matters better than we do.

¹⁵ The author himself, not casually, discusses the widespread hidden superstition, stating that the wicked spirits want to be seen as gods and to have a good reputation among people. He will clarify which power leads them, saying that the rulers of these wicked spirits are Sarapis and Hecate, while the divine scripture mentions Beelzebub. Pay attention to how he also writes about this in his work "On Philosophy from Reason."

Book Five

We do not suspect the wicked spirits under Sarapis without good reason, nor just because of their symbols, but because their offerings and sacrifices are made to Pluto, as we showed in the first part. The god himself is Pluto, and for this reason, he is especially the ruler of these spirits, providing symbols for their worship.

² This one also showed the worshippers that all living beings approach humans in a similar way. Therefore, among the Egyptians, the Phoenicians, and generally among those who are wise about the divine, they are tied with ropes in the temples, and animals are offered before the worship of the gods. The priests drive these animals away to provide their spirit or blood, and through the strike of the air, when one of them leaves, the presence of the god is created.

³ And every house is full, and for this reason, they clean and drive these away whenever they call upon a god. The bodies are indeed full of these spirits; for they especially enjoy certain kinds of food. When we eat, they approach and reveal themselves to the body, and for this reason, the purifications are not done for the gods first, but only after these spirits withdraw. They especially enjoy blood and impurities, and they take pleasure in these by entering into those who are affected.

⁴ For the urge towards a certain desire and the movement of the spirit do not become strong from anywhere else except from their presence. They also compel people to fall into silent sounds and breaths through the shared pleasure that occurs with them.

⁵ For where there is a stronger pull of the spirit, or where the belly is filled with pleasure, or where eagerness is driven by delight and much is drawn from outside, there let the presence of such spirits be revealed to you. Up to this point, human nature dares to discover the traps set around it; for when the god is mixed in, the spirit multiplies.

⁶ These things are about the wicked demons, of which he says that Sarapis is the leader. He also teaches that Hecate rules over them, saying this: "Perhaps these are the ones over whom Sarapis rules, and the three-headed dog is their symbol, meaning the one in the three elements: water, earth, and air, a wicked demon; whom the god who has power over them calms. And Hecate also rules over them, as she holds together the threefold nature." And again he says...

⁷ One more oracle I will present, which Hecate herself has made: "I am the daughter of many names, one who hears from the sky, with the face of a bull, three-headed, fierce, with golden arrows, Phoebe of endless words, bright Eileithyia, carrying the threefold nature of threefold things; I appear in the ether with fiery shapes, and I am surrounded by shining wheels in the air; the earth drives the dark race of my dogs."

⁸ The author clearly specifies which dogs he means: they are wicked demons, about which we have just stopped speaking. So much for these things. As for the demons being truly wicked and bringing nothing good, those worshipped by many, let us strengthen this even more with more examples.

Book 5, Section 1

Introduction. It is enough to show that they are not gods, nor good demons, but that the opposite was present among the nations, honored as gods in cities and regions. We are not troubled to further strengthen this same argument with more and stronger evidence of their falsehood, which, through the teaching of our Savior, has brought freedom to all people from the old evils.

² So listen, then, to the Greeks admitting that their oracles have been abandoned, not at any other time in history but after the times of salvation and the teaching of the Gospel, when the knowledge of one, the universal king and creator of all, has shone like light for all people.

³ Indeed, we will soon show how, after his appearance, the deaths of the demons were recorded, and the marvelous oracles that had long been calling out were abandoned.

⁴ It has already been shown that the end of evils has not happened at any other time except after the teaching of the Gospel. The cruel and merciless practices of human sacrifice that were carried out among all the nations have come to an end. It is worth noting that not only has the fear of demons disappeared since then, but also the many rulers of the nations.

⁵ For almost everywhere in every city and village, there were kings and tyrants, local rulers, and powerful leaders. Because of them, people were always rushing into wars against each other, causing destruction of lands and sieges of cities, and constantly capturing and enslaving those nearby. They were driven by their own demons to fight against one another.

⁶ With such things happening, in whatever confusion of evils and disasters everyone was living, I leave it to you to think about.

⁷ Therefore, when all these things were gathered together, along with the many false beliefs that had been cast aside, how could we not marvel at the great mystery of true salvation and the good news? Through this, everywhere in the world of humans, prayers and temples were dedicated to the all-powerful king and creator of all, the one true god, in both cities and villages of barbarian nations and in wilderness areas. There were also books and readings, all kinds of teachings about reaching the highest virtue and instructions on true worship, which were given to men, women, and children to listen to. But everything from demons, including oracles and divinations, was now lifeless.

⁸ No one has ever dared to believe that, from where the divine and good news power of our savior has shone like light on all, they could appease the deadly and cruel demons with human sacrifices and killings, as if it were truly pleasing to the wise and powerful of old who were possessed by demons.

⁹ Regarding the fact that the wicked demons can no longer have power or strength since our savior came to humans, even the leader of the demons among us, while speaking of this, testifies to the truth of the matter.

¹⁰ Now they are amazed that for so many years the city has been free from disease, with Asclepius and the other gods no longer present. For when Jesus was honored, no one noticed any public benefit from the gods.

¹¹ These are the words of Porphyry. If, then, according to this agreement, when Jesus was honored, no one noticed any public benefit from the gods, with neither Asclepius nor the other gods present, then where does the belief about the gods and heroes come from?

¹² For why do the things of the gods and those of Asclepius not have power over the strength of Jesus? If indeed the mortal man — as they might say, perhaps a deceiver — is like this, then why have all of them fled from Asclepius, turning their backs on the mortal, and completely surrendered humanity to the one who is no longer present, as they themselves might say?

¹³ But he is honored every day by all the nations even after death, clearly showing the divine and the life after death to those who are able to see it.

¹⁴ But being one, and as someone might think, alone, he drives away the many gods from all over the world and holds their honors in contempt, as if the gods no longer exist, do not act, or even appear, and that they are not gods but wicked demons. Yet, alone, and by the god who sent him, he increases the honors every day and gives greater virtue to all of humanity.

¹⁵ It is necessary for the gods, if any were truly guardians of the earth, to completely change the deception, if there was any, and to provide their help and benefits freely to everyone.

¹⁶ Now, this has often been attempted by those in power over time, to teach the strongest doctrine of our savior. Yet, they found their efforts fruitless, always being overcome by the divine power of our savior. They destroyed all the rebellions of wicked demons against his teaching, driving them away—spirits that are truly worthless but falsely believed to be gods or good demons.

Book 5, Section 2

These beings, some of whom are said to be earthly and some underground, wander through the heavy and dark air on the earth. They are trapped in a gloomy and earthy dwelling, for which we will later give reasons. They linger around the graves of the dead and the memorials, and in all the filthy and unclean matter, rejoicing in blood and fluids and the bodies of various animals, as well as in the vapors rising from the ground. The rulers of these beings are some airy or underground powers, who, having learned that humanity is somehow seeking divinity among the dead, are especially pleased by the sacrifices and offerings made with great effort. They are nearby, assisting the deception, preying on the evils of humans, and easily deceiving foolish souls with movements of statues, which are indeed dedicated in honor of the dead. They also use visions from oracles and the services of bodies, which they secretly corrupt through their own actions. Meanwhile, the same beings, through their release from these actions, grant freedom from passions.

² Because of this, they led the superstitious ones further towards the cliffs, believing that they were sometimes heavenly powers and truly some gods, and at other times the souls of deified heroes.

³ From this, the belief in many gods became stronger and more serious for many, as their thinking shifted from what is seen to the hidden things connected with the statues, and the deception gained more power.

⁴ Thus, the surrounding demons, both those who rule the air and the spirits of wickedness, along with the greatest gods of all, were believed to be in charge of all evil. The memory of the long-dead was seen as deserving of greater care.

⁵ The images of bodies were thought to represent the forms of those dedicated in the cities, while the souls and the inner, bodiless powers were deceived by wicked demons through much trickery. Even those who served and honored them always led people away from the greater delusion of imagination, and indeed often packaged many things with magical tricks. Their teachings also became a starting point for the wicked demons who assisted those who served them. Thus, they became the cause of ancient evil magic in all human life, as the earlier discussion explained.

Book 5, Section 3

Therefore, these wicked and surrounding demons, both the airy and the underworld spirits, whom the divine words call rulers and powers of wickedness, sometimes pretended to be good demons, at other times took the form of heavenly gods, and again sometimes transformed into heroes. When the signs of wickedness became clear through their actions, many deceived people believed even more that they were gods, heroes, or demons, but they did not agree that there were true gods. Some praised the good demons, while others called upon the wicked ones, insisting that the wicked should be appeased for the harm they caused. Thus, all of their deification fell into many forms.

² First, the shining lights in the sky, which they say are divine because they move, are believed to be the first gods, as they are the cause of seeing visible things. Second, because of the benefits they provide to everyday life, the heroes are honored, and it is acknowledged that they came from humans. They refer to figures like Heracles and the Dioscuri, as well as Dionysus and others similar among the barbarians.

³ From these, they separated and distinguished the more shameful aspects related to the same, and they added a third kind of deification, calling it mythical. This was indeed considered shameful, and although it was true and very old, they shifted it toward a more natural explanation, as they say, changing it with more metaphorical interpretations and inventing certain theories.

⁴ But even this deception was not enough for them; they also lowered the revered and worshipped name of the god to fit their own passions, creating a fourth kind of deification. This was not even worthy of opposition, as it clearly put an end to the shame itself.

⁵ If they indeed called Eros and Aphrodite, along with their shameful and unrestrained desires, gods, and assigned reason to Hermes and thought to Athena, they included these in their own theology, reshaping the fifth kind of deification from the things that occur among humans.

⁶ For they took the activities, both martial and artistic, away from being idols and assigned them to the gods, giving the martial ones to Ares and Athena, and the artistic ones to Hephaestus and a few others.

⁷ On top of all this, a sixth and seventh kind of deification was introduced to them, truly varied and multifaceted. Sometimes it pretended to be gods, other times it claimed to be the souls of the dead. It contributed nothing to the virtue of the soul, but always lurked around, bringing everything through the deceptive trickery of superstition.

⁸ This, being entirely bad, was divided into two: one for harmful things and one for pleasing things, and they assigned names to both good and bad things.

⁹ Since these things are true, it seems necessary for me to present the part that requires no contradiction regarding divine activity. We will now fill in what is missing, having previously looked at it in the writing before this.

¹⁰ So let us now move on to the remaining proofs. I will first present those from the writings of Plutarch, which he composed about the oracles that have been left behind. There, he discusses the divination and oracles of evil spirits among the nations in this manner.

Book 5, Section 4

Indeed, those who say that Plato discovered the element underlying the qualities of things, which they call matter, are speaking rightly. He freed many philosophers from great difficulties. However, it seems to me that those who place the nature of demons between gods and humans solve even more and greater problems. They find a way to connect us and bring us together, whether this idea comes from the magicians around Zoroaster, from the Thracians inspired by Orpheus, from the Egyptians, or from the Phrygians, as we can see from the many mortal and sorrowful rituals mixed in their ceremonies. Among the Greeks, Homer commonly uses both names and refers to the gods when he calls them demons. Hesiod, however, clearly and distinctly first presented four kinds of rational beings: gods, then demons, then heroes, and finally, humans. From these, it seems he makes the distinction, turning many good beings of the golden race into demons, while the half-gods are separated into heroes.

² Then he continues, "But concerning these matters, it is not necessary for us to disagree with Demetrius. For whether the time is longer or shorter, whether it is ordered or disordered, in which the soul of a demon and the life of a hero change, it will still be shown by wise and ancient witnesses that there are certain natures that, like those between gods and humans, experience mortal feelings and necessary changes. These are the demons, rightly regarded according to the law of our ancestors, who are to be honored."

With this, he adds other points: "It seems to me that placing the oracles not with the gods, from whom it is fitting to be separated regarding earthly matters, but with demons who serve the gods, is not a bad idea. However, for these demons to take only a small amount from the verses of Empedocles to bring forth errors, misfortunes, and divine deceptions, and to suggest endings and deaths just like humans, I consider this bolder and more barbaric."

³ And again, he adds to what has been said, "For there are differences in virtue among humans and demons. For some, the passive and irrational are weak and dim, like a leftover, but for others, they are much more intense and hard to extinguish. Their traces and symbols are preserved in many places through sacrifices, rituals, and myths. As for the mysteries, in which the greatest truths about demons can be revealed, let them be spoken clearly according to Herodotus.

But for festivals and sacrifices, like the days of misfortune and sorrow, where there are acts of cannibalism and violent disruptions, fasting and wailing, and many shameful acts toward the sacred, as well as other frenzies stirred up by reckless behavior, I would say they are performed not for any gods, but to ward off lesser demons. It is unlikely that ancient human sacrifices would require or accept gods, nor would kings and generals foolishly give their own children to be sacrificed. Instead, they would be trying to appease difficult and troubled feelings, filling themselves with unholy things, while some would be driven by mad desires, unable or unwilling to engage with bodies and through bodies.

But just as Heracles besieged Oichalia for a virgin, so too many strong and violent demons, seeking a human soul contained in a body, bring plagues upon cities and lands, stirring up wars and rebellions until they seize and possess what they desire."

⁴ Clearly, through these things, the philosopher mentioned shows that the previously stated practices were performed for wicked demons in all the cities. But if there were some among these, as they say, good by nature or even gods, why should we serve the lesser ones? Shouldn't we turn away from the bad and seek the good?

⁵ For if indeed there were good leaders among them, then it would be necessary to rely on them for nothing from the wicked. We should turn away through wise words and prayers, but not be led astray by shameful practices from the opposing powers.

⁶ But when they did none of these things, and instead lived a shameful and reckless life, using indecent words, they offered acts of cannibalism and violent disruptions to the wicked demons. How could they do such things and still expect to be favored by the god above all, or by the divine powers under him, or to be associated with any truly good beings?

⁷ But it is clear to everyone that someone who does what is dear to the wicked can never become dear to the good. Therefore, they do not serve the gods or the good demons, but only the wicked ones, as has been shown.

⁸ Moreover, Plutarch believes this statement even more when he says that the mythical stories about the gods are actually accounts about demons. He claims that the tales sung among the Greeks are about certain giant and Titan-like demons, suggesting a new way of thinking.

⁹ Could it be that the things said about the giants before the flood in the sacred writings are connected to those who were born from them? It is said, "And the angels of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful, and they took wives for themselves from all whom they chose; from these were born the giants, the famous ones of old."

¹⁰ For someone might say that these are those giants, and their spirits have been made divine among people after them, along with their battles, their conflicts with each other, and their wars. These are the things that are told as myths about the gods. Plutarch mentions these ideas in his writing, "On the Gods of Isis and the Egyptians."

Book 5, Section 5

Therefore, those who tell the stories about Typhon, Osiris, and Isis do not think they are the sufferings of gods or men, but rather that they are great demons. Plato, Pythagoras, Xenocrates, and Chrysippus, following the ancient theologians, say that these beings have become stronger than humans and far exceed us in power. However, they do not possess the divine nature purely or completely; instead, they are mixed with the nature of the soul and the senses of the body, experiencing both pleasure and pain. The changes that happen to them affect some more and some less. For there are differences in virtue and vice among both humans and demons. The giant and Titan-like stories sung among the Greeks, along with many lawless deeds, the conflicts of Python against Apollo, the banishments of Dionysus, and the wanderings of Demeter, include everything found in the Osirian and Typhonic tales, which can be heard everywhere in mythology. Additionally, whatever is preserved in secret rituals and unspeakable ceremonies has a similar meaning to the gods.

² And he goes on to say that Empedocles claims the demons give justice to those who have sinned and done wrong. They pursue the ether with their strength, but they spit out the earth from the depths of the sea, and the earth reaches up to the rays of the tireless sun. The ether throws them into whirlpools, and one receives them from another, and all of them are despised until they are punished and once again take their natural place and order. Indeed, they say that these things and similar stories are told about Typhon, how he caused terrible things out of envy and hostility, disturbing everything, and filled both the earth and the sea with evils, and then he was punished.

³ These things Plutarch presents in the mentioned writing, and by exploring many points, he shares similar ideas in "On the Oracles of the Departed." He claims that the oracle was linked to demons and had much to say about the Delphic oracle. He was aware of the stories about Dionysus and the sacred rituals performed there, but he said these too were great sufferings of demons, and these are indeed the matters concerning the Pythia. For the one who kills, there is neither a nine-year period nor a flight to the Tempe; instead, having fallen, he goes to another world. Later, after many years, he becomes pure, and Phoebus truly descends to receive the oracle, while it is guarded by Themis. He also speaks of the Typhonic and Titan-like battles that occurred among demons, and then the flight of those who were captured, or the justice from the god for those who have sinned, such as Typhon being said to have sinned against Osiris and Cronus against Uranus. The honors for these figures among us have become dimmer or have completely disappeared, having moved to another world.

I also hear about the Solymi, the people of Lycia, who especially honor Cronus. After killing their leaders Arsalon, Aryton, and Tosius, he fled and moved wherever he could—this they cannot say. He was neglected, but those around Arsalon were called shadowy gods, and public and private curses were made against them by the Lycians. Thus, there are many similar things to take from the myths. If we call certain demons by the names of the established gods, it should not be surprising, said the stranger. For each is arranged according to his own, and he who has not shared in the power loves to be called by that name; for among us, one is called Zeus, another Athenian, another Apollonian, or Dionysian, or Hermetic. But some were rightly called by chance, while many were not related at all, but took on the names of the gods as nicknames.

⁴ Plutarch discusses much in his work "On the Oracles of the Departed," presenting the demons as also capable of dying, which I will mention at the right time.

⁵ For now, let us gather all the other information about the power and activity of the good demons, as he says, the one who has created our collection, in which he wrote "On the Philosophy of Reason." He presents many things to him, and now, just as before, I will often use evidence and arguments against those who think they are gods, so that they may be shamed as if they were struck by arrows and darts.

⁶ For this reason, it could also happen to us that those who are dear to the gods, and indeed the pious who are respected, would provide a complete and undeniable proof concerning their own matters when thoroughly examined.

⁷ He writes these things in what he titled "On the Philosophy of Reason," where he testifies that he does not reveal the secrets of the gods. He both swears an oath and instructs that they should be kept hidden and not shared with many people.

⁸ What were such things? He says that Pan is a servant of Dionysus, and that he was once sent by the good demons to those who farm the land. What need is there for a good being to provide or show some sign of goodness to those who have been deemed worthy of the appearance of the good?

⁹ Was there then some good thing for those who see the good demon, or did they encounter an evil demon, becoming aware through their experiences? Indeed, the remarkable witness says that those who have been deemed worthy of this good sight endure death, saying this:

Book 5, Section 6

"Now also in other cases, some servants of certain beings have been shown, like Pan of Dionysus. This has been revealed by Apollo in Branchidae through these events. For nine were found dead. Therefore, when those who live in the countryside asked the reason, the god spoke: 'The golden-horned servant of gloomy Dionysus, walking through the wooded mountains, held a strong staff in one hand, and in the other, he grasped a sweet-sounding hollow flute, which stirred the hearts of the nymphs. And playing a sharp tune, he amazed all the woodcutters, and they were filled with wonder at the sight of the demon rising with a chilling form. And now he would have struck them all with the end of cold death, if the fierce Artemis, holding a dreadful grudge in her heart, had not stopped his strong desire. One must also plead with her, so that she may become a helper to you.'"

² You have heard how the demon, which he calls good, appears and acts, as the stranger Apollo in Branchidae says. Indeed, it is a sight to see the noble deeds of others, for which they have left behind their heavenly life and exchanged it for a life among humans.

³ Certainly, they should start with moderation and suggest what is beneficial and useful for humans. But they know nothing of these things. Listen to how he reveals the most hidden truths and has been deemed worthy of knowledge of the unspeakable.

⁴ At times, he says that some of these good demons serve with sweet passions of love, while at other times, they rejoice with drums, flutes, and the sounds of women. Some find joy in battles and wars, honoring Artemis in hunting and Demeter with the fruits of the earth. They also mourn Osiris and still seek prophecies from Isis and Apollo. Such are the benefits of these good demons for humans. Accept also their evidence.

Book 5, Section 7

Nothing among the immortal gods is ever said in vain, nor did Hecate speak without reason to the wise. Coming down from the all-powerful mind of her father, she always shines with truth, and her wisdom remains steady in unbreakable thoughts. Therefore, call upon her; for you bring forth a goddess of such greatness, as she has the power to give life to the highest cosmos.

² And perhaps because of this, the soul is threefold, both tripartite and divided. One part is spirited, and the other is desiring; that is why it is also related to love. These ideas are not mine, nor should you think so; you have heard them from the writer I mentioned earlier, to whom these also belong.

³ Indeed, it frightens me how those who are stronger command those who are weaker. It is only right that they expect the servant to endure while they themselves continue to act unjustly. When something pure is not present, they would not listen to calls from the pleasures of love, yet they do not hesitate to lead those who happen to come into unlawful pleasures.

⁴ You would also find these things in the letter to the Egyptian in 'To Anaboe.' In the previously mentioned work 'On Philosophy from Words,' he adds to what has been said, saying this: "And indeed, whatever is commanded to each person, they have made clear, just as Didymus did through these things. The question was whether one should swear to the person who brings forth the oath."

⁵ To the mother of the blessed, Rhea, the flutes, the sounds of drums, and the gathering of women are dedicated. To Pallas, there are beautiful dances and the struggle of Enyo, and with strong dogs, they drive the wild beasts through the mountain paths for the daughter of Leto. To Hera, there is a gentle pouring of moist air. The rich harvest is cared for by the grain-giving Demeter. To Isis, again, by the fertile waters of the Nile, they celebrate with sweet scents for her delicate husband, Osiris.

⁶ If indeed "the flutes, the sounds of drums, and the gathering of women" are dedicated to the mother of the gods, then we must see these things as far from all virtue. Nothing of moderation or any other godly action is dedicated to the previously mentioned goddess, just as to Athena there are dances, battles, and wars, but not peace and the things of peace. To the daughter of Leto, Artemis, the strong dogs are dedicated because she is a huntress in the fields, fighting against wild beasts, just as with the others that have been mentioned. So what then would these things contribute to a life that is godly and worthy of honor? You should consider whether it seems to you to be of divine nature or of a lowly and wicked kind, based on what follows.

Book 5, Section 8

"Rightly, the Rhodian Pythagoras declared that the gods do not take pleasure in those who are called upon during sacrifices. Instead, they come out of necessity, being dragged along by some following. Some gods come more willingly, while others come less so."

² But those who have made a habit of being present come more easily, especially if they are good by nature. On the other hand, those who are used to coming may cause some harm, especially if someone seems to be careless in their actions.

³ For when Pythagoras said these things, I noted from the arguments that what he said is true. They all claim that they arrive out of necessity, not just in a simple way, but rather, if one must put it this way, out of a forced necessity.

⁴ It has been said before about the things of Hecate, through which she is said to shine forth, "In the morning with endless light, a pure house full of stars, I left the great home of the goddess, and I step upon the life-giving earth, guided by her hidden plans and the persuasive words of the unspoken, which indeed delight the minds of mortals."

⁵ And again I came, listening to the wise and intricate prayer. This prayer was discovered by mortals through the hidden plans of the gods.

⁶ And even more clearly, why do you always call down Hecate, goddess of the divine, from the ether out of necessity? Next, you lead those who are unwilling, drawn by the unspoken charms from the sky, easily to the earth. Meanwhile, those in the middle, caught in the winds, are far from the divine fire. Like dreams, you mix them with mortal parts, committing shameful deeds.

⁷ And again, those above, the heavenly beings, are hurried along with the Harpies. They rush down, pushed by the necessities of the divine, to the earth, singing to Demeter as they are sent to mortals. And again, another, being forced, said, "Listen to me, even though I do not want to, since you have bound me with necessity."

⁸ On this, the author says again, "Since they also give up their own necessities, as the one from Apollo will show about himself."

⁹ It is said like this: "This name of necessity is strong and even heavy."

¹⁰ But I, with great effort, bring forth these stories, which I raise from my own heart to the sacred forms, crushed by pure fire. Nature dares to reveal these things about your birth, immortal Paean.

¹¹ And again, Apollo, a stream of light from the radiant heights, covered by the sweet breath of pure air, enchanted by songs and unspoken words, flowed around the head of the flawless vessel, filling the delicate garment. It was raised through the belly and turned back again. From a mortal, he brought forth a beloved voice.

¹² The author chooses these words: "None of these can be clearer, more divine, or more natural. For the breath that comes down and flows from the heavenly power enters into an organic and living body, resting upon the soul, and through the mouth, as an organ, gives forth a voice."

¹³ But they are forced to present enough of these things, and they also claim to be freed, since the retreat does not depend on them. You will learn this from what has been said.

Book 5, Section 9

That they hurry to retreat will be made clear by those called gods, who say, "Release the lord, for a mortal can no longer endure the god."

² And again, why do you strike and torment a weak mortal?

³ And again, go, and confidently approach this one you have saved.

⁴ And how he himself will teach them to be freed, saying, "Stop your eager cries, and give rest to the light. Release the gray form from the limbs, and remove the shroud of Neilos with strong hands."

⁵ And he spoke about the release, "Lift the high-footed tarso, and hold back the sound from the depths."

⁶ And those things added to these. To them he says, "Release the slow ones, cover them with a cloak, and loosen the cloud from the vessel." And again, at another time, he gave such a release.

⁷ Naiads, Nymphs, sing loudly of Phoebus, all of you who sing of Apollo, the one with the far-shooting arrows.

⁸ And again, at another time, he says, "Loosen the crowns for me, and wash my feet with white water, and wipe away the lines, and may I die. Take a branch of laurel from the right hand, and lift up the twin eyes and the nose of the face, raising up the light from the earth, my companions."

⁹ To whom the author says, "Therefore, he urges to wipe away the lines, so that he may depart; for holding onto these, and also the other form of the clothing, is because it carries images of the named gods."

¹⁰ I believe it is clear from these things that nothing truly divine, neither great nor genuinely godlike, exists for spirits that have fallen into such lowliness. For those who are human, they are drawn and pulled down not through virtue and the pursuit of wisdom, but only to engage in the tricks of strange enchantments and to accomplish them.

¹¹ Therefore, neither the Rhodian Pythagoras nor anyone giving this testimony would reasonably claim that any human beings are gods, nor even good spirits among mortals. These things do not reflect their own opinions; instead, they are dragged along by force and necessity, having no power over their own release from bondage.

¹² For if the divine is truly unforced, unconstrained, and superior to all, being free and without passion, how could they be gods if they are bound by magic through such shapes and lines, by crowns and flowers from the earth, and by certain other meaningless and foreign sounds and voices? They are controlled by chance among humans and seem to be enslaved by bonds, so that they have no power to preserve their own free will and choices.

¹³ But how could they be called good spirits if they are dragged along by force and necessity? What is the reason for their unwillingness if they do not use their own free will to help those in need?

¹⁴ For if they do good while being good themselves, and if there is any benefit to their souls, they should choose to embrace the good, reaching out with their kindness to those in need, instead of waiting for necessity.

¹⁵ But if what is being done is neither good nor helpful, then it should not happen according to their will. How could they be good if they do not act in ways that are good or beneficial?

¹⁶ But how can they be worthy of admiration and honored by the services of the gods when they are enslaved by the ways of sorcerers, suffering the worst fate, and forced to do what is neither good nor beneficial against their will? They are led and dragged along, not because of the acceptance of human wisdom, nor for the sake of virtue or any part of philosophy, but by the endless methods of sorcerers. The same author, in his letter to the mentioned Egyptian, presents these words as if sharing true and secret knowledge with a prophet. Is it reasonable to expect to learn about these matters from him? He indeed asks this, feeling puzzled and speaking.

Book 5, Section 10

Indeed, I am amazed at how those who are better call upon those who are worse, believing it is just to demand that the one who does wrong should act as they are ordered. When there is nothing pure, they would not obey if called to something honorable, but they do not hesitate to lead others into unlawful pleasures.

² They say that those who give advice should be free from living beings, so they are not harmed by the vapors from bodies. Yet, they themselves are most attracted to the vapors from sacrifices. It is said that the overseer should be untouched by the dead, but many of the divine rituals are performed using dead animals.

³ It is much more unreasonable not to address a spirit, if it exists, or the soul of a dead person, but instead to address the king of the sun, the moon, or any of the things in the sky. They bring a human as a servant to frighten those who happen to be there, hoping that they will speak the truth.

⁴ For someone to say that they will bring down the sky, reveal the hidden things of Isis, show the secret in Abydos, raise the heavy one, and scatter the limbs of Osiris to Typhon—what an extreme threat that is to the one making the threat! These are things that neither he knows nor can do, leaving behind such an empty fear and falsehood for those who are afraid, like foolish children.

⁵ Indeed, Chairemon the scribe writes these things, as they are also rumored among the Egyptians. They say that these and similar things are very forceful.

⁶ But what meaning do these prayers have when they say that they come from the mud, sit on the lotus, sail on a ship, change forms every hour, and transform according to the zodiac? They claim to see these things, not realizing that their own feelings are what shape their visions.

⁷ But if these things are said symbolically, as symbols of those powers, let them explain the meaning of the symbols. It is clear that if it were the passion of the sun, just like during eclipses, it would look the same to everyone who gazes at it.

⁸ But what about the names of the unmarked things and the foreign names before each person's own? If the sound refers to what is meant, the same meaning can be clearly expressed, even if there is any kind of name.

⁹ For he was not really Egyptian by birth. And even if he were Egyptian, he did not use the Egyptian language at all, nor did he use human speech in general. Either all these were tricks and disguises related to the things said about the divine events happening to us, or we have misunderstood the opposite ideas about the divine, or it truly is as it appears.

¹⁰ After saying this, he questions the Egyptian again, saying, "But if some are without passion and others are full of passion, those who claim that through these things phalluses stand and create shameful words, the calls of the gods will be in vain, their invitations will be empty, and there will be quarrels of anger, and outbursts, and even more so the so-called necessities of the gods. For being without passion is unforced, unpressured, and uncoerced."

¹¹ And again he continues, "Their wisdom is in vain when it comes to finding a thief, buying land, marriage, if it happens, or trade, as it troubles the divine mind. But if it is not present, those who are together speak most truly about other things, but when it comes to happiness, there is nothing safe or guaranteed. Therefore, there are neither gods nor good spirits, but rather that so-called deceiver."

¹² Let these things be said up to this point, and let this be the beginning of Porphyry's writing. Indeed, the teachers of this wicked sorcery are the first noble gods who established it. For how could humans know these things unless the spirits themselves spoke about themselves and revealed the bonds they had with one another?

¹³ Let us not consider this speech to be ours. For we agree on none of these things; we neither claim to know them nor wish to know them. But to prove the strangeness of these matters and for our common defense against them, let the wise one among us be a witness, knowing everything accurately and explaining it well. Therefore, he himself says these things in the stated collection of arguments.

Book 5, Section 11

They not only revealed their own way of life and the other things mentioned, but they also take pleasure in and boast about those who serve them. Indeed, they are forced to decide whom to sacrifice to, from which days to turn away, and what kind of offerings to make. They also show what forms they take, in what places they spend their time, and in general, there is nothing that people have honored without learning it from them. Among many things that represent them, we will mention a few, so that we do not leave the speech without evidence. XII. As for the statues, they themselves explain how they should be made and from what material, showing the way of Hecate.

Book 5, Section 12

But you should make a perfect statue that is purified. Create it from wild wood, and adorn it with delicate living creatures. Grind together mixtures of myrrh and storax, and with those living creatures, make offerings under the waxing moon, while you yourself pray this prayer.

² Then he offered a prayer and taught how many offerings should be received. "As many forms as I have, I command you to use that many living creatures, and to perform these things very carefully. Should I make a place for the self-born house of the laurel? While praying to that statue, I will make such requests through dreams." And again, at another time, he gave a similar statue of hers.

Book 5, Section 13

And about the shapes, they have shared how they imagine them, from which the statues were created in this way. Indeed, Sarapis says, seeing Pan, "A bright light shines down in the god's house; for a great god has come and spoken. He saw my unblemished strength, a shining flame of fire, and a lock of hair from the head of a young man with joyful features, surrounded by sacred curls of a beard."

² And Pan taught a hymn about himself, saying this: "I pray as a mortal born to the god Pan, with two horns, two feet, goat-like, and enjoying life." And the following things.

³ And Hecate says this about herself: "You already do everything for me; in the statue, the form of Demeter with beautiful harvests is present, dressed in soft robes, and wearing golden sandals on her feet. Around her, long dragons are coiled, moving with pure footprints, reaching from her head to her feet, spiraling around her in a beautiful way. And the material, she says, is either from Parian stone or from fine ivory."

Book 5, Section 14

They show in many places what the gods say, pointing out that each one knows the nature of their origin, to be, if one must say so, the greatest magicians and the greatest genealogists. And again, in oracles, it is said that Apollo spoke: "To call Hermes and Helios at the same time, on the day of Helios, and when the Moon is present, and also Cronus and Rhea, and then Aphrodite, with unchanging calls, which the best of the magicians found, the king of the seven-sounding ones, whom everyone knows." You say that Ostanis brought this forth, and that each god always calls out seven times.

² And he also presents these things: "There are symbols of Hecate, a three-colored spirit made of white, black, and red, taking the form of Hecate holding a whip, a torch, and a sword, around which a dragon is coiled. The stars of the sky are scattered before the doors. For the gods themselves have revealed these things through them. And Pan says: 'Drive these things away; the spirit remains in the fire, placed in the fiery color. Let it be white and black, and let the fire shine like burning coal, the fear of the lower dogs, the terrible voice of Hecate. Let there be a torch in the hands, and the sword for punishment, and the dragon wrapped around, holding the maiden tightly, placing a terrible crown around her head, the fiery key together with the power of the spirits; the sound of the whip is great.'"

³ Through these and similar things, the noble philosopher of the Greeks, the wonderful theologian, the initiate of the hidden mysteries, shows that philosophy based on words contains the secret teachings of the gods, revealing directly the truly wicked and demonic power that sets traps for humans. For what could be beneficial for humans from such crafty magic?

⁴ What could be pleasing to the gods in the curiosity about lifeless statues? What kind of divine power could the shapes of such forms have? Shouldn't it be better to seek wisdom rather than practice magic and chase after the endless? It would be wiser to guide others on the path of virtue and philosophy toward a happy and blessed life that is self-sufficient. And he, strengthening his own argument, adds these things to what has been said.

Book 5, Section 15

That Hecate loves the symbols of the characters is shown through what humans cherish. Who among mortals has not been drawn to grasp the characters of shining bronze, gold, and silver? And who does not love these things, standing above and bringing together the many kinds of lights?

² Not only has she shown that the characters are friends, but also, as we mentioned, they describe themselves and are like an image in a sacred space. For they are not meant to be merely on the earth; instead, they have been made sacred while on the earth. The sacred image carries the god, and when it is lifted, the divine power is released upon the earth.

³ Because of all these things, I believe it is clear that some earthly and passionate demons have ensnared the gods themselves. Therefore, I think it is wise to turn away from them.

⁴ You see, indeed, that to keep them in certain earthly places, there are types and such characters that are said to come from magic. If there is truly something divine, it should not be found anywhere else but in the pure thoughts of the soul. In that thought, cleansed of all dirt and every stain, it is adorned with wisdom, justice, and other virtues.

⁵ For in a person's soul, as if in a truly sacred place, if such things were prepared, the presence of the divine spirit would naturally come. There would no longer be a need for the harmful tricks of magic for those souls that are ready to receive the divine through good and godly actions.

⁶ Therefore, it is clear that some are caught up in all these things, existing as passionate and body-loving demons, which we have just discussed. But listen further to what the same author says about the abandoned oracles, which he presents in the same manner.

Book 5, Section 16

"About Pytho, the Clarian prophetess of Phoebus will speak our words with sacred oracles. Countless prophecies from the earth have burst forth from its depths, along with springs and swirling mists. Some were received by the earth itself, opening wide, while many were lost over countless ages. But under the shining sun, there is divine water in the caves of Didyma, and the Pythian shrine lies beneath the slopes of Parnassus, along with the rocky Claria, the rough mouth of Phoebus's oracle. It is said that there is no longer a clear voice to be heard from Pytho. For already, having been dimmed over a long time, the key to the oracle's silence has been cast away. But do as is customary for the prophetic offerings to Phoebus."

² At this time, it is also fitting to add the writings of Plutarch, from which the work 'On the Abandoned Oracles' has been created. But when Ammonius had finished speaking, I said, "Let us discuss the oracle, Cleombrotus. For the ancient reputation of that divinity is great, but it seems that the present one is fading away."

³ While Cleombrotus was silent and looking down, Demetrius said that there was no need to ask about or worry over the oracle there, since the prophecies here are fading. Instead, he noticed that there was an eclipse affecting all but one or two, and suggested that we should consider together why this has happened.

⁴ "For what else is there to say? The land of Boeotia, once rich in oracles, now lacks guidance, like streams that have dried up. The area has suffered greatly from a lack of prophecy. Now, Boeotia offers nothing but around Lebadeia to those who seek to draw from divination. As for the others, some are silent, while others are completely deserted." Furthermore, he says that their spirits are dying.

Book 5, Section 17

He said that to stand by the oracles is not to be with gods, who are far removed from earthly matters, but rather with spirits that serve the gods, and I do not think this is a bad thing. However, for these spirits, taking only a small amount from the verses of Empedocles to create errors, misfortunes, and divine illusions, and to suggest deaths just like those of humans, I consider this to be bolder and more barbaric.

² Then Cleombrotus asked Philip who he was and where the young man was from. After learning his name and city, he said, "O descendant of Heracles, we are not hidden from you, even though our words may seem strange. However, it is not possible to talk about great matters without using grand beginnings to lead to what is likely according to belief."

³ But you have forgotten yourself by taking away what you give. You agree that there are spirits, but you do not believe they should be lesser beings or mortals, and so you no longer protect the spirits. How do they differ from the gods if they possess the immortal essence and the qualities of being unfeeling and without fault?

⁴ While Heracles was silently thinking about something, Philip said, "O Heracles, it was not only Empedocles who left behind lesser spirits, but also Plato, Xenocrates, and Chrysippus. Furthermore, Democritus, wishing to encounter the clear images of idols, clearly understood that there were other troubling and wicked choices and desires."

⁵ I have heard a speech about the death of such men from a man who is neither foolish nor boastful. It was from Aemilianus, the speaker, of whom some of us have heard, that his father was Epitheres, a fellow citizen of mine and a teacher of grammar.

⁶ He once said that more ships were sailing into Italy, carrying trade goods and many passengers. But by evening, near the Echinades islands, the wind died down, and the ship drifted close to Paxos. Most of the crew were awake and drinking, since they had already eaten dinner. Suddenly, a voice was heard from the island of Paxos, calling out to someone named Thamnous, which caused amazement. Thamnous was an Egyptian pilot, not well known to many of those on board. When he was called twice, he remained silent, but on the third call, he listened to the one calling him. And when he raised his voice to speak, he announced that Pan the great had died.

⁷ When Epitheres heard this, he said that everyone was amazed, and they began to debate among themselves whether it would be better to follow the orders given or not to interfere. If they were to find out about Thamnous, whether he was alive, they should sail quietly. When calm and peaceful conditions returned to the area, they could share what they had heard.

⁸ When it happened at Palodes, with neither wind nor waves, seeing Thamnous from the stern, he said, just as he had heard, that Pan the great had died. But he did not stop there; instead, a great sigh arose, not from one person, but from many, mixed with amazement.

⁹ As many people were present, the news quickly spread in Rome, and Thamnous was summoned by Tiberius Caesar. Tiberius believed the news so much that he began to ask questions and search for information about Pan. Those around him, who loved to talk, often guessed that Pan was the son of Hermes and Penelope.

¹⁰ Philip had some witnesses among those present who had heard from the old Aemilianus. Demetrius said that there are many deserted islands around the British Isles, some of which are named after spirits and heroes. He himself sailed there to learn about history and to see the king's procession to the nearest of the deserted islands, which had few people living on them, but all were sacred and uninhabited, belonging to the Britons.

¹¹ When he arrived recently, there was great confusion about the weather, and many signs appeared. Strong winds blew, and storms came. After he calmed down, the islanders said that there had been an eclipse of something greater. They explained that just as a lamp, when lit, poses no danger, but when it goes out, it brings sadness to many, so great souls have pleasant and carefree moments when they shine. However, when they are extinguished or destroyed, it often brings storms and hail, and sometimes they poison the air with diseases.

¹² There is indeed one island there where Cronus is kept imprisoned, sleeping under the guard of Briarus. They have created a bond to keep him asleep. Many spirits surround him, serving and attending to him.

¹³ So much for Plutarch. It is important to note the time when he mentions the death of the spirit. This was during the time of Tiberius, when our savior drove out all kinds of spirits that were mixed with humans, as recorded in the lives of people. Some of the spirits even knelt before him, begging not to be handed over to the one who remains in Tartarus.

¹⁴ So you have the time of the removal of the spirits, which has not been recorded at any other time in history. Just as the end of human sacrifice among the nations did not happen at any other time than after the gospel message had been preached to all people. These matters, then, should be examined by us from the more recent history.

Book 5, Section 18

But since what has been said is not known to everyone, I think it is good to move on to what is clear to all who love learning. We should examine the oldest oracles sung by all the Greeks, as well as those shared in city gatherings among those who come together for education.

² Therefore, let us take up the old histories and see how the Pythian oracle spoke to the Athenians who were suffering from a plague because of the death of Androgeos. All the Athenians were afflicted by the plague due to the death of one man, and they believed they deserved help from the gods.

³ What, then, does the savior and god advise them? Perhaps someone might think they should take care of justice and kindness, and other virtues, or repent for their wrongdoing and perform some holy and pious acts, so that they might be forgiven by the gods. But none of this happened.

⁴ For what could please those wonderful gods, especially the very harsh spirits? Again, they say that the same cruel, brutal, and inhuman acts bring plague upon plague and death upon death.

⁵ So, Apollo commands them to send seven young boys and an equal number of young girls from their own children every year, instead of just one, fourteen innocent and untroubled ones. This was not just a one-time event, but they were to be sent every year to Crete to Minos. Thus, even up to the time of Socrates, more than five hundred years later, this terrible and most inhuman tribute was remembered by the Athenians. This was indeed what led Socrates to postpone his death.

⁶ So, one of the young men, with a brave thought, skillfully puts together the oracle and questions it, having created a trap in his own writing, not even listening to his own voice. But do not listen to my words, as the oracle poet seems to be responding in this way.

Book 5, Section 19

Why then did the Athenians, after killing Androgeos and suffering from a plague because of it, say they would regret their actions? Or, if they did not say this, was it not right to suggest that they should regret it, rather than face an end to the plague and famine? If they send both male and female bodies from their lot to Minos, sending them to the bright sea as a payment for their unjust deeds, then the god will be favorable.

² Let me allow you to be upset because Androgeos died in Athens, while so many others everywhere and always rest in peace. And yet, knowing that Minos was powerful at that time and could achieve great things, all of Greece honored him. He was very just and a good lawmaker. Homer believed he was a close friend of great Zeus, and after his death, he became a judge in Hades. Because of this, you are bringing these cases on his behalf.

³ But I will set all this aside. You command that the killers, who are not at fault, be sent to die, and this is against the man you were about to reveal as a common judge of people, who did not even want to judge this case. And yet, how many just people do you think the gods are sending to the Athenians instead of these crows, whom you unjustly killed, Androgeos?

⁴ This same writer, who has become the cause of death for those affected by the uncertainty of Apollo's oracles, takes up the story of the Heracleidae and speaks clearly like this.

Book 5, Section 20

If I somehow remembered this speech, let me go through the events concerning the Heracleidae. For they, eager to invade the Peloponnese through the Isthmus, were caught. Therefore, Aristomachus, the son of Aridaios, comes to hear from you about the journey, since Aridaios had died during the invasion; he desired this just as his father did.

² And you say to him, "The gods show you victory through the narrow paths," and he who was eager to fight at the Isthmus meets his end in battle. The son of this man, the unfortunate Timenos, has come as the third from the unfortunate ones. You give him the same instructions as you did to his father, Aristomachus. He, just like his father, said to you that he died during the invasion after being persuaded.

³ And you said, "I do not speak of the narrow path on land, but of the wide-bellied one, since it was difficult to talk about the sea." That one was going by the sea, creating the impression that they were entering by land, and he camped between Naupatos and Typaios. He served as a helper to the horseman Karnos, the Aetolian, who, it seems to me, was doing something important. When a disease broke out nearby and Aristodemus died, they retreated again, and Timenos, upon arriving, blamed the failure. He heard that he had brought upon himself the punishment of the divine messenger, and the offering for the prayer to Apollo Carneios was the message from the oracle: "Having killed our messenger, you have brought upon yourself punishment."

⁴ What then does Timenos say? What must he do? And how could I appease you? "Pray to Carneios to complete the offering to Apollo." O most wretched and shameless seer! Do you not know that the one who hears about the narrow path will miss it? Yet, knowing this, you still act, and then you overlook the one who is missing it.

⁵ But the narrow path is uncertain. If you seem to be the cause of victory when you win, you are not blamed for defeat when you lose, and you will have to escape to the wide-bellied one. However, a man came to the wide-bellied one and did not succeed. Karnos is found again as a messenger, but he is dying.

⁶ And yet, how is it, most powerful one, that you ordered others to carry Karnos as a god, but not for yourself? It is necessary to save Karnos while he is still alive, yet you both let him be and, as he was dying, you brought a Homeric disease upon him in the crowd and offered prayers for the disease?

⁷ If praying achieves nothing, then you might find some other remedy with your wisdom, and you would never stop, with some asking questions and you thinking, so that you could be both victorious and unseen by the defeated. For passion and desire are enough to lead people astray, so that even if they were sacrificed a thousand times, they would not believe you could do it.

⁸ It is worth adding what is about Croesus. This man ruled Lydia, having received the throne from ancient times. Then, hoping to achieve something greater than his ancestors, he decided to honor the gods. After trying, he chose Apollo at Delphi above all others. He adorned the temple with golden offerings, including many vessels and bricks, and in a short time made it the richest in all the land, leaving nothing lacking for sacrifices because of his generosity.

⁹ Since so much had been dedicated to the god, the Lydian, encouraged by acts of piety, plans to march against the Persians, hoping to greatly increase his power with the help of the god.

¹⁰ What then is the wonderful oracle? It is the one at Delphi, the Pythian, the beloved, who prepares for the suppliant, the pious, the refugee, not to gain a foreign power, but also to lose his own. It seems to me that he does this unwillingly, and more out of ignorance of what will happen. (For the god, knowing the future, since he was not truly a god, nor was there any human power greater, cleverly arranged the oracle.) And in a single night, he says, "Crossing Halys, Croesus will destroy a great power," which had come down from his ancestors to the pious ruler of Lydia, a great land with a long history. He will ruin it, giving back to the god-loving the fruit of his great concern for him. On this, the writer seems to be unreasonably angry; listen.

Book 5, Section 21

It seems that truly, as much as is worth knowing about sand, it is better not to know anything at all. For the smell of the strong-shelled turtle coming from the sand is worth knowing, but it is not true in itself. Still, it resembles the boastful and shameless person who raises his brow over empty knowledge, and it persuades the Lydian man, Croesus, not to look down on it.

² He was about to ask you, after a little while, if he should march against the Persians and to make a plan about his own madness and greed. You did not hesitate to say to him, "Crossing Halys, he will destroy a great power."

³ That is good, that you did not care if he would suffer something strange, being led by a questionable oracle against a foreign power, nor if some bitter people praised you for silencing a madman and called you as if you had given up a balanced opinion, so that the Lydian would hesitate and think. But "to destroy," as it is understood among the Greeks, does not mean to lose his own power, but to gain possession of someone else's.

⁴ For he is either half-Median or half-Persian, being the son of a tyrant on his mother's side and from a common family on his father's side. In the riddle, he reveals the blinding muse, as well as the prophetic muse, if indeed the seer does not understand the riddle.

⁵ If he was not acting out of ignorance, but out of luxury and trickery, alas, what divine games these are! But if it is not even this, but rather that it had to happen this way, then this is the most impious of clever words. Still, if it had to happen this way, why do you, poor soul, sit at Delphi singing empty and vain things? What benefit is this to us? Why are we madly chasing you from all over the earth? And what does it mean to you?

⁶ Such are the bold words of Oinomaos, not free from the bitterness of the Cynics. For he does not want the oracles admired by all the Greeks to come from a god, but rather from the tricks and cleverness of deceivers among men, designed to fool the masses. Since we have mentioned this once, nothing would stop us from listening to the accusations of others, especially since he himself claims to have been deceived by the Clarian Apollo, writing in this way.

Book 5, Section 22

But indeed, we should also take part in the comedy and not pretend that we have not fallen into the common confusion. If we are to drink, we have also learned about wisdom from Asia, O Clarius, from you. There is a garden of Heracles in Trichinos, full of all kinds of plants, gathering everything at once, and it does not lack anything, being constantly filled with water.

² Then I, hearing this, was also inspired by Heracles. While the garden of Heracles was blooming, I dreamed of some Hesiod as I sweated through Trichinos, and once again I found life easy because of the flourishing garden.

³ Then, when I was asked whether the gods gather together with me, one of the many said, swearing by those gods who gather, that indeed I heard this from you, given to Callistratus by some merchant from Pontus.

⁴ So when I heard this, how do you think I felt? I was angry, since I was being deprived of virtue by him. But even though I felt bad, I watched the merchant to see if he was also being helped by Heracles. It seemed that he too was suffering some pain, hoping for profits and expecting a sweet life from those profits.

⁵ As the merchant seemed to be doing well, I no longer accepted the oracle or Heracles. Instead, I turned away from sharing in the same things, focusing on their current struggles and the hopes they had in mind.

⁶ But neither did the thief seem to be without the oracle, nor the soldier, nor the man in love, nor the woman in love, nor the flatterer, nor the speaker, nor the informer. For each one desires to face the pain, but hopes for the joy.

⁷ After saying these things, he immediately adds that after asking a second time and a third, knowing nothing, he recognized the remarkable ones. However, only the darkness of uncertainty was hiding their ignorance. And he says, therefore,

Book 5, Section 23

"Since the matters of my trade were already underway, and it was necessary for a man to guide me toward wisdom, this one seemed to be at a loss. I needed you to be a guide in this, and in those simple matters for the Achaeans, he will incur a debt, and what has been determined will not be small."

² "What do you say? If someone wanted to become a sculptor or a painter and was looking for teachers, would it be enough for me to hear about those simple things, or would I not be angry with the one speaking?"

³ "But perhaps you are not able to think about this, for human customs are full of uncertainty. But where it is better for me to go from Colophon, it is no longer hidden from the god—a man sending a stone from a long sling to strike down geese with unyielding shots. But who will tell me about those unyielding shots against the geese? And who will tell me about the long sling? Am I Amphilochus, or the man from Dodona, or you? If I were in Delphi, would you not somehow strangle me as I left with the long sling and the incomprehensible poem?"

⁴ "But indeed, since these things have been said, it is time to look again from above at how the same person examines the oldest oracles at Delphi, which are especially admired in Greek histories."

⁵ "There was a large Persian army armed against the Athenians, and they had no hope of salvation except for the god alone. They were calling on him, not knowing who their ancestral helper was; this was Apollo at Delphi."

⁶ "What then is this wonderful thing? Is he perhaps fighting against his own people? Does he remember the sacrifices and the smoke, and the things they usually offered to him in their hecatombs? Not at all. But what does he say? To flee and to prepare a wooden wall, showing that he believes they will be saved only through it when the city is burned."

⁷ "O great help of the god! Then he pretends to prophesy not only about the siege of the other buildings around the city but also about those dedicated to the gods. This is different from the oracle, as everyone expects it from the enemy's attack." Indeed, the author is playfully criticizing the Greek deception in these matters.

Book 5, Section 24

"But such things may perhaps be the work of some willing fool; those matters should rather lead to judgment about the Athenians. And indeed, let it be said about the Athenians: 'O miserable ones, why do you sit still? Flee the city to the ends of the earth; for neither does the head remain firm nor the body, nor hands, nor young feet. For fire and fierce Ares will strike it down, chasing with a whistling chariot. Many towers will perish here, and many temples of the immortals will be destroyed by raging fire; perhaps now they stand, sweating and trembling with fear.'"

² "Behold, then, the saying about the Athenians. Is there perhaps some prophetic word in it? For you are encouraging him so much, by Zeus, that someone might say so. But if you add what is needed to help them, it will be known. Behold, let it be said: Pallas cannot appease Zeus of Olympus, though she begs with many words... But I will speak this again to you, having drawn near like iron; for the others are being caught... Zeus will grant a wooden wall to the third-born, wide-thundering, to make it unbreakable, which will benefit you and your children; and do not let yourself remain in horse-fighting and going forth, turning your back; yet there will still be a time when you will face it. O divine Salamis, you will destroy the children of women, either from Demeter being scattered or coming together."

³ "Zeus of Zeus is worthy of you, O son of Zeus, but also Athena of Athena, O sister of Athena. This eagerness and the opposing eagerness are fitting for the father and daughter, but even more so for the gods. This Olympian, who is to take this one city from the weak, unless he brings the endless army from the Susians to it, is indeed great and holds the entire Cyrean land. At the same time, he is persuasive, moving so many nations from Asia to Europe, yet in Europe, he is unable to overturn even one city."

⁴ "And you, bold one, who is also reckless in nothing, do you not lament? People would say that Pallas cannot appease Zeus of Olympus for them; or did Zeus not care for humans, but for stones and wood? And then you saved the humans, while he burned the buildings with extra fire? For at that time, he did not have a thunderbolt."

⁵ "Or perhaps we are bold and reckless, not letting you speak so foolishly. How is it, O seer, that you know the divine Salamis will destroy the children of women, but you do not know whether it is because Demeter is scattered or coming together? How is it that you do not know this either, that the children of women could belong to both their own and their enemies, noticing the poor craftsmanship?"

⁶ "But it is necessary to wait for what will happen, for something must come from these events. The divine Salamis would not be diminished, calling out as if to home. The upcoming battle of the ships, whether from Demeter being scattered or coming together, is wrapped in serious poetry, so that it becomes a prophecy that is not easily understood by cleverness and is not immediately clear, that a naval battle does not happen in a storm."

⁷ "But now, neither is the tragedy hidden, nor are the gods surrounding it, one praying and the other not bowing down. They are useful for what is to come and for the strange turn of the war, one for those being saved and the other for those being lost. For if they are saved, look, the prayers of Pallas are remembered, enough to bend the anger of Zeus. And if not, this is also not impossible for the seer. For Pallas cannot appease Zeus. Regarding the mixed fortunes, the craftsman has woven the story, so that indeed, Zeus fulfills his own intention but does not disregard the prayer of his daughter."

⁸ "That many towers are destroyed, if they fell with wooden beams and not with iron and fire, might be a lie, especially when they acted with wooden beams, as you know, so many. But I, he says, have found the wooden wall, the only one that cannot be broken. It is advice from you, but not a prophecy, not suitable for this. To flee, neither to stay, nor to be ashamed of being bad."

⁹ "Certainly, the one who solves that riddle is not worse for you to see, because the city of the Athenians was a reason for the Persian on the way, and the whole movement happened first and foremost for this. Since I, the seer, noticing this, would also tell the Athenian, not just the Lydian, to flee, turning his back. For there will still be a counterattack; much cavalry and infantry are approaching."

¹⁰ "That they are with ships, but not on land; for it would be ridiculous for those with a navy and living at sea not to have prepared supplies and to gather all the food they had to save themselves, giving the land to those who wanted it."

¹¹ "These things are about the Athenians; but the matters concerning the Spartans are very weak and laughable. For he says that the whole city will be besieged, or the king will mourn for the lost. This was something everyone could think about, that either this or that would happen."

¹² "But surely it was not a prophecy from a god to be uncertain about the future. It was necessary for a savior of the Greeks to appear in time, especially to bring victory over the enemies and barbarians to the Greeks as if they were dear friends. And if this was not possible, then at least to prevent them from suffering or being captured. But he does not know even this, nor how to protect them from the consequences of defeat. Therefore, listen to what the argument says about these matters."

Book 5, Section 25

"But you will say that it is not right to advise the Spartans in the same way. You speak the truth. For you do not know, oh wise one, how the situation in Sparta will unfold like that in Attica. Therefore, you are afraid that if you tell them to flee, some will escape while others will not make it."

² "Since you had to say something, you spoke to the Spartans, 'Oh citizens of spacious Sparta, either the great city will be destroyed by the men of Persia, or it will not. But from the lineage of Heracles, the king will mourn for the fallen land of Lacedaimon.'"

³ "Again, we have the most uncertain connection. But let's set it aside, so we don't seem burdensome and confused by jumping on the same thing twice. Instead, let's focus on the other matters."

⁴ "Everyone was looking to you in such great danger, and you were both a messenger of what was to come and an advisor to the poets. They trusted you, but you made them seem foolish. The situation was such that it was easy to lead and confuse the less skilled, not only to the Delphic and Dodonian oracles, but also to the bird and flour divinations and the ventriloquists."

⁵ "The gods were not only trustworthy at that time, but also the heifers, the crows, and the dreams that come in sleep. It is clear that they would not have accepted both options or one over the other, nor would they have chosen the greater instead of the lesser. The lesser would mean the king falling instead of everyone else."

⁶ "After the city falls, there is no escape for anyone, not even for him. But if he were to go somewhere else, something unusual might happen. So, the plan is to send the king to fight while they stay at home, waiting safely away from danger."

⁷ "Therefore, after a short time, destruction was clear for the one standing against the endless crowd, while Sparta had delays caused by fear and unusual hopes. Still, it was no less impossible to escape, whether one ran away or was captured."

⁸ "What then? Was it not said by Zeus that if the king dies, the city will be saved, but that either he alone will be lost or the whole city? This is beyond anyone's control, whether he is alone or not. This is the result of madness and foolishness. But that is that. It is also important to mention what the people of Cnidus prayed for again, asking for help from the god."

Book 5, Section 26

"But the people of Cnidus suffered because of this, just like when Harpagus campaigned against them. They tried to cut off the isthmus there and turn the city into an island. At first, they were in control of the work, but when they faced resistance, they quickly used it as an excuse to stop."

² "But you said to them, 'Do not fortify the isthmus or dig it up; for Zeus has made it an island, if he wanted to.' And the fools were convinced and, turning away, surrendered themselves to Harpagus. This was an easy task. Since there was no safe escape by digging, you stopped that. But when you do not command them to continue the work, you promise them an escape."

³ "But you add that it is not better for them not to dig, but that it does not seem to Zeus that it is an island. In the warning, both sides were balanced, but in the encouragement, the chance to escape was favored. Therefore, it was safe for the wise one to change the situation. Thus, without saying anything about why they had come, you sent them away thinking they had heard something."

⁴ "I believe that this proves the inactivity of both those who are using and those who are being used, and that there is nothing true or divine to be found in what is being shown."

⁵ "But you would see the bad nature of either the wicked spirits or the men pretending to give prophecies if you learn that those who are using them were stirred up against each other, when they should be champions of peace and friendship."

⁶ "Sometimes, the one at Delphi stirs up the Spartans as if they were his own people and friends against the Messenians, and at other times, he uses the Messenians against the Spartans, if these people try to appease the spirits through human sacrifice. Also, pay attention to what is said about these matters."

Book 5, Section 27

"Wisdom will judge such matters in relation to prophecy, and it will not allow it to speak randomly, since it has considered all the tests and is applying the rules. It will not let the Pythia speak in vain, either for these people or for the Spartans regarding the Messenians and the land, which the Messenians held by deceiving the Spartans. Phoebus commands not only to bring forth acts of battle, but also that the Messenian people keep the land through trickery, and that someone will be caught by the same methods as before."

² "It commands us to remember peace more, along with moderation and self-sufficiency. But those who follow Lycurgus's laws fell into greed and empty glory, so that they would not seem to be left behind in the battle against the Messenians, thinking they were raised under strong laws."

³ "But if they were truly raised under such strong laws, they would have been strong in the few things, and they would not have needed anything for battle, nor for weapons and other dangers."

⁴ "These things are for the Spartans against the Messenians, and again for the Messenians against the Spartans. For you, too, the oracle speaks against the Spartans: 'You call the maiden Aipytiada, whom you should give to the lower gods, and you might save Ithome.'"

⁵ "For I do not accept the offerings, because the priesthood from the lineage of Aipytus was not pure, and therefore it was incomplete for the Messenians. Such a person can cause trouble. These are the matters from ancient history. There are many similar things for us to see, from ancient times up to our own, where those in power sometimes lead to unsuccessful wars through the advice of oracles, sometimes fail because of unclear messages, and at other times are misled by the very deceptions of the words."

⁶ "What can we say about times of great disasters, whether in battles against enemies or in dangers from physical illnesses? They received no help or support from the established gods."

⁷ "Such things always slip away from them, just as those from ancient history show."

⁸ "But since one of the most famous oracles among the Greeks was the one from Pythia to Lycurgus, when Pythia called out to him as he approached that sacred place: 'You have come, O Lycurgus, to my rich temple, dear to Zeus and all the Olympian gods. I will either prophesy to you as a god or as a man; but I hope for a prophecy from a god even more. O Lycurgus, you come seeking good order. I will give you…' and the things that go along with this. Let us also consider what the revealed proof has shown. It is written like this."

Book 5, Section 28

"But you, as the leader and guide of Tyrtaeus, once came saying that you had arrived from hollow Laconia, dear to Zeus and all the Olympian gods. You were to ask whether he would prophesy as a god or as a man, but I hope even more for a prophecy from a god, since he came seeking good order."

² "And how, if he is a god, did the friend of Zeus and all the Olympians not know the political law? But since such things might be found even without a god, which have been shown by the most divine voice of a goddess, come, let us hear the divine voice and what you taught Lycurgus: 'You come seeking good order; but I will give you…'"

³ "Give, I would say; for I have promised no one such a gift. As long as you will prophesy with promises and oaths, and give justice to one another and to foreigners, honoring the elders with purity and cleanliness, and paying respect to the Tyndarids, Menelaus, and the other immortal heroes who dwell in Laconia, may loud-voiced Zeus protect you."

⁴ "Apollon, of divine teaching and prophecy; and this journey is not far, neither to Delphi from the Peloponnesus, nor even to the Hyperboreans themselves, from where they say the dwellers of Delos arrived according to the oracle of another seer, offering sacrifices and serving as priests."

⁵ "It seems to me that this Lycurgus has not held any position of authority, nor has he ever been among the elders, from whom he could have heard better and wiser teachings."

⁶ "Perhaps there will be some additions if Lycurgus wants to say something clear. If some lead well and others follow, I will no longer say that this is the same position of authority. I will encourage Lycurgus not to give up if he can learn a political lesson from you and go to Sparta."

⁷ "There are two paths that are mostly far apart from each other: one leads to a noble home of freedom, while the other leads to a miserable house of slavery. The first can be crossed through the sacred unity of courage, which you indeed guide the people to follow. The second leads through hateful conflict and weak destruction."

⁸ "You often urge people to be brave; we have heard this many times from the cowardly, but also from those who agree with one another. This is not only said by the wise, but even by those who create conflict. So, we release you from this promise."

⁹ "And yet, as a seer, you have not recognized us many times, even when many have received this gift. This includes neither those who ate from the laurel nor those who drank the water of Castalia, nor those who ever raised their brow in wisdom."

¹⁰ "Then speak about bravery, speak about freedom, speak about unity. How do these come to a city? And do not lead us, who do not understand, to believe in this path; instead, lead yourself. For it is beautiful, but it is hard and frightening for us."

Book 5, Section 29

"But you are also ready to talk about marriage. Take the horse from Argos, the one with the blue mane."

² "But when it comes to children, no one honors you, even though you are valuable. The wolf will give birth, and it will produce a deadly offspring."

³ "But when it comes to colonies, send forth golden men, a diverse group of people. They carry bronze on their shoulders and iron in their hands."

⁴ "But when it comes to empty glory, the Pelasgian land is better than all the earth. There are Thracian horses, Spartan women, and men who drink the water of beautiful Arethusa."

⁵ "And it seems to me that you are no better than those called wonder-workers, nor than the other tricksters and sophists. I did not marvel at any of them, even if they are paid for their work, but I do marvel at you, of the god and of men, if you are paid for your work."

⁶ "Then Socrates did not answer the one who asked whether he would marry or not, but said that he would regret either choice. To the one wanting children, he did not say that he would do well, since he allowed him to try, and if he had children, he would use them best. He made no argument about this, but only thought about how it might happen for him."

⁷ "But when it was known that another was away because things were going badly for him at home, he said it was not right for him to make plans. He was leaving his homeland behind and taking his ignorance with him, which would make him unpleasant to those there just as to those here. He was not only asked when he was questioned, but also went willingly to such gatherings."

Book 5, Section 30

"Twenty for the dog and twenty for later use, to be used in the shady house of Dionysus by a doctor. This is for the Athenians who are troubled by the heat; it is medical, but not prophetic."

² "Come, Erginus, son of Clemenos, you have come seeking a lineage. But still, throw a young crown into the fire for the old man. Living with a young man, if he desires children, is not a matter of prophecy, but of understanding nature. But desire leads the foolish astray."

Book 5, Section 31

"Therefore, I advise you to take the staff, unless you are convinced to learn something worthy of the divine school instead of asking shameful questions. Or, to Antiochus the Parian, who has lost his wealth in political nonsense and has come to you in sorrow, he says, 'Antiochus, come to Thasos and live on the famous island.' He would rather hear that, Antiochus, come to your senses and do not grieve in poverty."

² "Or to those who come from Crete, from Phaistos and Tarra, and from the flowing river of Dio, I urge you to complete the purification of Phoebus, bringing good news, so that you may settle in Crete, not under the blessings of ancestral laws, while honoring Zeus."

³ "To hear that is better than madness and folly, and I urge you to complete the purification from madness, bringing good news, so that you may gain wisdom, not under the blessings of ancestral laws, but while honoring the divine. You do not need more purification from Crete, imagining some Orphic or Epimenidean rituals."

Book 5, Section 32

"Why then, most wise one, do you say that Charilaus and Archelaus, the kings of the Spartans, will have much better if they receive half of Apollo's share? And what do you say to Apollo about another matter? For it is not for you, shameless seer, to worry that no one might strike you, since you are so poorly divided among the robbers."

² "Let these things be as they are. But let us also add why Apollo marvels at Archilochus, a man known for his shameful words and secret talk about women, which no sensible man would endure hearing, even in his own poems. And Euripides, who has strayed from the teachings and philosophy of Socrates, is still performing tragedy in the midst of the storm. And Homer, whom the noble Plato drives out of his own city as completely useless, is also seen as a poet who corrupts the youth with his words. On these matters, the previously mentioned god of prophecy mocks in this way."

Book 5, Section 33

"'Immortal and famous is your child, O Telecleides; he will be among men.' And that child was Archilochus."

² "There will be a boy for you, Mnesearchus, whom all men will honor. He will rise to noble fame and will be surrounded by the sweet grace of sacred crowns."

³ "And the boy was Euripides. But Homer received the life of two fates: one of dim suns and the other equal to the immortals, living and dying. Because of this, he was called both blessed and wretched, for he was born to both."

⁴ "But no man says this; rather, it is someone who once reached out, saying that it is not right for him, being a god among men, to be troubled by two fates. Come then, O god, do not overlook us. For we desire, if we are not doing something wrong, some of noble glory, some of sacred crowns, some equal shares with the gods, and some of the same immortality."

⁵ "What then was it that made Archilochus seem worthy of the heavens? Do not be envious, O most loving god, nor of other men on the upward path. What do you command us to do? Or rather, should we focus on the things of Archilochus, if we are to be shown worthy of your hearth?"

⁶ "To bitterly insult those who do not wish to marry us, but to approach the courtesans, since they are much worse than the other wicked ones; not without measure, for this is the language of the gods, just as it is for divine men, like Archilochus."

⁷ "And perhaps there is nothing surprising about this. For because of the greatness in these matters, the household is well-managed, private life is good, and the cities and nations are united in goodwill."

⁸ "Therefore, it did not seem unreasonable to you that he was a servant of the Muses, and his breath was not worthy of entering among you, the gods, nor of your voice, after he had killed a man who spoke."

⁹ "Therefore, the threat against Archias is not unjust, nor is the Pythia acting inappropriately by punishing Archilochus, who has long been dead, and ordering the one who is sacrificed to leave the temple. For he killed a servant of the Muses."

¹⁰ "Therefore, it did not seem to me that you were being disrespectful to the poet. For I remembered both the other poet and the sacred crowns of Euripides. Although I was confused and wanted to understand, it was not about what he was crowned for, but about how these crowns were sacred. It was not that his fame was rising, but rather how good this was."

¹¹ "For he was admired among the crowds, I know, and he pleased the tyrants, and I know this too. He worked not for his own admiration, but for the city of Athens, because it alone produced tragedians."

¹² "If, then, the applause is a good judge and the table in the Acropolis, I have nothing more to say. I see Euripides dining in the Acropolis, while the people of Athens and the Macedonians praise him together. But if there is also a vote from the gods, and this is trustworthy, not less than that of the tyrants or the crowds, then come, tell us for which of the beautiful things you gods have given your vote in favor of Euripides, so that we may hurry and chase the sky under your praises."

¹³ "For indeed, there are now also the Sabines and the Lycomidae ready to perform comedy. But as for tragedy, neither Thyestes nor Oedipus nor that Phineas would stand there now. I think they would not envy anyone who desires the friendship of the gods. They seem to me that if they sensed there was someone like Euripides, a man who became beloved by the gods through his skill, they would have addressed those evils, not aiming for something better, but simply trying to measure up in their performances."

¹⁴ "And if the people before us heard names that carried great weight, they would use them for their journey to the sky. Once they arrived, they would sit in Olympus with the athletes in the grove of Zeus, for this is what the poet at Delphi says."

¹⁵ "Come, let us also look at the question of blessed Homer, which asks the god. Surely it was heavenly and fitting to call upon the god. The god would not have so easily called out the blessed one, and in that blessed saying, he assigned a homeland: 'For your mother is not from your father's land; from the land of Minos, neither near nor far, your fate is to end your life whenever you hear the words of children without understanding, listening to the countless hymns that have been spoken.'"

¹⁶ "For it is terrible, as you are the wisest of men, and even more so of the gods, if the blessed life of someone should not arise from anywhere on this earth, nor where he will lie down after death. I thought that even Homer, being who he is, would approach the god about these matters, and that the god would not reveal more about such unknowns to him than he would to a beetle."

¹⁷ "Just like if a beetle were born and did not live or grow old in that dung, but was caught by a hostile wind and by a harsh beetle spirit, which violently lifted it up and carried it to another land and another dung. Then, when it arrived at Delphi, it asked which was its ancestral dung and which land would receive it after death. These things are indeed about the poets."

Book 5, Section 34

"But since the marvelous god has already honored not only poets, but also speakers and athletes through his own oracles, it seems reasonable to me that he also challenges these things with these words."

² "O, knowing the number of sand grains and the measures of the sea, and understanding the deaf while hearing the silent. Would that you could ignore all such things, but know this: that the skill of the boxer is no different from that of the wrestler, whether it makes the donkeys immortal or not, nor even Cleomedes, the boxer from Astypalaea, who is called 'Cleomedes of Astypalaea, the last of the heroes,' whom they honor with sacrifices as he is no longer mortal."

³ "For what reason, O fatherland of the Greeks, as Plato calls you, have you honored this man? Is it because, with a single blow in the Olympics, he struck his opponent, opened his side, and reached in to take hold of his lung?"

⁴ "Apollon, worthy of honor; or is it not only that, but also because, after being fined four talents, he did not let this defeat him? Instead, under the weight of grief and sadness, he stirred the spirits of the boys in the school by pulling down the pillar that supported the roof. Is it, O god-made man, for these reasons that Cleomedes deserves to be honored by you?"

⁵ "Or will you add this, another proof of his bravery and love for the gods: that indeed, after entering the sacred box and bringing the drink, he became untouchable to those pursuing him, who were trying to pull him out? O Cleomedes, is it not true that the hero is no longer mortal, since you discovered the means to achieve immortality?"

⁶ "Indeed, the gods immediately recognized your goodness and took you away, just like Homer's Ganymede. But while Ganymede was taken for his beauty, you were taken for your strength and the good use of your power."

⁷ "Therefore, I wish, O seer, as I said, that you learned instead of sand and salt how valuable the dense is, so that you might think of the dense as gods and the best of the gods as the wild ones. And if there were any fitting words for a dead wild one, they would be more appropriate than for your dense one: 'the remarkable wild one of the immortals, not Cleomedes, whom you honor with sacrifices as one who is no longer mortal.'"

⁸ "Don't be surprised if even a wild one claims immortality, having been well prepared by the divine. And when you hear this, don't hold back; instead, threaten to throw Cleomedes himself into the abyss and not allow him to rise to the heavens."

⁹ "For he is more deserving of those divine gifts, since he is ready to fight not only for himself, even if he used iron for his straps, but also for the Thasian dense one along with both of them. The gods were angered over this statue and made the land of Thasos barren."

¹⁰ "We believe that this is not a human matter, but the work of the same god. From this, I clearly understood that the dense was indeed a divine practice, while many who thought themselves wise were misled. They abandoned being good and noble and instead followed the ways of the Thasian dense one. The gods did not grant him immortality, as they did to Cleomedes, but they loved him greatly."

¹¹ "Thus, his bronze statue revealed something beyond the images of other people. It was struck down by the enemy who was whipping him, as if there was a divine concern."

¹² "But the foolish Thasians, who were inexperienced in divine matters, became angry and placed a curse on the statue. They sought justice and dared to plunge into the sea."

¹³ "Indeed, the Thasians did not escape. The gods showed how great an evil they dared to commit by sending famine as a messenger of divine justice, who barely taught them the plans of the gods. The most compassionate of the gods sent them help in their own way, saying that they would bring Demeter back to her homeland."

¹⁴ "But the more foolish ones thought they should call back the fleeing people, not knowing any better. For what do the most unkind gods care about humans being called back as much as statues? The earth was not helped at all by this, so that it would stop suffering, unless someone wise and knowledgeable understood that the fallen statue was like a refugee. And it was so. For as soon as it stood up, the earth immediately began to bloom again, and the people honored Demeter from that time on."

¹⁵ "How then are these clear signs of divine honor, showing that it is worthy of worship? For the gods also punished the statue of the athlete who was insulted, and the Locrians praised it for this reason, just like the Thasians, until they were healed by your words. They honored the dishonored one, and then you will ask the earth."

¹⁶ "For the Locrians did not understand divine thoughts until you became their cause. But they threw Euthykles, the pentathlete, into prison, blaming him for accepting gifts in his homeland. Not only that, but even after he died, they insulted him in the statues, until the gods, unable to endure what was happening, allowed them to suffer the greatest famine. They would have been completely destroyed by the famine if help had not come from you, saying that they should honor the men who are honored, whom the gods love no less than those whom the barley producers fatten with cattle, through whom people sometimes sacrifice to you. Perhaps not less, but much more, the wealthy make you happy, so that sometimes the whole city and the whole nation become angry over the wrongs of one or two people."

¹⁷ "As you helped, oh seer, may you be a healer for us instead of just a seer, or even both a seer and a healer, so that it may be like the oracle at Delphi, just as it is a gymnasium. For it was not unusual for the Pythian games to be both Pythian and a gymnasium. With this, I will also add what he says, showing that those who flatter tyrants are the ones the story speaks about."

Book 5, Section 35

"This man, who is coming down to my house, is Cypselus, the son of Aiakides, the famous king of Corinth. So, the tyrants, not only those who plot against them, are Cypselus, who will bring many troubles to Corinth, and Melanippus, who will bring many good things to the city of Gela."

² "How is it that Cypselus is blessed, oh wicked one, and Phalaris is also blessed, being a contemporary of Cypselus? So, it seems that Phalaris and Melanippus are happier than you, divine leaders among men, in their conflicts."

³ "I heard your prophecy about Thalaris, praising and honoring him, that he defeated those who plotted against him but let go of the strong ones. Loxias and father Zeus voted for a delay of death for Phalaris, for which he was brought to the Charites and Melanippus. But you have shown us well, though with difficulty, about death and life, that life is indeed the most beautiful thing. Let this also be added to all these matters."

Book Six

"But the people of Methymna will honor the phallus much more than the head of Dionysus. For the cities make sacrifices and hold festivals not only for the phallus of Dionysus, but also for those made of stone, bronze, and gold. They honor not only the phallus but also the Dionysian gods and many other gods from Hesiod's stories."

² "For truly, there are countless thousands on the fertile earth, not immortal, but stone and wooden masters of men. If they could see the arrogance and order of humanity, such nonsense would not exist. Even now, and up to your time, evil has already crossed over into Olympus, where, they say, the form of the gods is always safe."

³ "And yet, if it were safe, there wouldn't be such foolishness, nor would any of the Olympians come to this madness, to 'make a body of clay' that the people of Methymna pulled up, tangled in nets. And if you wanted, they would have fished it up twice, three times, or even more in the same way. From there, they would have cast it out into Libya, and they wouldn't have thrown it out onto the land outside. For, by Dionysus, it wouldn't have been tangled in the nets any longer."

⁴ "But from the top, the body looks like a head (Apollo, a strange creation). What, then, was it doing in the sea? Someone might wonder. For what else could it be doing, by Zeus, but sitting there, waiting for the madmen to arrive? I won't say that even the gods, coming to him, would not see him as heavenly, but rather sea-like, and they would lead him back to the city, just like some good fortune, which is truly a bad one—not fortune, but misfortune. Or was it not enough for them to be drifting away from home? Did it grow strong on its own and add to the divine terror, as someone might say, sent from Delphi as a gift?"

⁵ "So much for Oinomaos. But after what has been said, let us turn again to the philosophy of the wise, which was made for us. Read from the oracles of the Pythian about fate. If you are not a stranger to divine power, the discussion about the famous oracles will come to you even more."

Introduction

Introduction. Since we have discussed the nature of the oracles enough through what has been said before, and since the divine power of our savior has been shown through his good teaching as both godly and helpful, it is clear that only through this, and not through anything else, has there been freedom for all people from the demonic illusions that have darkened and troubled life throughout the ages. Let us also focus on the false beliefs about fate, so that we may not only address the wickedness of the nature of the oracles but also the incorrect and untrue beliefs held by those who are weak and inactive, who are thought to move the oracles.

² So think about whether the discussion about these things will also reach you, even if you are unfamiliar with divine power. I will present ideas that challenge the beliefs about fate and also draw from the nature itself, according to which the oracles are said to be created.

³ For they say that knowledge of future events does not come from a greater power, but that people can also predict the future by observing the movements of the stars. Therefore, they claim that they cannot help or do anything at all unless it is according to fate. The evidence for this can be found in the writings of the leading demons, where it is stated, "On Philosophy from Reason," saying this exactly.

Book 6, Section 1

For what the gods say, if they truly know what is fated, they reveal it through the movement of the stars, and this has been stated by nearly all the honest gods.

² Then he continues, saying, "When Apollo was asked what the woman would give birth to, he said from the stars that it would be a girl, knowing the time of conception. He explains: 'From the earth, along the paths where the meadows were soaked with rain, she drank all the nourishment from her mother, while the time was just right for her to be born. It is not a boy, but a girl; for Phoebus, the good seer, has announced a pure daughter of Cyprus, hurrying to give birth to a female child, dear friend.'"

³ Look, and from the time of conception, since the moon was bringing forth to Aphrodite, it was said that a girl would be born. And they say, "For the gods speak, if they predict what is fated and the illnesses that come from there. For listen, a very harmful poison is troubling her in her chest, causing painful suffering in her lungs."

⁴ And next, she says that the mind of the Fates guided these events, and she cast a dark cloud into conflict, troubling with evil storms under the high throne of Cronus, as a bad fate came upon her.

⁵ And after other things, she hurried to fill your destined day with a painful fate, rushing toward Cronus, and she understood from your thoughts. For this reason, the sacred heart of your godlike father was threatened by the evil deeds of Ares.

⁶ These things are not predicted even from their divine power, but from the observation of the stars according to the teachings of mathematics. Nothing in this differs from humans, nor does anything show a greater work of nature that is more divine.

⁷ But as they also take away what is in our control, they do not only place things outside and those not in our control under the influence of the stars, but also our own choices.

Book 6, Section 2

So Apollo, while talking about something, also explained where his eagerness for battle comes from. He said that Ares has a fierce nature, who stirs him up, and he will not hold him back; for Zeus has a plan, or he will immediately bring great glory from Ares. Again, at another time, Kronos was waiting for a prayer, and with terrible stings, he caused pain to the child of Talaus, who was difficult to send away at dawn.

² The noble gods have been so frightened by fate that they cannot even help those among their sacred ones who are struck by lightning. Therefore, there would be great hope for humans praying to receive help from those who cannot even aid themselves. So why should one still be pious, worship the gods, and serve them when they are unable to help themselves at all? Listen then to what the oracle says:

Book 6, Section 3

Thus, the fates of temples and sacred places, including the temple of Apollo himself, are destined to be struck by lightning, as the saying goes: "O you who were born from Erichthonius, you dared to come and speak my voice, wherever the beautiful seat may be destroyed. Listen to the divine voice from the laurel-covered depths. Whenever the winds blow from above, echoing below, they clash with loud noises, while a hidden, endless calm surrounds the world. The troubled sky will not be able to escape the ruined air, smoky around the earth, wherever a fire may fall. The beasts, in fear, flee to the mountain tops for cover and do not stay to see the deadly thunderbolt of Zeus. For both the temples of the blessed and the tall trees of the high mountains, as well as the ships at sea, are destroyed by the fierce waves of the storm. Even Amphitrite, struck, often cries out with a loud voice. Therefore, you, holding unbearable pain in your hearts, have endured the unmeasured fates in your spirit; for Zeus, the son of Uranus, nodded his head, so that they may remain unshaken by the storms. For fate may allow the beautiful seat to be destroyed by the long-lasting flames that fall from the sky."

² If indeed the temples of fate and the sacred gods are destroyed by fierce waves, what hope is left for mortal humans to escape their fate? And if there is no help from the gods at all, then everyone must endure the unmeasured fates in their hearts. What is the point of striving for the gods in vain? Someone might say.

³ What is the point of offering sacrifices and gifts to those who do not deserve them, if they cannot help us at all? Since they are not even considered givers of good things, but rather share the blame for the bad things.

⁴ For if it is destined for humans to receive either something good or something bad, it will happen out of necessity, regardless of the wishes of the gods. Therefore, we should only serve necessity, which is minor, especially since the gods do not care at all and are unable to help or harm us.

⁵ If indeed the Fates are the only god who oversees everything, and they alone are the masters of these matters, then why do we not agree that the all-powerful god is the only one who controls fate and is the giver and savior of good things? Because it is only he who can easily change the unchangeable decrees of the Fates. Therefore, neither necessity nor fate should serve the god who is honored by all; instead, he should be free and unbound by any ties to the divine and saving powers. But the true word reveals such things, while the opposite explains why the bonds of fate can be broken.

Book 6, Section 4

When someone asks a god to accept them, the god replies that it is inappropriate because they are bound by nature. For this reason, the god brings about terrible things, as a divine force has rushed in with great power, which you must escape using such magic.

² Through these things, it is clearly shown that magic was given by the gods to change whatever is decided by fate.

³ These things are said to you by Porphyry, not by me. How can a god, while advising to use magic to change what is determined by fate, not change what is destined when his own temple is being struck by lightning? And yet, urging people to practice magic but not to think deeply, how could it not be clear what kind of person he is? In all these matters, he also admits to deceiving the gods.

Book 6, Section 5

But already, the exact knowledge of the movement and the agreements that come from these things is hard for humans to understand. It is not only difficult for them, but also for some of the spirits, which is why they lie when asked about many things.

² These things again suggest that what is contained forces the oracles to become false, rather than willingly adding lies to those present. Indeed, they often say that they will lie, but they stay and are forced to speak because of their ignorance.

³ Indeed, Apollo once said, in a situation like the one we have shown, about the evil of what is contained, "Shut the strength and power of words; I will speak falsehoods." And that these things are true, as we have said, will be shown by the words.

⁴ Someone called from the gods said, "Today it is not fitting to speak of the sacred path of the stars; for the seats of prophecy are now bound in the stars." And it adds, "So it has been revealed where the falsehood often arises."

Book 6, Section 6

Therefore, it is clear to you that the opinions of the uncertain are no longer valid, since there is nothing divine in the oracles of the gods. For how could the divine ever lie, being the most truthful by nature, if indeed the divine is truthful? And how could a good spirit deceive those who seek guidance with false words? And how could it be better for a person to be bound by the influence of the stars?

² A mortal man, having made a brief effort for virtue, would never lie, choosing to prefer the truth, nor would he blame fate or the influence of the stars for his lies. But if someone were to bring fire or iron against his body, forcing him to destroy the true word, he would still respond freely, saying, "Let fire come, let daggers come; cut me, burn my flesh, let me be filled with dark blood; for the stars go down beneath the earth, and the earth rises to the sky, before a word of deceit comes from me."

³ But the deceiving and misleading spirit tricks the foolish, so that whenever he falls into the predictions of the future, he provides him with a refuge of irrationality that is destined.

⁴ But the spirit, having arranged everything according to fate through the oracles, has taken away what is in our control from our own free choice and has even enslaved this by necessity. It has thrown those who obey him into a spectacle of destruction from such evil beliefs.

⁵ For if the stars and fate do not only control external things but also shape our desires based on reasoning, and if an unavoidable necessity forces human opinions, then philosophy will slip away from you, and piety will slip away from you. There will be no praise for serious-minded virtue, no love for the divine, and no worthy fruit from the efforts in practice, since all things are tied to the cause of necessity and fate.

⁶ Therefore, it is not right to blame those who struggle in life, nor even the impious and most reckless, nor to admire the serious-minded. For, as I said, the great glory of philosophy will also slip away, not from self-chosen practice and effort, but because of the necessity of the stars.

⁷ Look then at the deep pit of evil beliefs into which the marvelous gods have cast us, and consider how this doctrine encourages and leads to ruin, injustice, and countless other evils, causing a complete upheaval of all life.

⁸ If someone were to believe the marvelous oracles of the gods, that both telling the truth and lying are not our own actions, but rather the result of unavoidable fate, and that the desire to go to war or to do anything else comes from this, while not wanting such things, how could they not choose to be careless and give up on everything that cannot be achieved without effort, pain, and our own willingness?

⁹ For if someone believes that something will happen because of fate, whether we work hard for it or not, how could they not choose the easier path, giving up on themselves and being careless, since what will happen is determined by fate and necessity?

¹⁰ From this, many say that this will happen if fate allows it for me, so why should I provide myself with anything?

¹¹ For if someone going to war does not act out of their own choice but is driven by outside necessity, it is clear that the same applies to those who commit robbery, grave robbing, or other wicked and reckless acts, as well as to those who engage in proper and moderate activities; for this would support the argument about fate.

¹² How then could someone who does not believe these things come from themselves ever pay attention to the one advising and teaching, and not give themselves over to those mentioned earlier?

¹³ For someone might say to the one advising them, "Why are you advising me, oh man? These things do not apply to me; it is not in my power to change my choice, for fate has already taken hold of me."

¹⁴ What then should I strive for if I cannot even want to? Unless this too is fated for me? I would strive if it is fated, and I would be led by fate without your teaching. So why do you trouble yourself for no reason?

¹⁵ But if you say that you advise and teach me out of necessity to persuade me about these things, then what is the point of striving for this? For advising is lazy and useless. If it is fated for me, I will work hard; but if it is not fated, then both of us will be wasting our effort.

¹⁶ How could someone who holds this belief not become lazy and say to himself, "Come, I will not work hard at all, nor will I trouble myself in vain; for fate will happen out of necessity"? But the one who strives for something, whether teaching or encouraging himself or another, is changing himself and the act of being persuaded or not, as well as making mistakes or not, and also giving praise or blame. How is it not clear that he is ignoring the work that is in our control and only attaching the name of fate to himself?

¹⁷ Just as if someone were to call the nature of the good by the name of the bad, which best governs the creature in its presence. For we clearly feel that we are not being forced by some other cause when we educate our sons and punish our servants for their mistakes, and when we want or do not want something. Instead, we are acting from our own power. The one who says these things would be mistaken if he claims they happen by fate, as this weakens both our own willingness and the encouragement and advice we give to others, from which we see that human affairs are most often successful.

¹⁸ And indeed, this argument would overturn the laws that are made for the benefit of people. For what is the point of commanding or forbidding those who are under some other necessity? Nor will it be necessary to punish those who make mistakes for the same reason they have erred, nor to award honors to those who do the best actions, since each of them has provided a strong reason for stopping injustice and for being ready to do good.

¹⁹ But this belief would also overturn our piety toward the divine, if indeed the god has nothing to do with us, and if those who give oracles know nothing about these matters, whether for those who pray or for those who are pious, since they are bound by the necessities of fate.

²⁰ But to say that we are moved by lifeless things, being pulled by some outside force to do these actions against our will, and to choose other things apart from our own choices—how could that not be shameless and utterly disgraceful? For we clearly feel that we are eager to do certain things and indifferent to others. We recognize that we are responsible for our own actions, whether we succeed or fail, and that we are not being forced by any other cause. Instead, some things we choose willingly, while others we avoid and reject based on our own preferences.

²¹ Thus, the argument for free will was so clear that both feeling pain and feeling pleasure, as well as seeing and hearing something, are understood not through reasoning, but through direct experience. We feel ourselves acting based on our own will, choosing some things and turning away from others. Therefore, it is right to acknowledge the freedom and self-determination of our rational and thinking nature.

²² But if many things happen to us beyond our choices, we should be concerned. Here, we need to separate the nature of our situation and examine the reasoning behind what is not in our control. For no reasonable person will accept that these things are simply fate, while another reasoning is linked to the overall plan of the universe. So, let us carefully consider the problem.

²³ All things are said to be provided for and governed by the care of the gods, according to the principles of true piety.

²⁴ Now, in terms of types, we can classify each of the things that come to be: some exist by nature, some by impulse and imagination, and some are moved by reasoning and personal judgment or choice. Some things happen according to previous reasoning, while others occur due to events that have happened before. This creates a diverse and complex arrangement of everything, with each kind of being having its own specific and defined nature, which is distributed by the cause of all things.

²⁵ Therefore, someone might take their time to go through the discussion about other things, but they could more easily learn about free will here.

²⁶ Since a person is not just one kind of thing, but has a union of two opposing natures—body and soul—the body is connected to the soul through a physical organ, while the soul exists according to the earlier reasoning. One part is irrational, while the other is rational; one part is mortal, while the other is immortal. Thus, we carry the body like a brother that is irrational, while the soul is linked to the rational and immortal nature. This dual nature likely comes from having two different natures, leading to two different ways of living: sometimes living according to the nature of the body, and at other times embracing freedom through the divine part. This means that the same person can be both a slave and free, having this condition from the divine, through which they understand the mixture of soul and body.

²⁷ If someone uses the term 'fate' in relation to either the body or the soul and claims it is due to necessity, they would misunderstand the true meaning of the term. For if there were an unstoppable necessity of fate, many things that naturally belong to the body and soul would be hindered, and countless other things would occur against nature due to certain events affecting both the soul and body. How could fate and nature be the same?

²⁸ For if they say that fate is unchangeable and that nothing can happen outside of it (since it is said to be unavoidable), then many things, as I mentioned, occur against nature in both the soul and body. In that case, no one could rightly claim that fate and nature are the same.

²⁹ Therefore, among the things that exist within us, some happen according to reason and choice, like those that are natural to the soul, while others are natural to the body. Some of these occur as events related to the soul and body, while others happen naturally in different ways. However, neither the actions of the soul that depend on us nor the natural actions of the body, nor even those that result from outside events, would justly remove responsibility from the cause.

³⁰ For God is the creator of all things, including those that depend on us, those that are natural, and those that happen by chance. In general, we should pay attention to the divine scripture, which says, "He said, and they came to be; He commanded, and they were created."

³¹ If, then, when people want something different from our opinion, they should be reminded that this reflects the dual and different nature of the conflict within us, referring to the soul and body. The essence of the soul, being rational and logical, exists in a body that is naturally childish and has taken on an irrational nature. The mind, which is connected to reason, often becomes confused by some chance event, especially when it is affected by overwhelming illnesses of the body.

³² Often, old age comes upon the body and takes away the ability to think clearly, which is a natural result of life's peak, dulling the rational part of the mind of the intelligent soul.

³³ Again, injuries and pains that occur in the body, which go against nature, have conquered the free will of the soul due to these events. The pains bind the soul tightly, sometimes preventing it from being free because of the body's nature, and at other times because of outside events.

³⁴ There was, then, the power of our own choice to reach such a level of virtue and strength that we can stand against many challenges and oppose both the nature of the body and outside events.

³⁵ The nature of the body calls a man toward desires, but the soul, using wise reasoning, places a restraint on passion and becomes stronger than the body's nature. Again, the body urges one to eat, drink, and feel cold, pushing toward natural needs and satisfactions. But the choice, influenced by wise words and a love for some practices of self-discipline, counters the body's nature with long periods of fasting and endurance, having judged and chosen this through the virtue of thought.

³⁶ And again, the body enjoys all natural pleasures and the movement of the senses, but the choice of virtue embraces a difficult and challenging life with desire.

³⁷ There are those who have turned to a worse path, changing natural use into unnatural, committing shameful acts among men.

³⁸ Thus, reason does not always give in to nature; it often wins, just as it can sometimes be overcome. At times, it takes the lead, and at other times, it is led, like when someone tries to free the body, especially when living is seen as not beneficial.

³⁹ If the struggle were only against the natural condition of the body, it would be manageable. But since god has placed him among many things, like wild animals and poisonous creatures, surrounded by fire, water, and air, and among all these different natures, it makes sense that his conflict and resistance are not only against the natural condition of the body but also against countless external events. He faces these challenges while living a mortal life, so he must endure them with strength.

⁴⁰ Indeed, there are many kinds of food and mixtures in our surroundings, hidden dangers and burning flames, as well as many other things that move according to their own nature but disturb us by chance because of our free will. This is due to the conflict with the body, which cannot withstand the pressures from outside, while being controlled and overcome by those things that occur naturally from the outside.

⁴¹ Again, since we share our experiences with many people, and they also have the same substances as we do, they draw from their own free will. Using their freedom, they make choices, and in this way, we are naturally influenced by the opinions of others. This same free will also impacts us in relation to the body or concerning the soul.

⁴² For just as the nature of our body is often overcome by outside forces, our choices are also affected by countless external influences. When persuaded by free will, we give ourselves over to these pressures, sometimes becoming better and sometimes worse. A bad company can corrupt good character, just as good company can enhance our positive qualities.

⁴³ In terms of words, the rational power of the soul is influenced by outside events in this way. However, the virtue of its own rational nature remains strong, showing a divine and godlike power when it stands firm against all external pressures, overcoming everything with a free spirit and not yielding to any of its own virtues. It is ready to engage in philosophy. But when it becomes careless, it falls under the worst influences, just as it can improve through the care it receives from outside.

⁴⁴ What should we say about these things? Both the movements and conditions of such souls and bodies are naturally connected to the overall order of the universe in some way. They exist and are rightly aligned with the whole, having a great abundance of various movements that are directed toward us.

⁴⁵ For all things in general, both those that exist with us and those that arise from our own actions, as well as those that come from outside by chance and those that operate naturally, there is one all-powerful and all-sufficient guidance from divine providence that moves through everything. This providence organizes most things with divine and mysterious reasons, gently governing all and often rearranging natural events according to the right times. It works together with us and also provides the necessary order to those outside.

⁴⁶ When we divide these into three categories, we have those that depend on us, those that happen by nature, and those that occur by chance. All of these can be summarized under one reason that comes from the will of the divine. There is no discussion about the role of fate.

⁴⁷ Let us find that the source of evil, which many struggle with, has no place in anything that happens by nature, neither in bodies nor in essences. It is much more present in things that arise by chance. However, it can only be found in the free choice of the soul itself. In this case, it does not follow the natural path when it goes straight, but instead, when it turns away from the natural order and follows its own judgment, it becomes the master of itself.

⁴⁸ Since this honor is a special gift from the divine, it is free and self-governing. The judgment of its own impulse is directed inward. A divine law, naturally connected to it, shines brightly like a light, echoing within and saying, "As long as you walk in a royal way, do not turn to the right or to the left." It teaches that the royal path is the one that follows right reason.

⁴⁹ For every soul, the creator of all has established a natural law as a helper and ally in its actions. Through this law, it shows the straight path, and through the freedom given to it, it earns praise and worthiness for choosing what is better. It receives honors and greater rewards for achieving things not by force, but by its own free choice, having the ability to choose the opposite as well. Therefore, choosing the worst deserves blame and punishment, since it neglects the natural law and brings forth the source of evil. It misuses itself, not because of any outside force, but from its own free will and judgment.

⁵⁰ The cause of what is chosen is indeed without blame, for god is not responsible. God did not create a bad nature or the essence of the soul. It is fitting for a good being to create only good things. Everything that is good aligns with nature. In every rational soul, the ability to choose freely is a good thing, and this ability leads to the choice of what is good.

⁵¹ When it acts poorly, one should not blame nature. For what is bad does not happen according to nature, but against it. It is a matter of choice, not a result of nature. When the ability to choose good is present, if one does not choose it and willingly turns away from what is better, who could escape the blame for their own choice, just like someone neglecting the natural law of healing?

⁵² Indeed, anyone who ignores all these things and blames everything on necessity and the influence of the stars, claiming that the causes of human wrongdoing come not from us but from the power that moves everything, how could they not have an impious and disrespectful thought?

⁵³ For if someone were to claim that the movement of everything is automatic and mindless, they would be shown to be godless, since they ignore the wise harmony and good order of the universe that has been in motion for ages. Even if they acknowledge that there is a divine providence that oversees and governs everything with wisdom, they still do not escape the charge of disrespect. This is because they let those who err among humans go free, claiming that none of the wrongs are done by their own choice. Instead, they shift the blame for evils onto the overall providence, calling it necessity and fate, and they say that all the shameful actions and terrible deeds of humans are due to this.

⁵⁴ And who could be more disrespectful than someone who claims that the god of all, the creator and maker of everything, is forced against his will to make someone act wickedly, and that he is godless by necessity? This person would also be blasphemous toward themselves, since they say that the one who created nature as male suffers things contrary to nature, not by choice, but being compelled by god to become another man, not according to his own will. Thus, they would not even be able to reasonably blame those who err, nor would they consider these actions to be wrong, or claim that god is the creator of all evils.

⁵⁵ For if he himself, seeing everything and hearing everything, forces all to act in this way, or if he has made the movement of everything and the motion of the stars necessary and compelling, then he who created such a mechanism and set the trap for those who are caught would indeed be the cause of their being trapped.

⁵⁶ Whether he himself is acting on his own, or whether he is using some other necessity he has created to force those who do not want to do these evil things, he would be the one, and no one else, who creates all evils. In that case, the person would no longer be seen as having sinned justly, but rather the god who made this would be.

⁵⁷ And who could be more disrespectful than this? For he brings fate directly against god and dismisses god's care, just as someone who places god above all would reject the argument about fate. Either god and fate would be the same, or they would be different from each other. Therefore, they could not be the same.

⁵⁸ For if they say that fate is a certain chain of causes that has been unchanging and unbreakable since the beginning, coming from the movements of the heavenly stars, how could the physical elements, from which the heavens are made, not come before fate? Wouldn't it make sense for someone to say that fate is just an accident that happens to these elements?

⁵⁹ And how could what happens to the elements be the same as god, if the elements are lifeless and irrational by their very nature, while god exists outside of bodies, having life and wisdom? Isn't god the one who gives enjoyment to the individual elements and to the arrangement of the whole through creation? Therefore, god and fate are not the same.

⁶⁰ But if they are different, which is better? Nothing is more beautiful than god, nor is anything more powerful. So, would god not overcome what is worse, or would he allow evil to happen through fate? If he is powerful enough to stop evil but does not, then he himself would be responsible for the destruction and ruin of everything. Instead, he would be the creator and maker of all, including fate itself.

⁶¹ But if no explanation for the order of everything comes forth, then a voice would rise again, which must be shut out from hearing. This voice would clearly show the divine providence and power, revealing itself through both the wise and skilled results in general and through our own actions, clearly demonstrating the freedom and self-determination of the rational soul.

⁶² In this situation, even though there are countless obstacles from the nature of the body and from the choices that come our way, the freedom of the soul's virtue still stands strong. It is invincible and undefeated, showing our ability to choose what is good.

⁶³ This especially reveals to us the present time of our savior's teachings through their actions. For these are not empty words; they allow you to see the struggle of the pious and to witness those who willingly endure the hardships of the contests for piety. Many crowds of Greeks and non-Greeks have shown this throughout the entire world, all eagerly enduring the sufferings of the body, while every kind of torment passed by with a cheerful face. In the end, they welcomed the release of the soul from the body in various ways.

⁶⁴ And indeed, no one here would allow fate to be blamed. For when has the movement of the stars brought forth such champions of piety? Or when did human life, before the teachings of our savior were shared with all people, display such a contest throughout the entire world?

⁶⁵ Where has there been such a teaching of words, one that removes the fear of false beliefs and teaches knowledge of the one God to all people, both Greeks and non-Greeks, throughout all time?

⁶⁶ Who among the wise poets of old, whether barbarian or Greek, was ever honored to share such a clear teaching with the whole world, a teaching that was revealed even to the ends of the earth, and to gain the glory of God for those who were devoted to him?

⁶⁷ If these things have neither existed nor happened throughout time, nor have been heard of, then there was no chain of causes and no necessity for their cause. For long ago, through the same cycle and movement of the stars, there was no jealousy that others might share in the same creation and fate.

⁶⁸ From what fate then has our savior god appeared and been proclaimed throughout the whole world, while the gods that were once honored by both Greeks and non-Greeks have been cast aside, and they were cast aside in no other way than through the teaching of the new god?

⁶⁹ What fate then has proclaimed a creator god to all people, and how did it force them to say that fate does not exist? And how did fate insist on not being able to speak and think for itself? What do you think about the various struggles that have been fought for the sake of our savior's faithful teaching, and that still continue to be fought today?

⁷⁰ Therefore, they have shared one and the same fate, so that through one teaching and doctrine they have been enslaved, showing one mind and choice, having one virtue of the soul, embracing one and the same way of life, loving the same message, and enduring the same loving feelings through the struggle for piety.

⁷¹ And who would rightly agree with this: that young and old, people of all ages, both males and females, and different kinds of barbarian men, both slaves and free, as well as those without education, are not in some corner of the earth or under these stars, but throughout the whole inhabited world, are said to be forced by the necessity of fate to prefer this certain teaching of all their ancestors? And who would embrace the death for piety of the one god above all, learn well about the immortality of the soul, and choose a philosophy that is not just in words, but in actions?

⁷² For these things would be clear even to a blind person: that there is no necessity, and that learning and teaching belong to them, as they are clear examples of free choice and voluntary decision.

⁷³ But there could also be countless other examples of the problem, many of which I have mentioned. I will be satisfied with what has been said, but I will leave you to consider your own reading of your seven philosophers. This way, you may learn how much wiser and better the man was who exposed the marvelous oracles as false and challenged the Pythian oracle itself on what it declared about fate.

⁷⁴ Listen again to the work of the one who followed the path of the prophets. Notice how it corrects the many deceivers with a youthful spirit, and even the very Apollo himself, through which he writes the following exactly.

Book 6, Section 7

So you cannot sit in Delphi, even if you want to, and you must be silent. But Apollo, the son of Zeus, now wants to speak, not because he desires to, but because he is compelled to.

² I think that, having set aside everything else, since I do not know how I was led to this argument, I will seek something familiar and worth asking about. For what is among the wise has perished from human life. Whether someone calls it a little boat, a cart, or a shoe, the power of our life is what we set as the ruler of the most necessary things. Democritus, if I am not mistaken, and Chrysippus, one thinking of a slave and the other of a half-slave, both aim to show the most beautiful aspects of human life.

³ But the discussion of these things is worth as much as any human would value them. But if the divine is already coming against us, oh dear, how will we be persuaded?

⁴ But it is neither likely nor just for us, enemies of the surrounding land, to feel safe inside, relying on the protective barrier of the immortal gods, our divine friends.

⁵ For what, says the Argive, if I wanted to, is it possible for me to sit and be safe? You might say it is possible, and you can; but how could I have given this command to you?

⁶ Dear child of the famous Chiron, having left the peak of Euboea, you are to arrive at the sacred land, where it is meant for you to create a holy place. But go now. Do not delay any longer.

⁷ Is it truly the case, oh Apollo, that I am allowed to leave the peak of Pelion? I have indeed heard from many wise people that if it is my fate to arrive at the peak of Euboea and to establish a sacred land, I will both have it and sit there, whether you say so or not, and whether I want to or not. But if I must and if I am forced to want what I need, even if I do not wish to want it, you, oh Apollo, should be trusted as more just.

⁸ It seems to me that I should pay more attention to you. Tell the Parian people, oh Telecleus, that I command you to build a beautiful city on the island of Euboea. I swear by Zeus, someone will soon say something, either accusing you or not, even if you do not command it, for it is fated. And Thasos is indeed the island of Euboea; the Parian people will come to it, as Archilochus, my son, said that this island was called Euboea before. So you, being fierce and bold, I think you will not endure this, since he is so ungrateful and daring. If you had not wished to inform him, he would never have announced it, nor would Archilochus, his son, have led the Parian people away, nor would the Parian people have settled in Thasos.

⁹ I do not know if you are saying these things, but you do not understand what you are saying. Since we seem to be taking our time and talking for a while, and the conversation is not pointless, tell me that thing; for perhaps even a little from many will be enough.

¹⁰ Are we anything, you and I? You might say so. But how do we know this? By what means did we decide to understand this? Or is there nothing else that is enough except for our own perception and understanding?

¹¹ What then? How did we discover that we are living beings? And how do we know that among living beings, as I might say, there are humans, and among humans, one is a sorcerer and another is a critic? And as you might say, one is a human, another is a god, one is a seer, and another is a false accuser? Let it be so for you, if I happen to be caught.

¹² But how did we know that we are talking in the present? What do you say? Did we not correctly judge our own understanding by the closest thing to all things? It is clear that we did. For there was nothing else that was higher, older, or more reliable.

¹³ If it is not so, then let no one go to Delphi with the name Alcmaeon, having killed his mother, and being driven from home while wishing to return. For he does not know whether he exists at all, nor whether he is being driven from home, nor whether he wishes to return. But if Alcmaeon is truly mad and suspects what is not real, the Pythian does not go mad. Do not say that you seek to return to your homeland, Amphiarus. For you do not even know if someone asks you about Amphiarus, nor do you know who you are, the one being asked, and you have the ability to speak about what someone asks.

¹⁴ Let not Chrysippus, who introduces half-slavery, go to the Stoa, not knowing what it is at all, and let him not think that those fools will hear him speaking about the One. And let him not insist on anything while he is present with Arcesilaus, but not present with Epicurus.

¹⁵ For what is Arcesilaus, and what is Epicurus? What is the Stoa, what are the young men, or who is the One? He knows neither this nor how to know it, for he does not even know what he himself is.

¹⁶ But neither you nor Democritus will endure if someone says these things. There is no more trustworthy measure than what I say. Even if it seems that there are other things, this would be added to it, but it could not surpass it.

¹⁷ Therefore, someone might say, "O Democritus, and you, O Chrysippus, and you, O seer, since you are upset if someone wants to take away your own understanding—for those many books no longer exist—come, let us also be upset."

¹⁸ What then? Wherever it seems right to you, this will be the most trustworthy and the oldest. But where it does not seem so, there some hidden fate will take control, having a different effect for each of you: for one from the divine, and for another from those small bodies that are carried down and rise up, twisting and breaking apart, separating, and being placed there by necessity.

¹⁹ For look, in what way we have taken hold of ourselves, this is also true for those within us who are self-determined and forceful. We have not overlooked how much there is between walking and being led, nor how much there is between choosing and being forced.

²⁰ Why then did I bring these things into the discussion? Because you, O seer, have escaped from what we are in control of, and the one who knows everything would not know these things, from which the trials arise from our own choices.

²¹ This seemed to be the beginning of many things, but the cause of what comes after the beginning has escaped him, or he would know what follows the beginning.

²² Laius was indeed shameless, predicting that he would be killed by his own son. For it was destined that the son would be in control of his own choices, and neither Apollo nor anyone greater than him could reach him with any power, since there is no necessity for existence or for coming into being.

²³ For that is indeed the most laughable of all things: the mixture and coming together of what is and what is not among humans, and it is no less a connection. For it resembles, as the wise say, the words of Euripides.

²⁴ For Laius wanted to have children, to be in control, and to escape the serpent of Apollo. But after he had children, it became unavoidable that he would die at the hands of his own son. Thus, he gave the seer knowledge of what would happen in the future.

²⁵ And indeed, the nature of his own will was in control, just like the one who created it. Just as that one had the choice to have children or not, this one had the choice to kill or not. All your prophecies are like this. And the Apollo of Euripides said this: that your whole house would be filled with blood.

²⁶ That there will be a fulfillment by the hand of the one born, at the marriage of his mother and the tyranny she received as an answer to a riddle. There will be mutual killings of children, with one fleeing from the other, and the other seeking more, and a marriage of the fugitive in Argos, along with a group of seven laughing leaders and their agreement. How could you know about many rulers and powers being divided, or whether fate could bind them together?

²⁷ For if Oedipus, being his own master, did not want to rule, or if he desired this and married Iocasta without knowing, or if, after marrying, he was not blinded or was not unhappy and unpleasant, how could each event have happened? How could he have touched his eyes? How could he have harmed the children with the curse of Euripides and yours?

²⁸ What way could these things happen without first being caused, or how could you speak about what is to come? Again, if the children came together and ruled at the same time, or if they stayed apart by chance based on what was laid out, or if the one who fled knew not to go to Argos, but to Libya or to Perrhaebia, or if he entered Argos and knew to sell fish instead of taking a wealthy wife?

²⁹ But whether it was some kind of fish market or if Adrastus did not give his daughter to him, or if one gave her and the other did not want to go home, or if, wanting her, he controlled himself, or if Adrastus did not pay attention to him asking for help, or if neither Amphiaraus nor Tydeus nor any of the other leaders followed him, or if some followed but he who came did not fight with his brother, but either came to rule together with him or, not wanting to, withdrew, persuaded by Euripides, who said, "You came without understanding and will plunder your homeland."

³⁰ Or if this one did not, but the other, having heard those clever sayings of Euripides, said, "Then the sun and night serve mortals, but you cannot bear to have equal homes?" How could they come together and fight, causing all of Laius' house to be filled with blood?

³¹ But indeed, you might say, these things have happened. They have happened; but by what path did you come to know them? Or do you not see how the whole play is closely woven together by the power that fills the drama among us? So, taking whatever plot you want, I will cut your argument and show it to be impossible.

³² But you say that you know the very end of the plot, yet the plot is entirely made up of the power of the connections that have been severed.

³³ Or do you not understand what I am saying? In each plot, oh seer, the living beings often create a few or many beginnings, or even many within it. The beginnings always cut off what comes after them and lead to other things. They can only progress to a certain point, as long as no other beginning from anywhere else commands what comes after it not to follow what is before, but to follow its own order.

³⁴ Let there be a beginning with a donkey, a dog, and a flea. For the flea will not give up its power, I swear by Apollo, but will start its own unique movement. Sometimes, this movement gets mixed up with human affairs and presents its own beginning along some path. But you, using this, do not notice its true nature.

³⁵ You have taken away the city of divine Heracles, oh Locrian; but Zeus has given you other gifts and will continue to give more. What do you say? It was not meant to be taken away by you. And what are we to blame, except for your own necessity? You do not act justly, oh Apollo, nor do you rightly blame those who have done nothing wrong to us.

³⁶ But this Zeus, the necessity of your necessity, what does he intend for us, unless, if at all, he shows that such a necessity exists? And what does he threaten us with? Or what are we, as masters of this, suffering from hunger? But it will either be revealed to us or not; whichever it is, this is what is meant to happen.

³⁷ Stop, oh Zeus who brings hunger, your anger; for what is meant to happen will happen, and this is what your fate has ordered. But we are nothing in relation to this. And you too, oh Apollo, stop your pointless prophecies; for what must be will be, even if you are silent. But we, oh Zeus and Apollo, what should we suffer, since we are in no way responsible for your laws, that is, for your necessity? And what do we have to do with your wrongs, which you have the right to hold against us for what we have been forced to endure?

³⁸ "Oitaians, do not rush with reckless thoughts." "But we do not rush, oh Apollo; rather, we are being driven, not by recklessness, but by your necessity."

³⁹ "How can you praise that Lycurgus, oh Apollo, who was not good, neither willingly nor by choice, but against his will? If anyone ever becomes good against their will. It seems that what you are doing now is like praising beautiful bodies while criticizing and punishing the ugly."

⁴⁰ "For the wicked could rightly say to you, oh gods, that you did not allow us to become good, and not only that, but you even forced us to be wicked. The good, if they were to compete, no one would allow them, but they would say, 'Oh Chrysippus and Cleanthes and all those in this chorus, for you have been made to be good.' I indeed praise virtue, but I do not praise you who are wicked."

⁴¹ "But even Epicurus, whom you have often blasphemed, oh Chrysippus, I leave the accusations against you. For what has he suffered who was not soft or unjust against his will, as you have often insulted him?"

⁴² "The gods are gracious to the well-ordered lives of mortals, and they accept the honorable sacrifices of the pious. But it seems to me that you would not say these things, not believing that they act willingly, but that they act for what they desire. And whatever they wish, neither god nor wise person would dare to say that it is forced upon them. Or we will no longer make arguments against him, but taking something simple, like for a child who is being raised, we will carefully cut open his sides."

⁴³ "So much was the answer that Oinomaos gave to the prophet. But if you do not find joy in this, take and read what the other philosophers say about fate, not only the arguments against the previously given prophecies, but also their general ideas about the doctrine being discussed."

⁴⁴ "Since not only the uneducated and common people, but also many who have deeply considered education and philosophy have come together on this doctrine, I believe it is necessary to present their objections for a careful examination of the issue. Therefore, I will first read to you from Diogenes about fate, opposing Chrysippus in this way."

Book 6, Section 8

"It is also worth presenting everything that seems to come from Chrysippus the Stoic about this argument. For in the first book On Fate, he wants to show that indeed everything is taken by necessity and fate. He uses other testimonies, including those from Homer the poet: 'But for me, grim fate has seized me, which has fallen upon me.'"

² "And later, he will experience everything that fate has brought upon him, when his mother gave birth to him. I say that no man can escape fate. I do not see that the other things said by the poet directly oppose these, which he himself uses in the second book, wanting to show that many things happen among us, such as 'for they perished by their own reckless actions.' And the line 'Oh, how mortals blame the gods!' For they say that evil comes from us, but they themselves suffer pains beyond measure because of their own reckless actions."

³ "For these things and similar ones are opposed to everything happening by fate. But he could not even see that Homer does not support his doctrine in those lines. It is not that everything happens by fate, but rather that something happens according to it, which will be discovered by looking at those things."

⁴ "For the line 'But for me, grim fate has seized me, which has fallen upon me' does not suggest that everything happens according to fate, but rather that the very act of dying occurs. For indeed, it is truly destined for every living being to die."

⁵ "But also the line 'Later, he will experience all the things that fate has brought upon him, when his mother gave birth to him' means the same thing. For it does not say that everything will happen to him according to fate, but that something will happen to him by necessity. What else could the word 'all' mean other than this? Many things indeed come to us by necessity, even if not everything."

⁶ "And I say that no man can escape fate, as has been said very well. For who could avoid the things that happen by necessity to every living being? So, it would not be right for Chryssippos to think that Homer believes everything happens according to fate; rather, it is the opposite. While he has clearly said many times that many things happen to us, he has never stated that everything happens by necessity."

⁷ "And for the poet, since he does not promise us the truth about the nature of things but rather imitates the feelings, behaviors, and various opinions of people, it would be fitting for him to say many opposite things. However, for a philosopher, it is neither right to say opposite things nor should he use this as evidence like a poet."

⁸ "And he also says, 'Chryssippos thinks that there is another strong proof about the position of such names in everything that is fated. For he says that fate is a certain limit that is defined and completed, and that it is fated, whether it comes from the will of the gods or from some cause that has happened before.'"

⁹ "But the Fates are named from the idea of dividing and distributing something to each of us. In this way, what is necessary is said to be imposed and fitting according to fate. He also suggests that the number of the Fates is three, in which everything is cycled and through which everything is fulfilled."

¹⁰ "And they are called Lachesis because of the idea of assigning to each person what is fated, Atropos because of the unchangeable and unalterable nature of division, and Clotho because of the idea of spinning and weaving everything together, with one of them having a certain path laid out. For these ideas and similar ones are believed to demonstrate the necessity that exists in everything."

¹¹ "I wonder if, while saying such things, he did not realize his own foolishness. Let people be guided by these ideas, as he himself explains, that the names given are established, believing that everything is governed by fate, and that the causes which have been set from eternity are unchangeable in all beings and events."

¹² "What then do you follow, O Chrysippus, in all the beliefs of people? Does nothing seem to you to be proven wrong, or are they all thinkers of the truth?"

¹³ "How then do you say that no one, who does not seem to you to be mad like Oretas and Alcmaeon, is wise except for the wise one? Do you really think that only two have become wise, while the others are just as mad as those mentioned before?"

¹⁴ "How do you argue that their beliefs are wrong, like those about wealth, honor, tyranny, and all pleasure, which most people think are good? How can you say that all the established laws and governments are mistaken? And why have you written so many books if people have mistaken beliefs about nothing?"

¹⁵ For when they believe the same things as you, we will say that they think correctly; but when they believe differently, they are mad.

¹⁶ First of all, you do not claim to be wise, nor do we, so we cannot judge whether they think correctly just because they agree with your opinion. Then, if this were true, why should we say that everyone is equally mad? Shouldn't we praise those who seem to think like you, as if they are grasping something true, while considering those who disagree to be mistaken?

¹⁷ However, one should not consider what seems true to them as sufficient proof of the truth, and they should not be thought to be mad, as you believe. Instead, anyone would agree that they have greatly strayed from wisdom.

¹⁸ Therefore, you will use these names as proof in a foolish way, since you would not say that they differ from your own understanding at all, unless it turns out that those who first established these names are wise, which you cannot prove at all.

¹⁹ But let it be accepted by you that this is how it is, and those names should be placed as you wish, keeping their meanings, and not falsely based on opinions. So, where then is it shown that everything is simply determined by fate through them, and not, if that is the case, that these are the only things that are determined by fate?

²⁰ For the number of the Fates, their names, the spindle of Clotho, the thread that is wound on it, its twist, and all other similar things that are said about them show the unchangeable and eternal nature of the causes, how many things must happen this way, and how many others are prevented from being different.

²¹ But there would be many such things. For those things that do not happen this way, some people have called the gods rulers and creators, while others have thought of us as the causes, some have considered nature, and others have thought of fate.

²² They wanted to show the changeable and unstable nature of it, now this way and now that way. They have made an idol of this kind of chance event in things, presenting fate as if it were a rolling ball.

²³ Or do people not believe that these things are true? For whenever they confuse the causes, they think that whatever happens by fate or by chance comes from a divine power, while they consider whatever comes from us to be by fate. However, it is clear that they believe all these causes exist in what is.

²⁴ Therefore, neither the opinions of people nor the beliefs about such names have supported the view of Chrysippus.

²⁵ Next, he chooses to say, "In the first book about fate, he has used certain proofs; in the second, he tries to explain the things that seem strange to the argument that everything is forced to happen, which we also presented at the beginning. For example, the idea of taking away our own willingness regarding blame, praise, encouragement, and everything else that seems to happen beyond our own control."

²⁶ He says, therefore, in the second book, that it is clear many things happen because of us, but it is just as important to connect these to the overall arrangement.

²⁷ It is used as examples of such kinds. For he says that not being destroyed is not simply arranged, but also involves being protected. He adds that being saved from enemies happens when one flees from them, and that having children occurs with the desire to share life with a woman.

²⁸ For just as he says, if someone were to claim that Hegesarchus, the boxer, would leave the contest completely unharmed, it would be strange for anyone to think that Hegesarchus should fight with his hands down, since it was arranged for him to leave without injury. This decision was made to provide extra protection so that a person would not be harmed. It is the same in other situations.

²⁹ For many things cannot happen without us wanting them and putting in great eagerness and effort. He says that after this, they were arranged to take place.

³⁰ Again, someone might wonder at the unseen and unthought-of nature of humans, as well as the actions and the connections of their own words. I believe that just as what is called sweet is often the opposite of what is called bitter, and white is the opposite of black, and cold is the opposite of hot, so too what we have is opposite to what is arranged. If indeed those things that happen are called arranged, then everything occurs either willingly or unwillingly. What comes from our effort and action leads to success, while what comes from neglect and laziness does not achieve anything.

³¹ If then, through effort, I am saved by keeping that safe, and through desire, a mother draws her children close, and through desire, one escapes enemies by not dying at their hands, and through fighting, one bravely defends against the opponent's attacks to avoid being struck in the contest, how will what is arranged be saved here?

³² For if these things happen in that way, they would not be said to happen by us. But if they happen by us, then they would not happen in that way, because these things cannot occur together with each other.

³³ But it will be by us, he says, while being surrounded by what is arranged. And how, I would ask, is it surrounded? If indeed both keeping safe and not keeping safe happened beyond my control. For in this way, I would clearly be in charge of being saved.

³⁴ And from this distinction made by Chrysippus, it becomes clear that the cause of being lost is beyond our control. For he says that it is arranged to be saved if you keep it safe, and there will be children if you also desire that, but otherwise, none of these things would happen. And concerning those things that are already determined by fate, we would never use such matters as excuses.

³⁵ Therefore, we do not say that every person would die if this were to happen, nor that they would not die if it did not happen, but simply that they would die, even if anything were to occur to prevent them from dying at all. Or that a person could be free from pain, even if they do these things, but rather that every person is subject to pain, whether they want to be or not. And all other things are arranged in this way and not otherwise.

³⁶ So if it is necessary for this to happen, if we were to want it, otherwise not, it is clear that our wanting and not wanting is not held back by any other reason, but it was in our own power.

³⁷ But if this were unavoidable, and if it is clear that this must happen from the beginning, unless something also protects the wanting itself, or the not wanting, it would occur because of some fate and a necessary cause from outside.

³⁸ But in this way, our power is completely taken away, and it would no longer save anything because of my cause, or it would perish. Therefore, I would be blamed for this destruction according to reason, since another cause would have caused it. And if it were saved again, I would not be praised at all, because I did not do anything. But you, being able to save everything, would be praised as if you were the one who did it.

³⁹ These things were said by the man who was made clear. I also connect these with the ideas from Alexander of Aphrodesius, a man very well known in philosophical discussions, who himself used such expressions in his work on fate to challenge the teachings.

Book 6, Section 9

The causes of things that come into being are divided into four types, as the divine Aristotle showed. Among these causes, some are productive, while others are material and have a reason. There is also a cause according to the form. In addition to these three causes, there is also a cause and an end, for which the thing comes into being.

² And there are many differences among the causes. For whatever cause there may be, it will be found to belong to one of these types. Even if not everything that comes into being needs so many causes, most things do not exceed the number mentioned.

³ The differences among them would be clearer if we looked at an example of things that come into being. Let us consider the division of causes in the case of a statue. For that statue, the productive cause is the craftsman who made it, whom we call a sculptor. The material cause is the bronze, stone, or whatever material is shaped by the craftsman according to his art. This too is a cause of the statue's coming into being and existence.

⁴ There is also the form that comes from the material shaped by the craftsman, which is a cause of the statue itself. Therefore, the form may be a figure of a discus thrower, a javelin thrower, or some other specific shape.

⁵ Not only are these the causes of the statue's coming into being, but there is also a second cause related to its purpose, for which it was made. This means it was created either to honor someone or as an act of devotion to a god. Without such a purpose, the statue would not even have come into existence.

⁶ Since these causes exist and are clearly different from one another, we can rightly include the necessary causes among the creative causes. This would show a relationship that helps us understand what happens in the art of the statue's creator.

⁷ With this in mind, it would be fitting to discuss the creative causes. For it will be clear whether we should attribute the necessary cause to everything that comes into being or if we should also allow it for some others, since there are certain creative causes.

⁸ Aristotle, when dividing all that comes into being, says that some things exist for a purpose, having a specific goal set by the creator. However, others come into being without any intention from the creator and do not have a specific end. These are like the growths of certain plants and their twists, as well as the branching and extensions of hairs, and anything else that occurs in a similar way.

⁹ It is clear that these things come into being. However, they do not have a cause based on purpose or for a specific reason. Therefore, things that come into being in this way, without intention and simply, do not have any reasonable way to be divided.

¹⁰ Things that have a reference to something and come into being for a purpose are either natural or based on reason. Natural things have a cause for their coming into being according to certain numbers and a defined order, moving toward a specific end, where they stop coming into being, unless something gets in their way according to their natural course.

¹¹ But even things that come into being based on reason have some kind of end. Nothing that comes into being based on reason happens by chance; rather, everything is directed toward a specific purpose.

¹² Things that come into being based on reason are those created by makers who think about them and arrange them in whatever way they can. In this way, everything that comes into being through skills and those that arise from choices occurs.

¹³ Things that differ from those that come into being by nature have their beginnings and causes for such generation within themselves, for this is how nature operates. They come into being in a certain order, but not in the same way as those made by creators who apply reasoning to them.

¹⁴ Things that come into being through skill and choice have their source of movement and their cause from outside themselves, not from within. The reasoning of the creator directs their generation.

¹⁵ Third, there are things that come into being for the sake of something else, which are thought to happen by chance or automatically. These differ from the previously mentioned things because, in those cases, things happen for the sake of their end. In these cases, however, things happen for the sake of something else before reaching their end, and they are also created for the sake of something else, which is what we call happening automatically or by chance.

¹⁶ With these things arranged in this way and all things coming into being in these ways, it is important to see in which of the creative causes one should place fate.

¹⁷ Is there really anything that comes into being for no reason? Or is this completely unreasonable? For we always use the term fate when something reaches its end, saying that it has happened by fate. Therefore, it is necessary to place fate among those things that come into being for the sake of something else.

¹⁸ With these words, the man who has been made clear explains in more detail, saying that fate is nothing other than what happens according to nature. For we should not seek the necessity of fate in things that are done according to our reasoning and skill.

¹⁹ It is said that many things that happen according to nature are prevented from occurring, and these are also called unnatural, just like things done according to skill that are said to be against skill. But if something happens completely against nature, then it could also happen against fate, if those things according to nature are indeed the same as those things according to fate.

²⁰ Indeed, he says, we see that the body can have this or that nature in diseases and decay, following its natural structure, but not in the same way for everything, nor necessarily. For many times, enough care, changes in lifestyle, doctors' orders, and advice from the gods can help prevent such a condition.

²¹ In the same way, one could find different choices and actions in each person's soul that go beyond its natural structure, arising from practice, learning, and improved reasoning.

²² Once, when the physiognomist spoke about Socrates the philosopher, he made some strange and mostly incorrect claims about his choices in life. When those around Socrates laughed at this, Socrates did not say that Zopyrus was wrong; for he was such a person by nature, unless he had improved upon his nature through the practice of philosophy.

²³ And these things are according to nature, which he says do not differ from those that happen by fate. But those things that happen by chance, when something does not meet the one for whom it happened, are different from what one did not even hope for. For example, he says that someone finds a treasure by chance while digging for something else, but does not find the treasure itself; instead, he falls into the treasure. They also say that someone receives silver by chance when, going to the market, he accidentally comes across someone who has silver and receives what he owes. A horse is said to save itself automatically when, hoping for food or for someone else's sake, it escapes from those holding it, and in its flight, it happens to fall into the hands of its masters.

²⁴ When these things are so, even these would not be by fate. There are some causes that are unclear to human reasoning, which are believed to happen due to certain oppositions, while the reasons for them remain unknown. When certain accidents are expected to happen, there is no reasonable or believable cause for them to occur. Additionally, there are charms and certain magical tricks. For these, everyone agrees that the cause is unclear; therefore, they say these things happen without a known reason.

²⁵ There are many things besides these, and possibly even more that happen, which would also not be by fate.

²⁶ It is said that these things can happen in such a way that even their absence has a role, as what happens becomes known. For example, moving parts of one's body, turning the neck, stretching a finger, lifting the eyelids, making a seated person stand, calming a moving person, silencing a speaking person, and one might discover countless abilities that respond to opposites, which would not happen by fate; for those that come from fate do not accept what is opposite to them.

²⁷ But even the ability to think things through is not without purpose for a person. It would be pointless to think things through if one acted only out of necessity. Clearly, among all other animals, only humans have this extra ability from nature: they do not just follow their instincts but can judge what comes to them. Using this ability, if they examine the things they imagine and find their source, they agree with their imagination and engage with it. But if something different appears, they no longer stick with that initial thought, as they analyze it with reason, because they think about these things.

²⁸ We think things through only about the things we can do. If we ever act without thinking, we often regret it and blame ourselves for our lack of thought. But even when we see others acting thoughtlessly, we point out their mistakes and believe they should use reason, since we ourselves are capable of such things.

²⁹ That the talk about fate is false is clearly shown by the fact that even their own followers cannot be convinced by what they say. They claim to encourage and teach, and they advise learning and education. They also criticize and punish those who do not act properly, as if they are making mistakes by their own choice.

³⁰ But they also leave behind many writings, through which they believe young people should be educated. They would stop their pride in their words if they noticed that they grant forgiveness to those who make mistakes unintentionally, while they punish those who err intentionally, clearly showing that they understand the difference between the two.

³¹ So, according to them, the necessity of fate is also removed, and it is natural for us to have free will. Along with this, there are many things that are not in our control, just like those that are natural and those that happen by chance. These are different from the reasoning of fate, as has been shown before.

³² From these many writings, we have a strong discussion about free will in our teachings. The voices of philosophers support this, confirming the divine writings related to us, while also proving that the ideas about fate are false, not only according to many people but also according to the remarkable oracles of the gods. Some oracles have been rejected by the brave, while others have been opposed by wise philosophers who know them well. Now, I will also present evidence from a man from Syria, who has reached the highest level of Chaldean knowledge. His name is Bardisanes, and he is mentioned in discussions with his companions.

Book 6, Section 10

According to nature, a person is born, grows, gives birth, eats, drinks, sleeps, ages, and dies. This is true for every human and every living creature.

² And the other living beings are sentient creatures, formed entirely by their connections, almost completely according to nature. A lion eats meat and defends itself when wronged, and for this reason, all lions eat meat and defend themselves. But lambs are herbivores and do not eat meat, and when wronged, they do not defend themselves; the same is true for every lamb.

³ A scorpion eats from the earth and harms those who have not wronged it, striking with its poisonous sting. This same wickedness is true for all scorpions. An ant knows that winter is coming by nature and works hard all summer to store food for itself; all ants work in the same way.

⁴ A bee gathers honey, which it also uses for food; this same gathering is true for all bees. There are many kinds of animals that could have amazed you, which nature cannot easily explain.

⁵ But I thought it was enough to make my point from what is close at hand. Other animals are guided by nature according to their common traits and differences, but humans alone, having the special gift of reason and the speech that comes from it, follow nature in their common traits, as I mentioned before, but do not live according to nature in their unique qualities.

⁶ For there is not just one kind of food for everyone; some are fed like lions, while others are fed like lambs. They do not have a single way of living, no one custom, no common law of society, and no one desire for things. Instead, each person chooses a life for themselves based on their own wishes, not imitating their neighbor, except in what they desire.

⁷ For true freedom does not rely on being a slave. Even if someone chooses to be a slave, this choice is still part of their freedom—the ability to decide to be a slave.

⁸ How many people, especially among the Alans, eat meat like wild animals, not tasting bread—not because they lack it, but because they do not want it? Some do not eat meat at all, like tame animals; others eat only fish; while some do not even taste fish, even if they are starving. Some drink water, others drink wine, and some drink strong liquor.

⁹ There is a big difference in foods and drinks among people, even in how they eat vegetables and fruits. Some, like scorpions and shields, do wrong without being wronged; others, like wild animals, defend themselves when they are wronged. Some, like wolves, grab what they want and steal like jackals; while others, like lambs and kids, are pushed around by those similar to them and do not wrong those who wrong them. Some are called good, others bad, and some just.

¹⁰ Therefore, we must understand that a person is not always guided by nature. For what do we mean by his nature? Some things come from nature, while others come from choice. That is why praise, blame, and punishment are based on choices, while what comes from nature is beyond fault—not because of mercy, but because of reason.

¹¹ And next he says, "People have made different laws in each place, some written and some unwritten. From these, I will share what I know and remember, starting from the beginning of the world."

¹² There is a law among the Scythians that no one should kill, commit adultery, steal, or worship statues. In that vast land, there is no temple to see, no woman called a prostitute, no adulteress, no thief being taken to trial, no murderer, and no one who has been killed.

¹³ For no one was forced by the shining star of war to kill a man with iron, nor did the goddess of love, along with Ares, mix with a foreign woman among them while the star of Ares was high in the sky. At every hour and every day, the Scythians were being born.

¹⁴ Among the Indians and Bactrians, there are many thousands of people called Brahmins. According to the traditions of their ancestors and their laws, they neither kill nor worship statues, do not eat living beings, and never get drunk, as they do not taste wine or strong drink. They do not take part in any wrongdoing, focusing on the god, while the other Indians kill, engage in relationships, get drunk, and worship statues. Almost everything happens according to fate.

¹⁵ In the same region of India, there is a tribe of Indians who hunt and sacrifice any foreigners that fall into their hands. Neither the good stars have stopped them from killing or committing unlawful marriages, nor have the bad stars forced the Brahmins to do wrong.

¹⁶ Among the Persians, there was a law that allowed marrying daughters, sisters, and mothers. Not only did the Persians practice these impious marriages in their land and region, but those who traveled outside of Persia, known as the Magi, also commit the same wrongdoing, passing down the same laws and customs to their children as an inheritance.

¹⁷ From these, many still exist in Media, Egypt, Phrygia, and Galatia. Surely, Cyprus was found within the borders and homes of Cronus, where Cronus was associated with Ares, in the beginnings of all things.

¹⁸ Among the Gauls, there is a law that allows women to farm, build, and do all kinds of work. They can share whatever they wish and cannot be blamed by men, nor can anyone be called an adulteress, since they all are workers and share with everyone, especially with strangers.

¹⁹ The women of the Gauls do not wear perfume or dyed garments; all of them go barefoot. Meanwhile, the men of the Gauls are dressed in soft clothing of various colors, wearing gold and smelling sweet, but they are not soft in any other way, for they are brave, very warlike, and highly skilled in hunting.

²⁰ Not all the women of the Gauls are found in Capricorn or in Aquarius, suffering under the influence of Cyprus, nor do all their men have the Paphian goddess in Aries with Ares, where the Chaldeans say the brave and daring ones are.

²¹ Among the Bactrians, the women use all kinds of adornment and every kind of perfume, being served by young boys and young men more than the men themselves. They come out riding horses with great flair, decorating their horses with lots of gold and very valuable stones. They are not modest, but carelessly share with slaves and strangers, enjoying such freedom, and they almost have control over the men without being blamed.

²² And not always in every generation of the women in Bactria does the laughing Aphrodite shine alongside Zeus and Ares in her own realm. But in Arabia and Osroene, not only are the adulteresses killed, but even those who are suspected are not left unpunished.

²³ Among the Parthians and Armenians, murderers are sometimes killed by the judges and sometimes by the relatives of the victim. If someone kills his own wife, a childless brother, an unmarried sister, a son, or a daughter, he is not charged under the law that exists in those lands. However, among the Greeks and Romans, murderers of relatives face a harsher punishment.

²⁴ In Atropatene, a thief who steals something worth a single obol is stoned. Among the Bactrians, a thief who steals a small amount is spat upon. Among the Romans, he is beaten with rods; such are their laws.

²⁵ From the Euphrates River to the Ocean, in the east, a person insulted as a murderer or a thief does not get very angry. However, someone insulted as a man who sleeps with other men seeks revenge on himself, even to the point of murder. Among the Greeks, though, even the wise do not blame those who have lovers.

²⁶ In the same eastern region, if those who are insulted are identified, they are killed by their brothers, fathers, or relatives, and they are not given a proper burial.

²⁷ Among the Gauls, young men marry openly, not seeing this as shameful because of their laws. It is also not possible for all those in Gaul who are insulted in this way to receive the light-bringer along with Hermes in the homes of Cronus and at the borders of Ares.

²⁸ In Britain, many men have one wife, but in Parthia, many women have one husband, and all are sensible, following him according to the law.

²⁹ Indeed, the Amazons do not have men, but like wild animals, once a year around the spring equinox, they cross their own borders to join with those nearby, seeing this as a kind of festival. From these meetings, they become pregnant and, as nature requires, they give birth at a certain time. They abandon the male babies but raise the female ones. They are warriors and make sure to train in physical exercises.

³⁰ Hermes creates statues, paintings, and table decorations in the homes of Hermes, while in the homes of Aphrodite, there are makers of perfumes, singers, and performers of poems.

³¹ And among the Taenoi, the Saracens, in Upper Libya, among the Moors, and those near the mouth of the Ocean, in Outer Germania, in Upper Sarmatia, in Scythia, and in all the nations from the northern parts of the sea, as well as throughout all of Alania, Albania, Othena, and Saunia, there is no one to be found who makes tables, statues, paintings, architects, surveyors, singers, or performers of poems. The influence of the work of Hermes and Aphrodite is missing in all this part of the world.

³² The Medes all feed their dogs with the dead who are still breathing, and not all of them have Ares, the god of war, born from the earth in Carcino, along with the moon.

³³ The Indians burn their dead, and along with them, they willingly burn the living women. And surely not all the women who are burned alive have Ares, the god of war, under the earth at night, along with the sun in the region of Leo.

³⁴ Most of the Germans die by hanging, and not all of the German people have the moon and the hour intervening under Cronus and Ares.

³⁵ People are born in every nation, on every day, and in every way. In each part of humanity, law and custom hold power because of people's free will. Birth does not force the Scythians to kill against their will, or the Brahmins to eat meat, or the Persians to marry unlawfully, or the Indians to be burned, or the Medes to be eaten by dogs, or the Parthians to have many wives, or the women in Mesopotamia to be modest, or the Greeks not to exercise their bodies naked, or the Romans not to be strong, or the Gauls not to marry, or the other barbarian nations to share in what the Greeks call the Muses. But, as I said before, each nation and each person uses their own freedom as they wish and when they wish, and they are bound by birth and nature, which surround their bodies, some as they wish, and some not.

³⁶ For everywhere and in every nation, there are rich and poor, rulers and the ruled, strong and sick, each according to their own lot of birth." "These things, O Bardisane, have greatly convinced us," I say to him. The astronomers say that this earth is divided into seven regions, and that each region is ruled by one of the seven stars; and that the different laws are not set by the people themselves. But the will of each ruler prevails in their own land, according to the laws that those in power have established.

³⁷ He answered, "This distinction is not true, O Philip. For even if the world is divided into seven parts, we still find many differences in laws within one part. There are not just seven laws according to the seven stars, nor twelve according to the zodiac, nor thirty-six according to the decans, but countless laws."

³⁸ You should remember what I have said: even in one region and in one land of the Indians, there are man-eating Indians, and there are those who stay away from living beings. The Magusaeans do not only marry their daughters in Persia, but also in every nation, wherever they may live, keeping the laws of their ancestors and the rituals of their mysteries.

³⁹ But we have also mentioned many barbarian nations, those that exist in the south and west, as well as in the east and north—in other words, in different regions—who do not share in the knowledge of Hermes.

⁴⁰ How many wise men, do you think, have created poorly made laws? How many laws have been destroyed by confusion? How many kings, ruling over nations, have established the laws before them and set their own? And none of the stars has lost its own region.

⁴¹ Yesterday, the Romans, having control over Arabia, changed the laws of the barbarians. For free will follows free will. I will show you what can persuade even the unbelievers.

⁴² All the Jews who accept the law through Moses circumcise male children on the eighth day. They do not wait for the appearance of a star, do not fear the authority of the region, and are not led by the law of a foreign land. Whether they are in Syria, Gaul, Italy, Greece, or Parthia, wherever they are, they do this.

⁴³ This is not according to their kind, for not all Jews can belong to one kind. But for seven days, wherever they are, they rest from all work. They neither travel nor use fire. Being a Jew does not force them to build a house, tear one down, work, sell, or buy on the Sabbath, even though on the same day, Jews are being born, giving birth, getting sick, and dying.

⁴⁴ For this is no longer about free will. In Syria and Osroene, many were being circumcised by the river. At that moment, King Abgar ordered the genitals and hands of those being circumcised to be cut off. Since then, no one has been circumcised in Osroene.

⁴⁵ What shall we say about the belief of the Christians? We are many who are honored and have risen in different regions, in every nation and place, and we are all called by one name.

⁴⁶ And neither do the Christians in Parthia practice polygamy, even though they are Parthians. Nor do those in Media offer dogs to the dead, nor do the Persians marry their daughters, even though they are Persians. Nor do those in Bactria and Gela destroy marriages, nor do those in Egypt worship Apis, the dog, the goat, or the cat. But wherever they are, they are not overcome by strict laws and customs, nor are they forced by the ruling authorities to take part in the wicked practices taught by their teacher. Instead, they face sickness, poverty, suffering, and the dishonors that are commonly accepted.

⁴⁷ For just as our free person is not forced to be a slave, and if they are forced, they resist those who compel them, so too can our apparent slave easily escape from submission.

⁴⁸ For if we could do everything, we would be everything. So if we could do nothing, we would be the tools of others, as I said before, and not our own. But with God's will, everything is possible and unhindered, for nothing can resist His will. Even those things that seem to resist do so when He is good and allows each nature to have its own identity and free will.

⁴⁹ So much for the Syrian. But since I have mentioned one more, I will write about this matter. While the information from outside writings is presented well, the information from the sacred writings is lacking, and we especially need this for the preparation of the Evangelical Proof. It would be good to examine these as well, so that the discussion does not leave out anything relevant to the problem.

⁵⁰ From this, I will clearly present these things to you. Indeed, it is not possible for you to navigate the sacred teachings that have mostly been obscured. Therefore, I will introduce you to the interpreter of these matters. And you, if you do not envy those who are better, surely know the man who still dances among the followers of Christ, for whom he has left behind his labors, and certainly not to those outside who are unknown, for whom he has shown ambition toward these teachings. Consider then how many and what wonderful things Origen has explained in his Commentaries on Genesis regarding the proposed subject, and how he has shed light on the discussion about fate.

Book Seven

About the lights that have come to be as signs—not just the sun, moon, and stars, which are very important to understand—not only for the nations that are strangers to the faith of Christ, but also for those who stumble into the topic of fate. This happens because of the influence of the so-called wandering stars on those believed to be in the zodiac, affecting both people on earth and each individual, perhaps even irrational animals. However, many who believe may not be controlled by human matters, and it is impossible for things to happen in any other way than as the stars fulfill their various roles.

² Next, for those who teach these things, it is our responsibility to reject them. Therefore, there is both praise and blame, as well as actions that are acceptable and those that deserve criticism.

³ If this is the case, the matters of God's declared judgment are hidden, and threats are aimed at those who are disobedient, as if they will be punished. There are also honors for those who have devoted themselves to those who are better, along with blessings; for none of these will reasonably come to be anymore.

⁴ And if someone considers the things that follow based on what they teach, then faith will be in vain, and the presence of Christ will accomplish nothing. All the work done through the law and the prophets, along with the efforts of the apostles to establish the churches of God through Christ, will also be in vain.

⁵ If Christ is under the influence of the movement of the stars, having been born into this necessity, then he would have done and suffered everything without receiving the strange powers from God, the Father of all. Instead, he would be dependent on the stars. Those who are atheists and impious follow these ideas, believing that those who are guided by the stars are said to believe in God.

⁶ Should we wonder what God intends by creating such a world, where some men endure the experiences of women without being responsible for their own shame, while others, taking on the nature of wild animals, are shaped by the movement of all things? Because God has arranged creation in this way, they subject themselves to the most brutal and inhumane actions, such as murder and piracy?

⁷ And what should we say about the events happening among humans and the sins they commit, with countless occurrences taking place? Those in charge of these matters blame God for all the wrong and shameful actions carried out by everyone.

⁸ If some of them, while defending God, claim that the good one is separate and has no part in these matters, but they attribute such things to the creator of all, they cannot prove that he is just. After all, how could a father of so many evils be just?

⁹ Secondly, they must consider what they will say about themselves: are they subject to the influence of the stars, or are they free? In their lives, do they have nothing from that source acting upon them? For if they claim to be under the stars' influence, it is clear that the stars have given them the ability to think this way. In that case, the creator would be seen as having influenced them through the movement of all things, which they do not want.

¹⁰ But if they respond that they are outside the creator's laws concerning the stars, so that what they say is not left unproven, let them attempt to lead us to a stronger conclusion. They should present a difference between some underlying nature and fate, and another that is free from these influences. It is clear that such people, when asked for an explanation, will not be able to provide one at all.

¹¹ Moreover, the prayers mentioned are made in vain. For if certain things must happen and the stars cause them, then nothing can occur beyond their interactions with one another. It is unreasonable to expect that a god would grant us anything.

¹² And what more is there to say, showing the impiety of those who are blindly convinced by many about the nature of fate? For it is enough to refer to what has already been said.

¹³ From where, then, should we examine the statement, "Let there be signs from the lights"? For this is what we have come to remind ourselves. Those who learn about certain truths, either by being eyewitnesses of events or by observing the experiences and actions of those affected, or by hearing reports from those who are not at all responsible for what has happened, understand these things.

¹⁴ Let us now set aside the ability of those who have acted or suffered to explain what they have done or experienced, in order to bring knowledge of what has happened to someone who has not encountered it.

¹⁵ If, then, the student does not recognize that what has happened or will happen is not always caused by the teacher discussing it as if it has occurred or will occur, he will mistakenly believe that the one presenting this information has caused what has happened or will happen, and he will clearly be mistaken.

¹⁶ It's like someone, upon finding a prophetic book, thinks that it clearly reveals the events about Judas the traitor. After learning about what will happen and seeing it come to pass, this person might believe that the book is the cause of what happens later, since they learned from it about what Judas will do in the future. Or, they might not think the book is the cause, but rather the first person who wrote it, or they might say that it is the one who acted, namely, God.

¹⁷ Just as the words about the prophecies concerning Judas show that God is not the creator of Judas's betrayal, but has only revealed that He knew beforehand what would happen because of Judas's wickedness.

¹⁸ In this way, if someone were to deeply understand the idea that God knows everything and that those who speak according to His own foreknowledge, they would realize that neither the one who knows beforehand is the cause of what has been known beforehand, nor are the words that express the foreknowledge of what has been known.

¹⁹ That indeed God knows each of the future events long before they happen, and apart from writing, it is clear to anyone who understands that this is a truth about the power of God's mind.

²⁰ But if it is necessary to show this also from the scriptures, the prophecies are full of such examples. Regarding Susanna, it is clear that God knows everything before it happens, as it says: "The eternal God, the knower of hidden things, who knows all things before they happen, you know that these have falsely testified against me."

²¹ It is very clear in the third book of Kings that both the name of the king and his actions were recorded many years before the prophesied events happened. It says, "And Jeroboam made a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in the land of Judah. And he went up to the altar in Bethel, which he had made in the high places." Then, shortly after, it says, "And behold, a man of God came from Judah by the word of the Lord to Bethel, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. And he cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord, and said, 'Altar, altar, thus says the Lord: Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah is his name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.' And he gave a sign that day, saying, 'This is the sign which the Lord has spoken: Behold, the altar shall be split apart, and the ashes that are on it shall be poured out.' And shortly after, it is shown that the altar was indeed split apart and the ashes were poured out from the altar according to the sign that the man of God gave by the word of the Lord."

²² And in Isaiah, written long before the captivity to Babylon, after which Cyrus, the king of the Persians, later helps in rebuilding the temple during the time of Ezra, these things are prophesied by name. It says, "Thus says the Lord to my anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, to subdue nations before him, and I will break the strength of kings; I will open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut. I will go before you and make the rough places smooth; I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron. I will give you treasures from dark places, hidden riches of secret places, so that you may know that I, the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel. For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I have called you by your name; I have named you, though you do not know me."

²³ For it is clearly shown from these things that for the people whom he has blessed, the Lord God has given the knowledge of true worship according to the Hebrews to many nations. These things can also be learned from Greek writings that have recorded what was prophesied about Cyrus.

²⁴ And also in Daniel, when the Babylonians were ruling, the future kingdoms after him are shown to Nebuchadnezzar. They are represented by a statue, with the head of gold symbolizing the Babylonian kingdom, the chest and arms of silver symbolizing the Persians, the belly and thighs of bronze symbolizing the Macedonians, and the legs of iron symbolizing the Romans.

²⁵ And again in the same prophet, there are prophecies about Darius and Alexander, as well as the four successors of Alexander, the king of the Macedonians, and Ptolemy, who ruled Egypt and was called Lagus. It is prophesied that I saw a goat coming from the west over the face of all the earth. The goat had a horn between its eyes. It came as far as the ram that had the horns, which I saw standing by the river, and it charged at him with all its strength. I saw it reach the ram, and it became furious with him and struck the ram, breaking both of its horns. The ram had no strength to stand before him, so he threw him to the ground and trampled on him, and there was no one to rescue the ram from his power. The goat grew very strong. When it became powerful, the large horn was broken, and four other horns grew up in its place toward the four winds of heaven. From one of them came forth a single strong horn, which grew very powerful toward the south and the west.

²⁶ What more can be said about the prophecies concerning Christ, like his birthplace in Bethlehem, his upbringing in Nazareth, his flight into Egypt, the great miracles he performed, and how he was betrayed by Judas, who was called to be an apostle? For all these are signs of God's foreknowledge.

²⁷ But the Savior himself says, "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that its desolation is near." For he foretold what would happen later, the end of the destruction of Jerusalem.

²⁸ Therefore, since it has been proven to us that God is a foreknower, let us explain how the stars become signs. We should understand that the stars are arranged and move in such a way, opposite to those called wandering stars, so that signs can be recognized from the shapes of all the stars that appear around each one. People do not know this, for it is much greater than human understanding to truly grasp what happens to each star from their movement, whether they are acting or suffering. But the powers that need to know many of these things will be explained according to their ability in what follows.

²⁹ When people come together based on certain observations, or even from the teachings of angels, they have gone beyond their own order. While discussing these matters concerning our kind, they believe that those from whom they think the signs come must have causes for them, as the word suggests. We will discuss these things more carefully and in summary according to our ability.

³⁰ Therefore, these questions will be presented: (a) How, since God has been a foreknower from eternity about what each person is believed to do, is what is in our power saved; (b) in what way are the stars not creators of what happens among humans, but only signs; (c) that people cannot have exact knowledge about these things, but the signs depend on powers greater than humans; (d) what is the reason that God has made the signs for the knowledge of the powers will be examined last.

³¹ And so, let us first look at what many of the Greeks, being cautious, believed: that if God foreknows the future, then things must happen as they do, and what is in our power cannot be saved at all. They dared to accept a disrespectful belief rather than agree with what those people say is honorable about God, while denying what is in our power. Because of this, they received both praise and blame, accepting the good qualities while rejecting the bad ones.

³² And they say, if God has known from eternity that this person will commit an injustice and do these wrongs, then God's knowledge is true. Such a person will certainly be unjust for doing these wrongs, and it is impossible for him not to commit injustice. If it is impossible for him not to commit injustice, then he is forced to do wrong, and he cannot do anything else but what God has known. But if he cannot do anything else, then no one who cannot avoid doing wrong is blameworthy, and we blame the unjust in vain.

³³ But from the unjust and their wrongdoings, other sins also arise, and then from the opposite side, what is considered good deeds. They say that if God has foreknown the future, then it is impossible for what is in our power to be saved.

³⁴ To those who need to be addressed, it is said that when God created the world, nothing happened without a reason. He observes each future event with his mind, knowing that when one thing happens, another will follow. And if this next thing happens, then another will follow. By understanding this, he knows what will happen until the end of things, but he is not the cause of each individual event occurring.

³⁵ For example, if someone sees another person acting foolishly and carelessly on a slippery road, and then that person falls, they are not the cause of their own fall. In the same way, we should understand that God, knowing what each person will be like and the reasons for their actions, sees that they will make these mistakes or succeed in these things.

³⁶ And if we must say that foreknowledge is not the cause of what happens (for God does not influence the one who is foreseen to sin when they sin), we will say something more strange but true: that the cause of such things is the foreknowledge about that person.

³⁷ For it is not because something is known that it happens, but because it was going to happen, it is known. We need to make a distinction here. If someone interprets 'it will certainly happen' to mean that what is foreseen must happen, we do not agree with that. We will not say that just because Judas was foreseen to be a traitor, it was necessary for him to become a traitor.

³⁸ In the prophecies about Judas, there are accusations and criticisms written against him, showing his blameworthiness. He would not be blamed if he had to be a traitor, and he could not be considered the same as the other apostles.

³⁹ See if these things are not clearly shown by the statements we will present. Let there be no pity for his orphans, instead of showing mercy for those he did not remember. He pursued a poor and needy man, and he was deeply troubled in his heart about killing him. He loved a curse, and it will come upon him; he did not want a blessing, and he will be far from it.

⁴⁰ If someone explains that everything will happen, saying that certain things will happen but could also happen differently, we agree that this is true. For it is not possible for god to lie, but it is possible to consider things that might happen or might not happen.

⁴¹ We will say this more clearly: if it is possible for Judas to be an apostle like Peter, then it is possible for god to consider that Judas will remain an apostle like Peter. If it is possible for Judas to become a traitor, then it is possible for god to think about him being a traitor.

⁴² If Judas will be a traitor, god, with his foreknowledge of the two possible outcomes, knowing the truth about one of them, will foresee that Judas will become a traitor. However, the knowledge about which could also happen differently: god's knowledge could indicate that this person might do one thing, but also the opposite. Knowing both possibilities, I understand that he will do these things.

⁴³ For just as god might say, "It is not possible for this person to fall," a prophecy could say that it is not possible for this person to be wise. For there is no power at all in a person to fall, but there is the power to be wise and to be reckless.

⁴⁴ Of these two powers that exist, the one who does not pay attention to encouraging and teaching words gives himself over to the worst. But the one who seeks the truth and is determined to live by it is better. This person does not seek the truth because he is drawn to pleasure; instead, he examines these matters, influenced by common ideas and persuasive speech.

⁴⁵ Again, this person chooses pleasure, unable to look away from it and not even trying to resist. But this other person scorns pleasure, often noticing the shameful things that come with it.

⁴⁶ Indeed, the foreknowledge of god does not force those it concerns. Along with what has been mentioned, it should also be noted that in many places in the scriptures, god commands the prophets to preach repentance, not pretending to know whether those who hear will turn back or stay stuck in their sins. Just as it is said in Jeremiah, "Perhaps they will listen and repent."

⁴⁷ For god does not know whether they will listen or not, as it is said, "Perhaps they will listen and repent." Instead, he shows the balance of choices through what is said, so that his foreknowledge does not cause those who hear to fall into despair. He presents the idea of possibility, as if there is still a chance for them to turn back, and this becomes a reason for their sins.

⁴⁸ Or again, for those who do not understand what has been foreseen, if they are able to struggle and resist evil by living virtuously, foreknowledge may become a cause of weakness. It may prevent them from standing firmly against sin, as if what has been said will definitely happen. Thus, the foreknowledge of the good that is to come could become a kind of obstacle.

⁴⁹ Indeed, god wisely arranges everything in the world for our benefit and has blinded us to what is to come. This knowledge would have kept us from fighting against evil, but it would have led us to believe we were trapped, making us less likely to resist sin and causing us to quickly become its slaves.

⁵⁰ But at the same time, while we are striving to become good and virtuous, we come to believe that what has been foreseen will certainly happen, that we will always be good. We need more strength and effort to achieve goodness and virtue. However, if we already know that everything will turn out well, it can lessen our motivation. Therefore, it is better that we do not know whether we will be good or evil.

⁵¹ Since we have said that god has blinded us to what is to come, we are looking for a clear example from Exodus to see if we can explain how someone can be both blind and deaf, yet still able to see. Am I not the lord god? I have made both the blind and the seeing; they see what is present but are blind to what is to come. For the situation of the deaf and mute cannot be explained in the present time.

⁵² Indeed, many of the causes that affect us are beyond our control, and we can agree on this. If those things that are beyond our control did not happen, then none of the things that are within our control would take place. However, some of the things that we can control depend on those things that we cannot control, allowing us to act differently from what we are currently doing.

⁵³ If someone seeks to have complete control over everything, so that we choose these things without considering certain events that have happened to us, they will forget that they are part of the world and included in human society and everything that surrounds it.

⁵⁴ Therefore, I believe it has been shown briefly that the foreknowledge of god does not force everything to be predetermined. "But let us strive to say that the stars are not creative for humans at all, but only significant."

⁵⁵ It is clear that if someone believes the arrangement of the stars is creative for certain events concerning humans, let us now discuss this. The arrangement that occurs today, we can say, cannot be thought to have caused what has happened to anything or anyone else; for everything that creates is older than what has been created.

⁵⁶ As for the teachings of those who promise such things, it is believed that they are older than the arrangement related to humans.

⁵⁷ For they promise, in this way, by considering the moment of this person, to determine how each of the wandering stars relates to this fate of the zodiac, or to the details within it. They also identify which star of the zodiac was rising in the east, which was setting in the west, which was at the midheaven, and which was at the lower midheaven.

⁵⁸ When they position the stars, which they believe have taken shape for them based on the time of a certain person's birth, they examine not only future events but also past events and those that occurred before the birth and the person's planting. They consider the father, what kind of person he is—whether rich or poor, healthy or sickly, of better or worse character, a landowner or landless—along with the actions he has taken. The same applies to the mother and older siblings, if they happen to exist.

⁵⁹ Let us then focus on the present and seek the truths in this matter, about which we will later show that things are not as they seem. Let us ask those who believe that the stars influence human affairs how today's arrangement could have shaped the earlier ones.

⁶⁰ For if this is impossible, then whatever is discovered about the truths of the past must clearly show that the stars do not move in the sky to make what has happened and what came before be as they are now. But if this is true, perhaps the one approaching them is speaking the truth. After considering what is said about the future, he will say: to speak the truth is not to create the stars, but only to indicate.

⁶¹ But if someone claims that the stars do not create what has happened, but that other arrangements have caused those events, and that the current arrangement only indicates, then let them show the difference: that what is understood as true comes from creators, while what is understood as merely signifying comes from the stars.

⁶² If they do not understand the difference, they will wisely agree that nothing about humans comes from the stars. But as we have said before, if it is to signify; as if no one receives what has happened and what will happen from the stars, but rather from the mind of the divine through some prophetic word.

⁶³ For just as we have shown before that knowing what will happen does not trouble someone regarding our actions, so too the signs that the divine has set to indicate do not hinder our actions. Instead, in a similar way, the whole sky can contain what will happen prophetically, as if it were a book of God, holding the future.

⁶⁴ Therefore, in Joseph's prayer, what Jacob says can be understood this way: "For I have read on the tablets of heaven what will happen to you and your sons." Perhaps the sky will also be rolled up like a book, revealing the important words about what is to come, which will be completed and fulfilled, just as prophecies are said to be fulfilled when they happen.

⁶⁵ And so the stars will serve as signs, according to the saying, "Let them be for signs." But Jeremiah, turning us back to ourselves and removing the fear about what is thought to be indicated, perhaps even what is believed to come from there, says, "Do not be afraid of the signs of heaven."

⁶⁶ We see a second argument about how the stars cannot create, but rather, if anything, they are significant. For from many generations, it is possible to learn about one person; (we say this as an assumption, allowing that their knowledge can be understood by humans). It can be said that regarding this person, it is possible to know that he will suffer this and die, having fallen to robbers and being killed, based on his own family background, even if he has the chance of having more brothers, from each of them.

⁶⁷ For they believe that each person's lineage includes a brother who will die at the hands of robbers, as well as the lineage of the father, the mother, the wife, their sons, the servants, and the closest friends, perhaps even those who will harm them.

⁶⁸ How then is it possible that with so many lineages, one can allow this to happen to them, being influenced by the arrangement of the stars more than by their own lineage or those of others? For it seems unlikely to say that the arrangement in this person's lineage has caused these events, while in the lineages of others it has caused nothing, but only marked them.

⁶⁹ For it is foolish to say that the lineage of all people includes a creative force that leads to this person being killed. So, in lineages, I say this as an assumption, there could be fifty that include this person being killed. I do not understand how they can save those in Judea, almost all of whom face such a fate at birth, as they receive circumcision on the eighth day, being mutilated and suffering from wounds and inflammation, while at the same time needing doctors for their survival. And those among the Ishmaelites in Arabia are all said to be circumcised at thirteen years old. For this is what is reported about them.

⁷⁰ And again, some of those in Ethiopia remove the shells from their knees, and the Amazons remove one of their breasts. How can the stars cause these things to happen to these peoples? I believe that if we truly understood, we would not even be able to stand and say anything accurate about them.

⁷¹ With so many predictive paths being offered, I do not understand how people could avoid discussing the omens and sacrifices that cause these things, but only point them out, and no longer consider natal astrology.

⁷² For if it is understood (so that we may also be granted understanding), it comes from where knowledge is received. What is more likely to cause events: the stars or the omens? And what is more likely, the omens or the entrails of the sacrificed animals? And what is more from the entrails of the sacrificed animals than from the wandering stars? These points, then, will be enough for now to deny that the stars have a creative role in human affairs.

⁷³ What we have agreed upon does not weaken the argument, since humans are able to understand the heavenly formations and the signs, and what those signs mean. Let us now examine whether this is true.

⁷⁴ Therefore, those skilled in these matters say that to truly understand what relates to natal astrology, one must know not only which star is called the ruler of the twelfth house, but also which parts of the twelfth house and which parts of the sixth house. The more precise ones also consider which parts of the sixth house, and they say this must be done for each of the wandering stars, examining their relationship to the fixed stars.

⁷⁵ Again, they say it is necessary to look at the eastern horizon, not only to see which of the twelve houses was there, but also to know the part and the sixth house of that part, whether it is the first or the second sixth house.

⁷⁶ How then can someone determine the sixth house when half of the twelve houses is covered by the hour, without knowing the ratio of the division of the hours? For example, can one know that a certain person was born at the fourth hour and a half, as well as at the fourth, eighth, sixteenth, and twenty-second hours?

⁷⁷ For they say that the meanings often differ greatly due to ignorance, not only of the entire hour but also of its position. In fact, for those born under the sign of Gemini, there is often a brief and immediate hour, and many variations of events and actions occur for them, as they say, regardless of the reasons for the relationships of the stars and the part of the twelve houses that is near the horizon, which is not recognized by those who track the hour.

⁷⁸ For no one can say that the time between this birth and that hour is thirty. But let this be accepted by them based on how they understand the hour. It is said that the theory shows the zodiac circle moving similarly from the west to the east over a hundred years by one part, and this changes the position of the twelve houses over a long time, with one being the conceptual house and the other being the visible form. They say that the results come not from the visible form, but from the conceptual zodiac, which cannot be fully understood.

⁷⁹ Let it also be accepted that the conceptual zodiac can be understood, or that the truth can be taken from the sensible zodiac. However, they themselves will agree that the combination of those in these forms cannot be fully preserved, as the clarity is often dimmed, so to speak, by the weaker one, because it is overshadowed by the stronger one, to such an extent that it becomes less clear. Often, the dimming of the weaker one is blocked by the sight of the stronger one, and from the other, it is shaped in this way, being significant of the weaker.

⁸⁰ And I believe that some, having arrived at certain places, have given up on understanding these matters, which are not at all left to humans. If anything, they only reach the point where it is marked.

⁸¹ And if someone has experienced these matters, they will understand better what is in the thoughts of those who speak and those who have written than what is believed to be achievable. Indeed, Isaiah, noting that these things cannot be discovered by humans, says to the daughter of the Chaldeans, who especially promise these things to everyone, "Let the astrologers of the heavens stand and save you; let them announce to you what is about to come upon you." For through this, we learn that those who are very eager to learn about these matters cannot clearly reveal what the Lord intends to bring upon each nation.

⁸² Such is the man who has been revealed. But indeed, this whole matter can be summed up in two main points: first, that those who are considered gods in the city are not gods, and second, that there are no good demons. Instead, there are only certain sorcerers, deceivers, and frauds, leading to the destruction and corruption of true piety towards humans, as well as other deceptions, including those concerning fate.

⁸³ From which no one of the human race has been redeemed except Jesus our Savior. It is fitting for us that in the beginnings of the Gospel Preparation, all these things have come to pass through diligence, so that we might learn from certain ancestors and understand how the earlier deception continued. From this, both we and all human life, having turned away from ignorance and godlessness, have found healing from the long-lasting and many-year demonic influence through the teaching of the saving Gospel.

Book 7, Section 1

Now it is time to write about the Hebrews and their philosophy and piety, which we have honored above all the traditions of our ancestors.

² Since we have formed a reasoned and sensible understanding, not an irrational one, to dismiss the false teachings of both Greeks and non-Greeks, it is now time to address the second part, explaining the reason for the transformation of the Hebrew writings.

³ We will show that no one can blame us for taking what is useful from the barbarians, as we present the necessary study. We will teach all the philosophical lessons to the Greeks and even to their own philosophers, which are helpful for common needs and political matters. At the same time, we will demonstrate that we have not taken anything at all from any of the nations, except for the good things we have gained from the Hebrews, which will become clear.

Book 7, Section 2

The other people, indeed, think that life begins only with the body and that nothing about the soul exists beyond what can be seen. They believe that what is good and beneficial is only found in the pleasures of the body. They consider this pleasure to be the only true good, pleasant, and essential for a happy and self-sufficient life. They assume that the greatest gods agree with this view and do not care about life itself unless it includes the pleasures of the body. They seek to live not just to exist, but to live happily, believing that this is the only good that can be present in their lives.

² From this, some people thought that the sun, moon, and stars were the sources of physical life. Amazed by the light, they called them the first gods, claiming they were the only causes of everything. Others honored the fruits of the earth, both wet and dry, along with the warm essence and other parts of the world that nourish and strengthen their bodies, treating them as gods. Still, others, much earlier, openly acknowledged their passions and their goddess of pleasure, love, desire, and Aphrodite, believing these gods had power over them. They viewed certain men, who were the givers and discoverers of pleasures, as tyrants and rulers, through whom they found happiness, and even after death, they made them into gods. Those who became spirits of evil and demons increased the more passive part of their souls, seeking pleasures through their established practices. They rejected all of this and claimed that atheism was much better than such theology. Some, even more shameless than these, declared that the life of a philosopher, which they saw as the most blessed, was nothing other than a life of pleasure, defining pleasure as the ultimate good.

³ Thus, the whole human race, as if enslaved to a bitter and harsh mistress, the goddess of pleasure, and even more to a shameful and uncontrolled demon, is overwhelmed by all kinds of suffering. For their women, as the sacred apostle said, have changed the natural use of femininity into something unnatural. Similarly, the men, abandoning the natural use of femininity, have burned with desire for one another, engaging in shameful acts among themselves and facing the consequences they deserve for their own deception.

⁴ In this way, both Greeks and barbarians, wise and ordinary people, lying on the ground and fallen on their bellies, worshiped the goddess of pleasure, throwing themselves down like reptiles. They saw her as an invincible and unavoidable goddess and honored her. In songs and hymns, at festivals of the gods, and in public celebrations, they performed the rituals and shameless ceremonies of this shameful and uncontrolled pleasure, as if to say that this was good for them. "For the beginning of fornication is the invention of idols."

⁵ And regarding the theology of other nations, it has taken such a form that, to put it briefly, the many shapes of one source of unclean and filthy pleasure, like a many-headed and many-necked hydra, have been divided into many and various parts and sections.

⁶ Since they have fallen into such a great deception, it is fitting that they, using a goddess of pleasure and an evil demon, gathered evil upon evil. They were caught up in women's madness and the destruction of men, in mother-son marriages and father-daughter unions, leading a life full of chaos, and they have been defeated by their wild and beastly nature through extreme wickedness. Such was the way of the ancient nations and their false theology, as shown to us by Greek writers and philosophers in earlier texts.

Book 7, Section 3

If, then, the life of the ancients is clear to you, think only in your mind of the Hebrew children going in the opposite direction in such matters.

² For these were the first and only people among all humans who, from the very beginning of life, raised their minds with logical thought. They also studied the nature of the universe with piety. First, they learned about the elements of bodies: earth, water, air, and fire, from which everything is made. They understood the sun, the moon, and the stars, not as gods, but as works of God. They realized that the nature of physical substance is not only without reason but also lifeless, since it is fluid and perishable. Then, they reasoned that the order of the entire universe is well and wisely arranged, full of living beings, both rational and irrational. They believed that the cause of this order is not automatic, and they did not think that the creative principle of living beings is lifeless or that the creator of rational beings is without reason.

³ Since not even wood and stone could build anything by themselves, nor could clothing be made without weaving, nor could many cities and laws exist without proper order, nor could a ship sail without a skilled captain, nor could even the smallest tool of art exist without a craftsman, nor could a well-built ship ever reach the harbor without a good helmsman; therefore, the nature of the basic elements, being lifeless and without reason, could never follow its own logic apart from the highest wisdom of God. After thinking about these things, the fathers of Hebrew piety, with pure minds and clear vision, honored the creator God of all things for his greatness and beauty in creation.

Book 7, Section 4

Then, realizing that they were an important part of the whole, they believed that one part of themselves was precious (this being the true human, understood in terms of the soul), while the other part was the body that surrounds it. So, thinking about this, they focused their attention and effort on caring for the inner life of a person.

² Thinking that this was pleasing to the creator God of all things, who gave humans a nature that is not ruled by the strength of the body but by the virtue of the soul. Some things, like stones and wood, are lifeless, while others, like plants from the earth, share in life, and others, like animals, have senses and desires. All these things are meant to serve humanity, not through the strength of the body, but through reasoning and the virtue of the soul, which is seen as the highest and royal gift from the cause of all things.

³ From this, they decided not to value the body and its pleasures more than other living things on earth. Instead, they recognized the ruling part within themselves, which is connected to the ruler of all, and the rational and thinking part of the soul, which is divine and knowledgeable, reflecting the likeness of the highest God. They understood this only through their effort and care.

⁴ Then, thinking of nothing else as good except the good giver God of all good things, they declared that the ultimate source of all happiness is his knowledge and love, because he alone is the cause of life, soul, body, and everything necessary for them.

⁵ So, they dedicated themselves completely to him, offering their whole body and soul. They hung their entire life on him and focused only on him, not valuing anything else among the things they could see.

⁶ Thus, they truly appeared as lovers of God and friends of God, some as servants and priests of the Most High God. They were recognized as a chosen and royal priesthood and a holy nation, leaving a legacy of true piety for their descendants.

⁷ So, should we believe that these Greeks are preferred over the Phoenician and Egyptian gods, and that we should accept the stories from the Hebrews about pious men rather than the shameful actions of their gods?

Book 7, Section 5

So, they say that the divine nature leads those who are shown to a greater love of virtue. By accepting the divine along with the piety and philosophy of life, they also deserve visions of divine oracles and angelic appearances. They correct what is lacking in human nature with practical advice, revealing to them knowledge of divine teachings and studies. This way, they will no longer be misled by thoughts or guesses, but will be enlightened by the light of truth in their minds. Thus, they will be able to see the future as if it were present, and they will be able to predict what will happen to all of humanity.

² Such are the highly praised virtues of the Hebrews, which truly contain words that are beloved by God. We have preferred these over the Greek and native myths and nonsense. The former contained the most shameful stories about the gods, while the latter taught the pious lessons about godly men.

Book 7, Section 6

These things were known long before Moses and the Jewish people came into being, from a time far back among the ancestors of the Jews. It is important to clarify this, as Judaism did not exist at that time. The Hebrews, who are mentioned, shared a common name and way of life, but the Jews did not yet exist and were not called by that name.

² You can understand the difference between Hebrews and Jews like this: the name "Jews" comes from Judah, from which the kingdom of the Jews was formed many years later. The name "Hebrews" comes from Eber, who was an ancestor of Abraham.

³ The sacred writings teach that the Hebrews came before the Jews. The way of piety for the Jews began with the laws of Moses, who set aside a day of rest. This served as a great reminder for studying the sacred writings. It included rules about clean and unclean animals, yearly festivals, and certain purifications of the body, all done according to divine symbols over a long period. The Hebrews, who lived before Moses, were aware of all the laws given through him and established a free and unburdened way of piety. They lived naturally, without needing the laws of their rulers, having calm souls, and they understood the true teachings about God. But after mentioning these things, it is also time to turn to the writings.

Book 7, Section 7

So, the great theologian Moses, being a Hebrew from the Hebrews, knew well the traditions of his people. In the introductions to the sacred laws, he passed down lasting memories of the lives of the Hebrew ancestors. He showed what good things they received from God and also mentioned the ways of the wicked and the punishments they faced. He believed it was necessary for future generations to learn his laws as a lesson to avoid the ways of the wicked and to encourage a life of piety.

² It is also important to know that even before his written laws, many of the ancestors were already filled with the virtue of piety through right thinking. They became friends of God and were called prophets, receiving eternal remembrance from him. These ancestors were not strangers to their lineage; they were the ones to whom the laws were given.

³ Therefore, it is even more important for them, as descendants of God-loving and righteous men, to show enthusiasm for the piety of their ancestors. They should strive to receive the same blessings from God that their forefathers received, and not become lazy or give up, thinking that they cannot achieve the hope of goodness.

⁴ For it is possible that their own ancestors were completely successful. They also passed down examples for those learning about the divine, recounting the lives of the ancients and describing the unique virtue of each one, as if writing in a picture.

Book 7, Section 8

And there is nothing stopping us from quickly exploring the history of these matters. Before the flood, as the writing of Moses shows, it seems necessary to look into the traditions of the Hebrews, since we have learned about the Egyptians from the Egyptians and about the Phoenicians from their own people. Similarly, we have learned about the Greeks from those among them who are knowledgeable, and about philosophers from philosophers, but not from those who know nothing about philosophy. Where else would it be fitting to learn about medicine, if not from the experts? Therefore, I believe we should also take the writings of the Hebrews from the Hebrews themselves, and not accept them from elsewhere.

² As the account among these people states, before the flood, from the first generation of humans and into the following generations, there were some men who loved God and many who were righteous. Among them, one hoped to call upon the name of the Lord God.

³ This shows that no one, except for everyone, has written about the creator, the master, and the God of all together. For he is believed not only to have created everything well and arranged it in the universe, but also to rule like a master, as one would in a great city, overseeing and managing everything, being both lord and king and God.

⁴ The first man, who is called loving of God, sought the idea and name of the Lord and God, instead of all existence, names, and wealth, but rather instead of all good things. He hoped to call upon the name of the Lord God, having gathered for himself a treasure of good things for both his soul and body.

⁵ The first true man is said to have been mentioned among the Hebrews. He is called Enoch, which means "the true man," and his name suggests wisdom. They say that no other man is considered true or is named as such, except for the one who is devoted to the knowledge and piety of God, who is truly wise and pious.

⁶ The Hebrew scripture teaches that those who are not like this, who are no different from animals, are more like beasts than humans. They are described as being completely focused on their bellies and pleasures, as if they are fallen creatures. The text is used to applying these names literally.

⁷ For these people, they are sometimes called wolves and dogs, and at other times pigs, dressed up and enjoying themselves. They are also compared to creeping things and snakes, resembling the many forms of wickedness. This is how they are usually referred to.

⁸ If there is ever a need to refer to the common and numerous people, the whole human race is again called by the name of Adam. This shows that this name is a proper and fitting one for the ancestor and father of all humans, indicating the native people in the Greek language.

⁹ Indeed, Enoch is the first among the God-loving people of the Hebrews, as he was the first to hope to call upon the name of the Lord God. This name represents a rational and knowledgeable understanding of the divine and the study of piety. The first part is true knowledge of God, while the second part could serve as evidence of hope in the God who is to be known.

¹⁰ For one should not neglect or place the knowledge of the divine second, but always and forever hope to call upon the name of the Lord God. This would be like a servant to a master and like a humble and good father. This would be the most blessed outcome for all.

¹¹ Thus, the first and true man among the Hebrews is not the earthly one named Adam, who fell from God's command because of disobedience, but the first among the God-loving, who hoped to call upon the name of the Lord God.

¹² Therefore, we have wisely decided to embrace this kind of teaching, and we have shown that the story of the word is useful and beneficial for us. We place our prayer alongside the name of the creator and master of all, hoping with certainty and goodness to call upon it.

¹³ But after the one mentioned, another pleased the Lord, and he was not found, as Moses says, because God took him away for the sake of perfect virtue. For truly, the wise one is hard to find.

¹⁴ This one would be the perfect person in God, who has been removed from many distractions. The one who is not like this chases after markets and courts, as well as the businesses of trade and commerce. He is both pushed and pushing, and he is swallowed up in the depths of wickedness. But the one taken by God, moved from here to there, is unknown and not found by people. He has become a friend of God and is found by God.

¹⁵ This one is called Enoch by the Hebrews, which means "friend." So, it signifies the grace of God. Therefore, we believe that living a life like this is truly blessed.

¹⁶ A third man, Noah, is shown to be righteous in his generation. The signs of his righteousness are these: a great drought and darkness of wickedness have taken hold of all humanity. Those called giants by everyone were involved in godless and impious acts against the divine. Now, those responsible for this generation, whether by some greater fate or by the nature of mortals, are said to have prepared themselves in such a way that they turned to strange teachings among people, giving themselves over to sorcery and other wicked tricks. As a result, all of humanity has become one under a judgment from God.

¹⁷ And indeed, when everyone was about to be destroyed with a single nod, this one man, who is now revealed to us, is found righteous in his generation along with his family. Truly, all those on earth were swept away by the flood, and the waters of the earth gathered in a great flood, cleansing away the earlier evils. The one beloved by God, along with his children and wives, is preserved as a most remarkable seed for life after this.

¹⁸ May this one also be a living and breathing prototype, serving as a model for those born from him, provided in a way that is pleasing to God.

¹⁹ And those before the flood were like this; but those after him were again known for their piety, and the sacred writings keep their memory alive. One of these is called a priest of the Most High God, a just king known by the title of the Hebrews.

²⁰ For all of these, there was not even one word about the circumcision of the body, nor about the commandments of Moses or the Jewish laws. Therefore, they cannot be called just Jews, nor even Greeks, since they did not believe in more gods like the Greeks or other nations. The Hebrews would be more accurately called either from Eber, or even more from the meaning of the name.

²¹ For some are called "passers-by," having been sent from here to the knowledge and contemplation of the God of all. They have guided the right path of virtue through natural reasoning and unwritten laws, and having moved beyond the pleasures of the flesh, they are noted for entering into a wise and god-fearing life.

²² In these matters, let us count Abraham, the leader of the whole nation, who is testified to by the words of righteousness, not the righteousness from the law of Moses, since there was not yet a law at that time (after all, Moses was revealed in the seventeenth generation after Abraham). But he too is called just and pious, just like anyone else mentioned earlier.

²³ The scripture says, "And Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness." The divine oracle declares that he will be the father of many nations, and it clearly states that all the nations of the earth and all the tribes will be blessed in him, directly confirming what is now being fulfilled among us.

²⁴ But Abraham, after being made perfect in righteousness, not through the law of Moses but through the faith that was established in him, was told in his old age that he would be the father of a legitimate son. First of all, according to the oracle, he was to be circumcised in the flesh, and he passed this on to his descendants. This was either as a clear sign of the many children that would come from him or so that the children would have a family mark. They could either live according to the zeal of their ancestors or fall short of their virtues, or there may be other reasons that we do not have time to discuss now.

²⁵ So this one is also set as an example. After him, Isaac is shown to be the heir of his father's knowledge of God and love for God, receiving the best and most blessed part of his father's inheritance. It is said that he used divine words when he married one woman for the purpose of having children. He was revealed as the father of twins, and it is said that he had an extraordinary relationship with his wife, marked by great self-control.

²⁶ Here too, Jacob, who is also called Israel, is introduced as a man who was a champion of his family's virtues. When he was training in the practical ways and lives of those who strive for piety, he was called Jacob. His name shows that he was a seeker and a wrestler, a title that was later translated into Greek.

²⁷ When he then receives the victory crowns against his opponents, he already enjoys the good things that come from contemplation. At that time, the speaking God also changes his name, honoring him with a vision of God and rewarding him with divine gifts and honors through this new name.

²⁸ Then the oracle says to him, "You will no longer be called Jacob, but your name will be Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed." This reveals the man who sees and understands God, since the new name means a person who sees God.

²⁹ This man is the one from whom the twelve tribes of the Jewish nation came. Many things could be said about the lives of these men and their strong philosophy, endurance, and practices. Some things can be understood literally, while others are interpreted through hints and allegories. Others have spoken about these matters, but we too have discussed the many descendants of the ancient men. Such are these men as well.

³⁰ I have another man to tell you about, named Job, of whom the sacred writings testify that he was a blameless man, true, just, God-fearing, and keeping away from all evil. This man is not part of the Jewish lineage, but he is well-known for all his acts of piety.

³¹ The sons of Jacob, who loved the ancestral knowledge of God and piety, raised the reputation of the Hebrews to great glory, so much so that they began to gain power in all of Egypt.

³² For Joseph, praised for his wisdom, later received leadership among the Egyptians. He showed the God-loving way of the Hebrews, which we also strive to imitate through prayer. He became a servant after being betrayed by his own family and served as a servant to an Egyptian man.

³³ As for all the other things he was fortunate in, like beauty, strength, and good looks, I will set those aside, even though his words describe him as the most beautiful of all. But how can someone write about the soul? How can one express the praise of a man based on his worth and virtue?

³⁴ By nature, he had the gift of free speech, and his noble character shone through his face. He was also adorned with a different kind of beauty, one that came from piety, as he displayed wisdom, justice, and courage in his soul. Even more importantly, he had knowledge and reverence for the God of all, which those who gave him life are said to have instilled in his soul from the very beginning.

³⁵ Then, when his master's wife became obsessed with him, trying to pull him into immoral and lustful relationships, she first tried to deceive him with words. Next, she attempted to persuade him with pleas, and finally, she boldly laid hands on him. But the hero, remembering the teachings of his pious ancestors, showed himself to be truly God-fearing and a genuine Hebrew, both in actions and words. He rejected the shameful and immoral woman, using his stronger hand to push her away, just like a frightened and frantic beast escapes to find safety.

³⁶ Then he thought to himself with a wise mind, saying, "If my master knows nothing of what is in his house and has given everything he has into my hands, how can I do this great evil and sin against God?" For these reasons, the God of all, who crowns those who are victorious in virtue, would grant him the kingdom and leadership over his master and all of Egypt. But this man is also a Hebrew from Hebrews, not just a Jew, because he is especially favored among those who are beloved by God and truly blessed.

³⁷ After the aforementioned Hebrews, as their descendants increased in number, the nation of the Jews also grew and multiplied day by day. The teachings of their pious ancestors began to fade and weaken among them, while the influence of living among the Egyptians became so strong that they forgot their ancestral virtues. They started to live in a way that seemed no different from the Egyptians.

³⁸ At that time, the God of their ancestors sent Moses as a leader and lawgiver to them, trusting in the promises made through oracles to their forefathers. Then, through him, the recorded miracles and wondrous signs were performed, establishing a law that matched the character of those who were listening.

³⁹ Those who did not strive for their ancestral virtue because of carelessness, like souls filled with passion and suffering, accepted a way of life that seemed suitable for them. Some of it was clearly laid out by Moses, while other parts were hinted at through suggestions, symbols, and shadows. However, they did not hold onto the pure truth that was being offered to them.

⁴⁰ Indeed, the way of life of the Jews began with Moses and continues until the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ, following the voices of their own prophets. This means that the laws and commands of Moses, as well as those of the later prophets, would not pass away before the appearance of Christ, which is the new covenant announced to all nations through our Savior. This is also what has been fulfilled here, as it has been proclaimed.

⁴¹ But since we have briefly covered the life of the Hebrews before Moses and have presented the character of their piety, it is now time to examine their teachings from the writings of Moses and the prophets who came after him.

Book 7, Section 9

First of all, that remarkable theologian and lawgiver, starting with the writings of his own people, established a way of life suitable for the Jews based on piety. He did not think it necessary to use common or misleading introductions to his words. Instead, he anticipated all the laws meant to guide both poets and non-poets, as well as the public and political rules about how people should interact with one another. He believed that the foundation of his teachings should come from ancestral theology, and he did not consider any other teachings suitable for piety, except for the theology that had been passed down from his ancestors to him.

² Therefore, it begins with God according to the ancestral theology of the Hebrew ancestors, not like the Egyptians and Phoenicians, who assigned the sacred name to many gods. They believed in visible gods, such as the heavenly bodies, as well as hidden and unseen ones, either those that come from humans or the spirits of the earth and air, as we have discussed before.

³ But indeed, he teaches that the lawgiver, who is the creator of all things, both visible and invisible, is the one who made the beginning of everything. He established him as the king of the universe, just like a ruler of a great city.

⁴ Therefore, he teaches that he should be seen not only as the master and lord of the laws that will be given to people later, but also of everything in nature.

Book 7, Section 10

For he presents him as the king and lawgiver of the whole universe. By his will and power, everything has come into being, and through his laws and boundaries, the entire universe is governed in order and arrangement throughout time.

² By the word and law of god, first of all, the heavens are established, and the heavy and solid earth is wonderfully lifted by the lightest elements according to its own nature. By the divine word and law, the cycle of night and day is turned around, and by the word of god and law, the sun and moon, along with the movement of the other stars, follow their proper paths in an orderly way. By the law of the all-powerful king, the changes and shifts of the seasons complete the yearly cycles and the seasonal hours in perfect harmony with the whole. By the law of god, winter retreats for spring, and this happens with the closest changes of the seasons. The depths of the sea are stirred by winter floods, and by the divine law, they are confined to their own waters, so that not even the boundaries of the sacred laws dare to be crossed. The dry land, nourished by the rains and snows that are also measured by divine law, gives rise to countless kinds of plants and animals.

³ In one word, the all-nurturing nature of everything is bound by the command of god, obeying divine laws and the will of the all-leading god. For it is not by chance, nor randomly, nor by an automatic and irrational force that such a great and beautiful order exists. This great and beautiful creation is not the work of a mindless nature, but is a masterpiece of the all-wise architect of everything, governed by his sacred words and laws.

⁴ Then the prophet began, and before the laws for humans, he commanded the laws concerning the nature of everything. First of all, he urged everyone to pay attention to the all-powerful god and not to lose heart regarding his laws. For indeed, both the sun and the heavens, the earth and everything on it, as well as all the works of nature, are believed to be under his commands and sacred laws.

⁵ Therefore, it is even more necessary for the human race, which is not a small part of everything, to closely follow the divine commands and not to be diminished in their essential parts. For in the beginning, the earth was commanded to "let the earth bring forth grass, plants yielding seed according to their kind, and trees bearing fruit." And at the same time, by this command, it shows obedience to the law, not yet neglecting the divine order up to this point.

⁶ So also with the watery substance; when god said, "Let the waters bring forth living creatures that creep, and birds that fly above the earth," it showed that the work was done according to the law, while still demonstrating obedience to the command.

⁷ If indeed the sun, the moon, and the stars are also given their own paths by the divine law, serving as signs for seasons, days, and years, they do not neglect the law. Who then would have any excuse to avoid responsibility for ignoring the divine laws?

⁸ Having taught these things, the wonderful one set us up as examples of true knowledge of god and piety, because we cannot find anything similar among the theologians of the nations that have been revealed before.

⁹ After the first theology, one moves on to the second doctrine, which is natural and philosophical. After gaining knowledge about god and the arrangement of all things, one proceeds to understand human nature. This is because, after knowing god, it is necessary to know oneself. Therefore, it teaches what a person is and what leads them to the knowledge and piety of god, as well as what human life is according to what has been said before.

When examining the discussion about the soul and body, the true human is defined as a rational essence that is immaterial and shares in the divine image. The body is seen as an earthly covering for the soul. Additionally, a third element is added: the breath of life, which serves as a unifying force connecting the earthly being made in the image of god.

¹⁰ It is also said that the first man lived in the blessed paradise of god, filled with immortal and eternal goods. However, by the law of god, he was similarly subjected to the same beginnings as all things. Due to carelessness and breaking the divine command, he was deprived of the life of the threefold nature.

¹¹ Moses reflects in the introductions of the sacred laws, especially warning us not to neglect our own worth and how we are made similar to the divine. From this, we are also called to the immortality of the soul.

¹² For it is not right for the image of a king to be hidden. The true and original image of god is his word, which embodies wisdom, life, light, and truth. If someone thinks of anything beautiful and good, the human mind is an image of that original, by which it is said to have been made in the image of god.

¹³ He thought it was necessary for those who are about to offer sacred laws to remember what is taken from the earth and will return to it, as well as what is greater and similar to god within us. Each person should offer themselves and not insult or disrespect the human being made in the image of god, nor stain themselves with shameful and unlawful actions. They should always carry the desire for that first and most blessed life and existence, and strive to return to it, praying to attain that first and most blessed life and worth. They should also prepare themselves here for the journey there, since it is not possible for the unclean and those not purified to enter those sacred places, from which the first man fell away due to carelessness and despising the divine command.

¹⁴ On these matters, the hierophant adds another important teaching, instructing not to doubt that there is indeed a wicked spirit present for each person—a slanderer and a hater—who has been a threat to the salvation of humanity from the very beginning.

¹⁵ This dragon and serpent is called dark and dwelling in shadows, full of poison and evil. It is said to trip up our divine life with envy, even now, and to drag down each person who tries to offer themselves to god. Because of this, our ancestors fell away from a higher divine state, so it is necessary to always be alert against the wicked tricks of this spirit.

¹⁶ And why should we anticipate these things? It is necessary to go through each of the writings that have been shared. Let us begin first with god, calling upon him as our helper through our savior.

Book 7, Section 11

The beginning of theology starts from the creative power of the one who made all things. This teaching presents itself not through reasoning or arguments, but more as a doctrine and teaching inspired by the holy spirit. In this way, Moses, guided by god, began his theology, saying, "In the beginning, god made the heaven and the earth."

² Then he says, "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." And again, "God said, 'Let there be a firmament,' and it was so." And again, "God said, 'Let the earth bring forth grass, plants that produce seeds according to their kinds, and trees that bear fruit, whose seed is in itself, according to their kinds upon the earth,' and it was so." And again, "God said, 'Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to shine upon the earth, and let them be for signs, for seasons, for days, and for years,' and it was so." And again, "God said, 'Let the waters bring forth living creatures according to their kinds, and all the birds of the air according to their kinds,' and it was so." And again, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures, both livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds,' and it was so."

³ In these words, the scripture says, "God said," showing that the divine spirit and the will of god brought things into being. It is not necessary to think of him as speaking with voice and sounds, but rather, summarizing the whole account, it says, "This is the book of the creation of heaven and earth, when god made the heaven and the earth and all that is in them."

⁴ Such is the theology according to the Hebrews, teaching that all things were created by the word of god. Furthermore, it does not suggest that the whole world was left like an orphan by its father, but rather that it is always cared for by god. This shows that god is not only the creator and maker of all things, but also the savior, ruler, king, and leader, overseeing the sun, moon, stars, and the entire universe throughout the ages. With a great eye and divine power, he watches over everything, being present to all heavenly and earthly beings, and arranging and governing all things in the world.

⁵ Just as the prophets spoke without care after these things, they also declared divine truths. At times, they would proclaim from the divine presence, saying, "I am god, drawing near," says the lord, "and not god far away. If a person does something in secret, will I not know it? Am I not the one who fills heaven and earth?" says the lord.

⁶ Then, speaking of god, they ask, "Who measured the water in his hand, and the heavens with a span, and all the earth with a measure? Who set the mountains with a scale and the hills with weights? Who has known the mind of the lord, and who has become his counselor?" And again, "He who made the heavens like a curtain, and stretched them out like a tent to live in." And once more, "Lift up your eyes on high and see who created all these things." And next, "The lord, the lord, the god who made the heavens and established them, who strengthened the earth and everything in it, and gave breath to the people on it, and spirit to those who walk on it, I am the lord, the god." And next, "I alone stretched out the heavens, and I strengthened the earth; I am the lord, there is no one besides me."

⁷ And again, you will say to them, "Gods who did not make the heavens and the earth, let them be destroyed from the face of the earth and beneath the heavens." The lord who made the earth by his power established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens. He brings up clouds from the ends of the earth, makes lightning for rain, and brings forth winds from his treasures. Every person has become foolish because of their own knowledge.

⁸ And again, "Where can I go from your spirit, and where can I hide from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the grave, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest part of the sea, even there your hand will guide me."

⁹ But these things, and those similar to them, are found among the theologians after Moses, who are also Hebrews, and they agree with the very ancient forefathers who spoke of God. Indeed, those who were before Moses, the beloved and most blessed men, including the first Hebrews, especially the first of all, Abraham, who is also called the forefather of the whole Jewish nation, should be listened to.

¹⁰ Abraham said to the king of Sodom, "I raise my hand to God Most High, who created the heavens and the earth." And before Abraham, Melchizedek, priest of God Most High, came in and blessed Abraham with these words: "Blessed be Abraham by God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand; and blessed be God, who created the heavens and the earth."

¹¹ Moreover, the word introduces Abraham speaking to his servant, saying this: "Place your hand under my thigh, and I make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth." He adds, "The Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth."

¹² In all these things, during the theophany to Moses, when Moses was asking whom he should say is God, the oracle says, "I am who I am; thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I am has sent me to you.'"

¹³ These things, then, should be set apart from the countless ideas of Hebrew theology. Is it not worth comparing them to the theologies of the wise Greeks? Some of them do not even declare that there is a god at all, while others say that the stars are gods, which they consider to be many and fiery, stuck in the sky like nails and petals. Some say that fire is a guiding force, and that the world is not governed by the providence of a god, but by some irrational nature. Others claim that only the heavenly things are governed by a god, but not the things on earth. They also say that the world is ungenerated and not created by a god, but rather that it exists automatically and by chance. And what about those who say that everything came from atoms and fine, lifeless, and irrational bodies?

¹⁴ But the ideas from the writings of the Hebrews about the god of all things are briefly like this: we should also consider what the Hebrews have thought about the origin of created things in relation to the god of all.

Book 7, Section 12

Thales of Miletus declared that the beginning of all things is water, Anaximenes said it is air, Heraclitus said it is fire, Pythagoras said it is numbers, and Epicurus along with Democritus said it is atoms. Empedocles spoke of the four elements. Therefore, let us also look at the writings of the Hebrews.

² After the uncreated and eternal existence of the god of all things, which is not mixed with anything and is beyond all understanding, they introduce a second existence and divine power, the first cause of all created things, which has come from the first cause itself. They call this existence reason, wisdom, and the power of god.

³ The first teaches this, saying in Job, "But where does wisdom come from? Where is the place of understanding? Mortal man does not know its way, nor has it been found among humans, but we have heard of its fame. The lord established its way, and he alone knows its place."

⁴ And David, in his psalms, also speaks of wisdom by name, saying, "By the word of the lord, the heavens were made," praising the word of god, the creator of all things. Moreover, Solomon, his son, personifies wisdom, saying, "I, wisdom, dwell with counsel and knowledge, and I call for understanding. Through me, kings reign, and rulers write justice."

⁵ And again, "The lord created me as the beginning of his ways for his works. Before the ages, he established me, at the beginning, before he made the earth, before the depths were formed, before the mountains were set, and before all the hills, I was brought forth. When he prepared the heavens, I was there with him, arranging things. I was his daily delight, rejoicing before him at all times, when he took pleasure in the inhabited world."

⁶ These things Solomon says in Proverbs. He also speaks of wisdom, asking, "What is wisdom, and how did it come to be? I will tell you, and I will not hide mysteries from you, but I will trace it from the beginning of creation." He then adds, "For it is a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique, diverse, subtle, mobile, clear, unblemished, all-powerful, all-seeing, and it moves through all spirits that are intelligent, pure, and most subtle."

⁷ For wisdom is the most active of all movements, and it extends and moves through everything because of its purity. It is a breath of the power of god and a true outflow of the glory of the almighty; therefore, nothing impure comes near it. It is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of god's activity, and an image of his goodness. It stretches strongly from one end to the other and governs all things wisely.

⁸ And indeed, the divine scripture presents this inspired word in different ways, sent by the father for the salvation of humanity. It was revealed to Abraham, Moses, and the other beloved prophets, teaching many things through oracles and foretelling what was to come, whenever god and lord were seen and remembered in the words of the prophets.

⁹ He sent this word to all people so they could come to knowledge, like a savior for the sick and a healer of souls, sent by the greater one. Thus, he proclaims that he sent his word, healed them, and rescued them from their corruptions. And again, at another time, it says that his word runs swiftly. From this, the evangelical teaching renews the prophetic and ancestral doctrine, explaining theology: "In the beginning was the word, and the word was with god, and the word was god. He was in the beginning with god. All things were made through him, and without him, nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and the life was the light of people."

¹⁰ It is indeed fitting that the wise Moses, beginning with the creation of the world, says that god made the heaven and the earth in the beginning that was given beforehand. He introduces god as if he were speaking to his own word, which is involved in the creation of humanity, where he writes and says, "Let us make man in our image and according to our likeness."

¹¹ This is also hinted at by the psalmist when he discusses the first cause, saying, "He said, and they were created; he commanded, and they were formed." He directly connects the first cause to the second cause, like a father to a son, establishing both command and instruction. It is clear that anyone who speaks to another is speaking from themselves, and the one giving a command is doing so from within themselves.

¹² Moreover, Moses again clearly mentions both lords, the father and the son, when he tells about the punishment of the wicked, saying, "And the lord rained down sulfur and fire from the lord upon Sodom and Gomorrah."

¹³ In agreement with this, David also sang, saying, "The lord said to my lord, 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'" He hinted at the hidden and secret nature of his origin, saying, "From the womb, before the morning star, I have begotten you."

¹⁴ But do not think that I am being wise about these things. I will present to you an interpreter of the understanding in the scripture, a Hebrew man, who is precise about his own teachings from his father and has learned the doctrine from the teachers, if indeed this is the kind of person Philo is. Therefore, listen to this as well, to see how he interprets the divine words.

Book 7, Section 13

"Why does he say that he made man in the image of another god, and not in his own? This is said very wisely and completely. For nothing mortal could be represented in relation to the highest and father of all, but only in relation to the second god, who is the word of that one."

² For the rational aspect of the human soul must be shaped by the divine word, since the god before the word is greater than any rational nature. And in the idea that is beyond the word, which is in the best and most special state, it is not right for anything created to be made similar.

³ Let these things be taken from the first of Philo's Questions and Solutions. In his earlier work, On Agriculture, he refers to the first-born son of god as the word. "Indeed, the shepherd and king god leads all these things according to justice, having established the right word and first-born son, who will take care of this sacred flock, like a steward of a great king."

⁴ And in the second work, he again writes these things exactly: "If anyone wishes to escape the difficulties in the troubled matters, let them say boldly that nothing created can be strong enough to bear the weight of the world. But the eternal word of god is the strongest and most secure foundation of all."

⁵ This one, positioned from the middle to the ends and from the ends to the middle, twists the invincible path of nature, gathering all the parts and tightening them. For the father who created everything made him an unbreakable bond of all.

⁶ Therefore, it is not surprising that no land will be dissolved by any water that its bays have separated, nor will fire be extinguished by air, nor will air be set on fire by fire. The divine word sets a boundary, calling forth the elements without sound, so that everything may be harmonized like written music, with the threats of opposites being persuaded by the joining together of the mediator who sustains.

⁷ These things are by Philo. Another wise man of the Hebrews, Aristobulus, during the height of Ptolemaic rule, confirms the teaching as traditional, addressing Ptolemy with the interpretation of the sacred laws, in which he says the following.

Book 7, Section 14

Let the same be said about wisdom: for all light comes from it. Therefore, some from the school of the Peripatetics have said that it has a special place. Those who follow it continuously will be untroubled throughout their lives. More clearly and beautifully than our ancestors, someone named Solomon said that it exists before heaven and earth; and this agrees with what has been said before.

² These things and similar ideas have been discussed by the Hebrew children. Is it not true that this teaching would be the most divine, by the power of a rational and all-wise god, more so than by wisdom itself and the word of god, when it sets the beginning of all creation rather than by lifeless and irrational elements?

³ But such things are found among the Hebrews, including those about the beginning of all things. Let us also consider what they teach about the creation of rational beings, which comes after the first beginning.

Book 7, Section 15

After the uncreated and eternal being of the all-powerful god, they teach about the beginning that is born only from the father. This beginning is both the firstborn and a helper of the father's will, and it is represented in relation to him.

² They are accustomed to call this one the leader of all created beings, as well as the image of god, the power of god, the wisdom of god, and the word of god. Yes, indeed, they also refer to him as the chief commander of the lord's power and the angel of the great counsel.

³ After this beginning, the intellectual and rational powers are said not to be expressible in human nature. This is because of the multitude and the differences in forms, except to the extent that we can use examples from the analogy of visible things, like the sun, the moon, the stars, and indeed the whole universe contained within itself.

⁴ "For there is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars," says the apostle; for one star differs from another in glory.

⁵ Therefore, in this way, one must think of the world in terms of incorporeal and intellectual beings, with everything receiving together the unspeakable and infinite power of god, the creator of all. The creative and enlightening power of the divine word comes second after the father. That is why it is called the true light and the sun of righteousness, a name cherished by the Hebrews.

⁶ But after the second being, the third is established in the realm of the moon, which is the holy spirit. This spirit is also said to have the first and royal authority and honor of the creator of all, serving as the beginning of those that come after it. This refers to those that have descended and are in need of its support, and it is arranged in relation to the creator of all.

⁷ But this third being, holding the third rank, provides support to those who have descended from the greater powers within it. It also draws strength from another source, namely the divine word, which is indeed higher and greater. We said that it comes second to the highest and most noble nature of god, the king of all. From this source, the divine word itself is also supported, and like a fountain of ever-flowing divinity, it pours out to all, especially to the holy spirit, being closer to it than to all others. It freely and without hesitation shares the intellectual and divine powers that follow, along with the shining rays of the familiar light.

⁸ The uncreated beginning of all things, which is the source of all good, is both divinity and the cause of life, light, and all virtue. It is indeed the first of the first and the beginning of beginnings, going beyond every first and every clear and understandable thought. All that is contained within the unspeakable powers is shared only with the first creation, as it alone can receive and accept the abundance of goodness from the father, which cannot be reached or contained by anyone else.

⁹ The things that are partial are given to those who are worthy through the service and mediation of the second being, according to what is possible for each. Among these, the perfect and most holy things are given to the third being from itself, and to the ruler and leader of those that come after, through the son, who receives what is brought from the father.

¹⁰ From this, all the Hebrew theologians, after the god above all and after his firstborn wisdom, refer to the third and holy power as the holy spirit, by which those who are filled with god are also enlightened.

¹¹ Next, they say that stars differ in glory in heaven, the sun, and the moon. For mortal nature, it is not possible to find a number of stars, except that the all-sovereign god is said by the Hebrews to know the words and the multitude of the heavenly host and their names. Therefore, among them, it is said, "the number of the multitude of stars and all their names is beautiful."

¹² Thus, after the first powers that are considered stars among the incorporeal beings, which excel in the essence and power of light, there is a great and incomprehensible difference for us, with countless kinds and races, but not even to the creator of all.

¹³ Therefore, some theologians say that the visible beings serve the one god, "myriads of myriads ministered to him and thousands of thousands stood before him." This shows the number of what is visible to god, while the quantity is infinite for us. For this reason, we are used to calling the many and the infinite "myriad" in an exaggerated way.

¹⁴ Another prophet, speaking about their essence, describes the creator of all, saying, "Lord, my god, how greatly you have been magnified! You have clothed yourself in grandeur and majesty, wrapping yourself in light like a garment, stretching out the heavens like a curtain; you who make your angels spirits and your ministers a flame of fire."

¹⁵ Do not think that the things we describe share in the essence of our mortal and earthly fire, nor of the spirits that come from the nature of air. Instead, they call god himself incorporeal and immaterial, beyond understanding and beyond all reason, having a nature that is more like spirit, fire, and light. He is also named by other fitting mortal terms, such as angels and archangels, spirits, divine powers, and heavenly hosts, as well as authorities, powers, thrones, and dominions. They say that he rules over all and watches over the sun of justice, along with its holy companion, the holy spirit, like countless stars and shining lights, which the divine words refer to as rational and intelligent beings.

¹⁶ But all things, both rational and intelligent beings, along with those that appear in heaven, the heavens themselves, and all that is contained within them, belong to the one god above all. He rules through all and is in all, the universal king and cause of everything. As the creator of all, the maker, caretaker, and savior, the divine and prophetic scripture commands that the fitting hymn and appropriate theology be offered, saying,

¹⁷ Praise god from the heavens; praise him in the highest places. Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his powers. Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all the stars and light. Praise him, you heavens of heavens, and let the waters above the heavens praise the name of the lord. For he spoke, and they came to be; he commanded, and they were created. He set them in place forever and ever; he gave them commands, and they will not fade away.

¹⁸ Such are the teachings from the Hebrews, which we have noted in contrast to the Greeks' belief in many gods and their demonic error. Knowing that divine powers serve the universal king god and honor him as they should, we confess only one god and worship only him. This is the god whom heaven and all that is in heaven, as well as what is beyond the heavens, are taught to honor, praise, and speak of. For even he, the only-begotten of god and firstborn of all, teaches us to regard his father as the true god and to worship only him.

Book 7, Section 16

It follows that we should also consider what the Hebrew writings say about the opposing powers. The divine powers, set in place by the father's command over the whole world, along with the ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit the kingdom, as well as the holy angels of god and archangels, are all good spiritual beings that are bright and serve the good gifts given to humans by god. They surround the universal king of all. Then, like stars in the heavens, the sun of righteousness and its holy spirit accompany him, enjoying the light they provide. Therefore, it is fitting to compare them to the lights in the heavens.

² But the one that has turned away from these and is deprived of the better company because of its own weakness has changed from light to darkness. It is named with terms that reflect its wicked way of life, rather than its original state.

³ The one who caused the fall, becoming the reason for his own and others' rebellion against the better beings, has completely fallen from divine goodness. He has become a source of evil and impiety, having turned away from the light of his own creator. He has become a maker of darkness and irrationality, like a dragon and a serpent, dark and creeping, a deadly offspring of poison, a wild beast, and a man-eating lion. He is often called the basilisk among creeping creatures.

⁴ The divine writings say that the cause of the fall was madness of mind and a loss of reason. They tell the story of his fall and his insanity, saying, "How, how has the morning star fallen from heaven? He who rises early has been crushed to the ground, he who sent messages to all the nations. But you said in your mind, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will place my throne above the stars of heaven; I will be like the Most High.'"

⁵ And again, "This says the Lord: Because your heart was lifted up, and you said, 'I am a god; I have made my dwelling place like that of a god.'" And again, "You were a seal of perfection and a crown of beauty; you became a delight in the paradise of God, and you were adorned with every precious stone." And so on.

⁶ You were chosen on the holy mountain of God; you were born among fiery stones. You were perfect in your days, from the day you were created, until wrongdoing was found in you. Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; your wisdom was corrupted by your splendor. Because of your many sins, I cast you to the ground.

⁷ Because of these things, we have learned about the fall from the higher powers and the downfall due to pride and rebellion against God. There is another kind of sin that is similar to this, which, because of its wickedness, has fallen from the company of the righteous. Instead of the former glorious and divine surroundings in the kingdoms of honor and in the blessed and angelic gatherings, it is assigned to the place of the wicked. By the just judgment and decree of the great God, it is to dwell in Tartarus, which the divine words call the abyss. This is not the darkness we know, but the darkness described by the divine words, which has been exchanged.

⁸ This is a brief and small excerpt, for the sake of the athletes of piety, about the earth and the air left beneath the moon. It has become a cause of the great deception among humans, which shows no difference from disbelief.

⁹ The divine scripture also uses these names for them, more openly when it speaks of evil spirits and demons, rulers and authorities, and world powers, as well as spiritual wickedness. Symbolically, when it encourages the God-loving person not to fear the army of enemy demons, it says, "You will tread upon the shield and the basilisk, and you will trample the lion and the dragon."

¹⁰ An example of their hatred for God is their desire to call themselves gods and to take the honors that belong to God for themselves. They try to use oracles and prophecies, like those who are charming and deceptive, to lure those who are easy to deceive. They pull people away from the true God and drag them down into the destruction of wicked and godless superstition. For this reason, the Jewish people have been warned since ancient times to flee from their deceptions. They clearly teach that all the gods of the nations are demons.

¹¹ Now, with God's help, through the teaching of our Savior's gospel, all the nations of the world, freed from demonic bonds, praise God, whom we have learned is the only Savior, King, and God of all.

Book 7, Section 17

Here again, the creation story of the Phoenicians and Egyptians brings forth all living things on earth, both animals and humans, as if it happens automatically. They say that all come from the same nature, arising from the earth, and they suggest that there is no real difference between the irrational and the rational soul and essence.

² Indeed, the words of the writers they have presented clearly show this. The children of the Hebrews are rightly favored by us, as they have thoroughly, wisely, and truthfully addressed the topic of the first creation of humans.

³ They say that among us, some things are divine and immortal, having a nature that is incorporeal and immaterial. This means that a true human is made in the image and likeness of God, and that he is a creation of God, not the result of chance or automatic nature. It is by the divine will of the cause of all things that he possesses the rational and logical essence of what exists on earth. This way, through all things—both heavenly and ethereal, as well as the rational beings on earth—the appropriate hymn of his divinity may be offered up.

⁴ Thus, the Hebrew writings say, "And God said, 'Let us make man in our image and likeness.' And God made man; in the image of God he made him." And again, "And God took dust from the ground and formed man, and breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul." These things are explained by the Hebrew interpreter Philo, who also adds these words.

Book 7, Section 18

But some say that our mind is a part of the ethereal nature and connect humans to the ether. However, the great Moses did not compare the essence of the rational soul to anything. Instead, he said that it is a true sign of that divine and invisible spirit, marked and stamped with the seal of God. Its character is the eternal phrase, "He breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul." Therefore, it is necessary for the one who sends to be reflected in the one who receives.

² Therefore, it is said that man was made in the image of God, not in the image of any created thing. Thus, it follows that the human soul is reflected according to the original reason of the cause, and the body is raised toward the purest part of all, which is the heavens, to lift up its gaze.

³ These things are true. Indeed, the divine scripture does not say that man was made like other animals. Some were made from the earth by a single command of the all-powerful God, while others arose from the watery substance by his will. But only among the creatures on earth, the most beloved to God, are we ourselves made in the image of God and according to his likeness in our soul. For this reason, we see that our nature is original and royal. We are the only rational, creative, critical, and law-giving beings among those on earth, capable of arts and sciences. Only the soul in humans is a rational and logical essence, which is not shared with other living creatures on earth.

⁴ Therefore, some arrange for humans to serve and provide a place for servants, while humans, like a master and leader, should be served and have authority over those who are much stronger in body but lesser in their rational essence.

⁵ They say that this one was made in the image of God and according to his likeness, with some difference in superiority. For this reason, humans can have thoughts of God and understand wisdom, justice, and all virtues. They are able to count the paths of the sun, moon, and stars, as well as the cycles of days and hours, thanks to their connection to higher things, which only humans among mortals can demonstrate.

⁶ The outer part of this being is made of a different substance and is earthly, but it is also a work of God, taken from the earth and returning to it. Therefore, it is necessary for this part, which is like an irrational creature, to be cared for by the master, to be led gently, and to be fed like a servant, so that it can serve the needs of human life well. But the inner master, being noble and of divine nature, should be honored freely, since it is connected to the cause of all things.

⁷ He says that the great king, having adorned the first nature of humans with divine powers and the likeness of God, granted them a harmonious existence. He removed them from their first dwelling in a paradise of good things and placed them among divine celebrations.

⁸ And he says that in the beginning, he was given a father who was all-good, but he fell away by his own choice from those who were greater, and he exchanged the mortal realm for divine commands with disregard.

⁹ Therefore, it is especially fitting to strive for piety at the beginning, to correct the first wrongdoing with second chances, and to hurry back to the restoration of what is one's own. For the purpose of human nature is not to be destroyed and lost here on earth, but to return to the place from which the first one fell away.

¹⁰ Therefore, it is necessary to regain the pure and divine-like part of our thinking essence, for which we should eagerly strive with all our strength, focusing on piety and virtue for everyone.

¹¹ Such ideas about human nature have been deeply studied by the Hebrews from ancient times, even before the Greeks engaged with humanity. Some young men from yesterday, having emerged from the earth, considered the thoughts of the barbarians and did not shy away from those of the Hebrews, as the discourse will soon make clear.

¹² But since it was unique to Hebrew teachings to see the one God as the creator of all things and to understand the substance underlying bodies, which the Greeks call matter, many barbarians and Greeks stood in opposition to this. Some claimed that matter is the source of evil and exists without a cause, while others said that matter is formless and ugly, but that the world was shaped by the power of God. It should be shown that the Hebrew view is much better, as it is supported by logical proof regarding the issue, and it refutes opposing arguments with sound reasoning.

¹³ I will present the views of those who have accurately explained the doctrine before us, starting with Dionysius, who writes the following about the topic in the first of his works Against Sabellius.

Book 7, Section 19

For those who see matter as uncreated and submissive to God for decoration are not holy, because they believe it is changeable and subject to divine transformations.

² And where do both God and matter have the similar and the different? Each must have something greater imagined, which you cannot think of as lawful regarding God. For the uncreated, which is said to be similar in both, and the other understood by each, where did it come to be in them?

³ If God is uncreated, and his essence is, as someone might say, ungenerated, then matter would not be uncreated; for matter and God are not the same. But if each is what it is—matter and God—and the uncreated is present to both, it is clear that it is different for each, and older and higher than both.

⁴ But it is completely contradictory for these to coexist, especially for matter to exist on its own, and for there to be a difference in the state of opposition.

⁵ For let them explain the reason why, while both are ungenerated, God is impassible, unchanging, unmoving, and active, while matter is the opposite: passive, changeable, unstable, and undergoing transformation.

⁶ And how did they fit together and come together? Did God shape matter according to its nature? But this is just as strange as if humans were to work with gold and stone, and in other crafts, to shape and mold matter while trying to control God.

⁷ But if he shaped matter as he wished according to his own wisdom, impressing the form and pattern of his creation upon it, then this statement is both fitting and true, and it also supports the idea that God is ungenerated, the foundation of all things.

⁸ For being ungenerated is also related to how it exists. There is indeed much to say about this, but it is not the right time for us to discuss it; compared to the unseen many gods, these ideas are more fitting. Therefore, listen to these teachings from Dionysius and Origen.

Book 7, Section 20

If someone argues that God cannot create beings without the underlying ungenerated matter because of human craftsmen—since a sculptor cannot make his work without bronze, nor a carpenter without wood, nor a builder without stones—one should think about the power of God. If God wishes to create whatever he wants, his will is neither lacking nor weak; he can establish whatever he desires.

² For by this reasoning, the qualities—bringing all providence through their own logic—do not exist as they wish for the decoration of the whole. He establishes them with his own unchanging power and wisdom. According to this reasoning, the essence needed for his will to create is sufficient.

³ For we will be puzzled by those who do not want things to be this way if it does not follow that God, having found the ungenerated essence, is fortunate. If he had not been supported by the ungenerated, he would not have been able to create anything at all. Instead, he would have remained neither a creator, nor a father, nor a benefactor, nor good, nor anything else that is rightly said about God.

⁴ From where does the measure of the underlying essence come, so that it can last in such a state of the world? For some kind of providence, necessarily older than God, must support the matter, ensuring that the skill that exists in him does not suffer from emptiness. This is because there is no essence with which he could associate to adorn the beauty of such a world.

⁵ From where has a receptacle for all the qualities that God wants come to be, if God himself did not create such a quality for himself that he would want to have?

⁶ Based on our assumption, we will say these things to those who want this: if the essence has come to be such without providence supporting it to God, then if there was a providence present, what more could it have done than what happens by itself?

⁷ And if he wanted to create it without any material existing, what more could his wisdom and divinity have done than what has come to be from the uncreated? For if the same thing can be found to have come to be by providence, which also existed without providence, why should we not also reject the creator and the craftsman in relation to the world?

⁸ For just as it is unreasonable to say that such a well-crafted world came to be without a wise craftsman, it is also unreasonable to say that the material is of such a nature and so suitable to the craftsman by the reason of God, existing uncreated and equally.

⁹ However, for those who argue that no creator makes anything without material, they are making an inappropriate comparison. For providence provides the material to every craftsman from earlier art, whether divine or human, as it comes into being. Therefore, this will be enough for now against those who, because it is said, "the earth was invisible and unformed," think that physical nature is uncreated. That is all for this. The Hebrew Philo also discusses these matters about the material in his work on providence.

Book 7, Section 21

About the amount of substance, if it has indeed come to be, that should be discussed. God considered a self-sufficient material for the creation of the world, so that it would neither lack anything nor exceed what is needed. For it would be unreasonable for craftsmen, whenever they create something, especially luxurious items, to measure the self-sufficiency of the material without also considering the numbers, measures, and the relationships within them as sufficient.

² I will speak boldly that neither less nor more substance was needed for the creation of the world, since it would not have become perfect or complete in all its parts if it had been created from imperfect substance. For a wise craftsman knows to identify the sufficient material before starting any creation.

³ Even if a person might have knowledge different from others, they cannot completely escape the nature of human error. They might be misled about the amount of material when crafting, sometimes thinking they need to add less and other times thinking they need to remove excess. But a true source of knowledge would neither lack anything nor have excess, since it would use measures that are carefully prepared and praised for their accuracy.

⁴ But someone who wants to act differently would not succeed and would blame the works of all craftsmen, thinking that adding or reducing materials would improve the creation. For it is the work of cleverness to come up with new ideas, but it is the work of wisdom to investigate each thing in nature.

⁵ And let this be the way of Philo. But for Maximos, a man of Christ's teachings, a suitable work has been written about material. From this, I think I will usefully present a balanced approach for a careful examination of the problem.

Book Eight

I believe you do not overlook that it is impossible for two ungenerated things to exist at the same time. Even if you seem to have added this point to the argument first, it must be said that one of them necessarily has to be different, either because God is separate from matter, or again because He is indivisible from it.

² If someone wants to say that they are united, they will claim that there is one ungenerated thing. For each of these will be a part of the other. But since they are parts of each other, there cannot be two ungenerated things, just as there cannot be different parts divided into many generated things. Instead, as the argument requires, we say that man is generated in many ways from God. Therefore, it is necessary, if God is not separate from matter, to say that He exists in the ungenerated.

³ But if someone claims that they are separated, it is necessary for there to be something in between both, which shows their separation. For it is impossible to examine something at a distance from something else if there is no other thing by which the distance of each is measured. This idea does not apply only to one thing, but also to many things.

⁴ For the argument we make about the two ungenerated things must also apply if three ungenerated things are considered. I would ask whether they are separated from each other, or if each one is united with the others.

⁵ If someone wants to say that they are united, they will hear the same argument as before. But if they say that they are separated, they cannot escape the necessary existence of what separates them.

⁶ But if someone speaks of a third thing that fits with the ungenerated, that is, that neither is the god separated from matter nor is it united with it in parts, but rather that the god is in the matter as if in a place, or that the matter is in the god, let it be understood that if we say the matter is in the place of the god, we must also say that the god is in a place and is defined in relation to the matter.

⁷ But indeed, it is also necessary for the god to be carried along with the matter, without standing still or remaining by itself, since it is in something that is always changing. Moreover, it must be said that the god has also become something in the hands of others. For if the matter was once chaotic, and it was arranged to become better by choice, there was a time when the god was in the chaos.

⁸ Rightly, then, I would ask this question: did the god fill the matter completely, or was he in some part of the matter? If someone wants to say that the god was in some part of the matter, they are saying that he is much smaller than the matter, since if he filled a part of it, he would have left the whole. But if they say that he is in all the matter, how could he have created it? For it is necessary to either say that there was some contraction of the god, which allowed him to create from what he withdrew, or that he is also creating himself together with the matter, without having a place to withdraw.

⁹ But if someone says that the matter is in the god, it is necessary to examine whether it is separated from itself. Just as there are different kinds of living things in the air, which are divided and spread out into a space for what comes to be in it, or like water in the earth.

¹⁰ For if we say that, like in the air, the god must be seen as divided. But if we say that, like water in the earth, the matter was chaotic and unformed, and also had evil qualities, then we must say that the god has a place for the unformed and the evil. This does not seem right to me, and it feels more uncertain. For if you want to say that the matter exists, you are saying that the god is a creator of evils, and you are trying to avoid saying that he is a container of evils.

¹¹ If you were to say that the matter exists as something ungenerated from the generated things, I would have a lot to say to prove that it is impossible for it to exist as ungenerated. But since you said that the cause of evils is this kind of assumption, I think I should examine these matters. For it is clear from the argument how evils exist and that it is not possible to say that the god is without a cause for evils if you suggest that the matter is something he possesses.

¹² You say, then, that there is a matter that exists alongside the god, from which he created this world. This seems correct to me.

¹³ So, if the matter were separate, and the world came into being from the god, then the qualities exist in the world, and the god became the creator of those qualities. This is how it is.

¹⁴ Since I heard you say earlier that it is impossible for something to come from nothing, I will answer your question. Do you think that the qualities of the world did not come from underlying qualities? It seems that way. Is there something else that exists apart from the substances? This is how it is.

¹⁵ If the god did not create the qualities from underlying qualities or from substances, and since they are not substances, then it must be said that they came into being from nothing by the god. Therefore, it seems to me that you are unnecessarily claiming it is impossible to believe that something came from nothing in relation to the god.

¹⁶ But let the discussion about this continue like this. For we see people creating something from nothing, even if it seems that they are making it from something, like when we take the example of architects. They create cities not from other cities, and temples not from other temples.

¹⁷ If you think that these things are based on substances and that they are made from what exists, you are mistaken. For the substance does not create the city, nor does it create the temples; rather, it is the skill related to the substance. And this skill does not come from some underlying thing in the substances, but comes from what does not exist within them.

¹⁸ It seems to me that you will respond to this argument by saying that the craftsman creates the skill in the substance from the skill he already has. But I think it is important to say that this is not the case for humans either; skill does not come from some underlying craft. For it is not possible for the skill to exist on its own; it depends on the circumstances and the things that exist at the time when it comes into being in the substance.

¹⁹ For a person can exist even without architecture, but architecture cannot exist unless there is a person first. Therefore, it is necessary to say that the crafts come into being from what does not exist into humans. If we have shown that this is the case for humans, how can we not say that the divine can create not only qualities from what does not exist but also substances? For it is clear that it is possible for something to come into being from what does not exist, and that is how substances are formed.

²⁰ Since you want to explore the origin of evils, I will focus on that topic, and I want to explain it to you briefly. Do you think that evils are substances or qualities of substances? I believe it is better to say they are qualities of substances.

²¹ But the matter was formless and unshaped. So, having anticipated this, I spoke in this way. Therefore, if evils are qualities that exist in substances, and the matter was formless, and you said that the divine is the creator of qualities, then the divine must also be the creator of evils. Thus, it is not possible to say that the divine is completely innocent of evils; it seems unnecessary to connect matter to it. If you have anything to add to this, please go ahead.

²² If our inquiry came from rivalry, we would not consider a second definition of evils. But since we are looking into these matters more for the sake of friendship and the benefit of others, I think it is right to allow a discussion about them. I believe my intention has been clear to you for a long time, and my seriousness in these discussions shows that I do not want to win by saying something false, but to reveal the truth through careful examination. I also know that you feel the same way. Therefore, however you think you can find the truth, use that method without hesitation. For by using what is better, you will not only benefit yourself but also help me with what I do not know.

²³ It seems to me that you clearly believe that evils exist in substances, as I do not see them existing outside of substances. Therefore, since you say that evils are in substances, we need to examine the nature of substances. Do you think that substance has some kind of physical composition? I think so.

²⁴ But the physical composition itself exists on its own and does not need anything else to exist. Is that correct?

²⁵ Do you think that evils are a kind of activity? That seems to be the case for me.

²⁶ Then activities gain existence when the one acting is present? That is how it is.

²⁷ If the one acting is not present, will what is being acted upon ever exist? It will not.

²⁸ Therefore, if existence is a type of physical composition, and this does not depend on anything else, then what comes into being will gain existence. But evils are activities that depend on something else, and they gain existence when they come into being; evils will not be true existences.

²⁹ If evils are existences, then murder would be an existence. But murder is an activity that depends on something; therefore, murder is not an existence. If you want the acting things to be existences, I agree. For example, a person who kills is a human being, and in that sense, there is existence. However, what he does—murder—is not an existence, but rather an act of existence.

³⁰ We say that a person can be seen as bad when he kills and good when he helps. These labels are attached to existence based on what happens to it, but they do not define existence itself. For murder is not existence, nor is adultery, or any similar evils. Just as a person is called a grammarian because of grammar, a rhetor because of rhetoric, and a physician because of medicine, these names do not come from the existence of medicine, rhetoric, or grammar, but from what happens to them. Therefore, it seems to me that calling the existence of evils based on what seems to be evil is the same, no matter whether they are thought to exist.

³¹ And similarly, think about whether you see someone else as the cause of evils for people, just as he does. Since he acts and encourages others to do evil, he is also considered bad because of his actions. That is why he is called bad—because he creates evils. However, what someone does is not the same as who he is; rather, it is his actions that lead to him being labeled as bad.

³² For if we say that he exists because of what he does, and he commits murders, adultery, theft, and similar acts, then he will be those things. But if he is those things, and they exist only when they happen, then when they are not happening, he stops being those things. These actions occur in relation to people, and those people will be the creators of these actions, and they are the cause of both existence and non-existence.

³³ But if you say that these are his actions, from which he gets the name 'bad,' it is not based on what his essence is. We say that something is called bad based on what happens to its essence, which is not its true essence, just as a physician is called so because of medicine.

³⁴ But if each person exists as bad based on what they do, and their actions are the source of their being, then that person has begun to be bad, and they have also begun to do bad things. But if this is true, then they cannot be bad without a beginning, nor can bad things be said to exist without something that brings them into being.

³⁵ You seem to have made a good argument to the other person, my friend; for from what you brought up in your speech, you gathered those ideas well. For truly, if matter were to exist without form, then the creator is god, and the qualities would be the bad things. So, god would be the creator of the bad things.

³⁶ Let this argument be presented well to that person. But to me, it seems wrong to say that matter is formless; for it is not possible to talk about any substance as if it is without form. For when we say that something is formless, we reveal its quality, describing what kind of matter it is, which is a type of quality.

³⁷ Therefore, if it is important to you, keep the argument above me. For to me, matter seems to have qualities without a beginning. In this way, I say that bad things come from that source; god is not responsible for any of the bad things, but matter is the cause of all of them.

³⁸ I appreciate your eagerness, my friend, and I commend your seriousness in your words. It is fitting that each person who loves to learn should not simply agree with what is said, but should carefully examine the arguments. For even if the one seeking a discussion gives a reason for the other person to gather as he wishes, this will not convince the listener. However, if something seems possible to be said well, he will say it. Among these two outcomes, one will be true: either he will benefit from what he hears, or he will challenge the one he is discussing with by stating what is not true.

³⁹ You do not seem to me to have correctly said that matter has qualities without a beginning. For if this is true, what kind of creator would god be? If we are talking about substances, we say that they come first; or if we are talking about qualities, these must also exist.

⁴⁰ Therefore, it seems unnecessary for me to call god a creator of both substances and qualities. But to avoid making up an opinion for myself, I will ask you now: in what way do you say that god is a creator? Do you mean that he changed the substances so that they no longer exist as they once did, and instead made new ones from them? Or do you mean that he preserved the substances that existed before and changed their qualities?

⁴¹ It does not seem to me that there has been any change in substances, because this seems strange to say. I believe there has been some change in qualities, and in this way, I call god a creator. It is like saying that a house has been made from stones, where it cannot be said that the stones no longer exist as substances, just because they have become a house.

⁴² For I say that the house has come into being from the quality of its arrangement, clearly changing the previous quality of the stones. In the same way, it seems to me that god has made some change in the qualities of the substance, while the substance itself remains. This is how I say that the creation of this world has come from god.

⁴³ Since you say that there has been some change in the qualities from god, please answer me briefly. Tell me if you also think that bad qualities belong to substances in the same way." "I think so."

⁴⁴ Did these qualities exist in the matter from the beginning, or did they come to be later? I say that these qualities are naturally connected to the matter.

⁴⁵ Don't you say that there has been some change in the qualities made by god? I say this.

⁴⁶ So, is it a change for the better or for the worse? It seems to me that it is a change for the better.

⁴⁷ So, if the qualities of matter are bad, and god has changed them for the better, why do we need to look for the bad? The qualities did not stay the same as they were by nature. Or, if there were no bad qualities before, and if the first qualities became bad because of the change toward god, then god would be responsible for the bad, having turned the non-existent bad qualities into bad ones.

⁴⁸ Or do you think that god cannot change the bad qualities for the better, but you say that the other qualities, which were indifferent for the sake of order, have been directed toward god? This is how I understand it.

⁴⁹ How then do you say that he has left the qualities of the bad as they were? Is it because he could remove them but chose not to, or is it that he cannot remove them? For if you say he could but did not want to, then it must be said that he is responsible for this, since he could have made the bad not exist but allowed them to remain as they were, especially when he began to create matter.

⁵⁰ For if he did not care at all about matter, he would not be responsible for what has remained. But since he created part of it and allowed part of it to stay as it was, while being able to change those qualities for the better, he seems to me to deserve blame for leaving part of the matter to be bad, which leads to the destruction of what he created.

⁵¹ But indeed, it seems to me that the greatest wrong has been done in this part, which he made from matter that now holds onto the bad qualities. For if someone were to examine things closely, they would find that matter now suffers more from disorder than it did before. Before it was separated, it did not even sense the bad qualities; but now each part of it perceives the bad.

⁵² And take the example of a human. Before it is shaped and becomes a living being through the skill of the creator, it had no awareness of the bad qualities by nature. But once a human is made by god, it begins to perceive the approaching bad, and this, which you say is for the benefit of matter from god, is found more often to be linked to the worse.

⁵³ But if you say that god cannot remove the bad because he does not stop, then you will be claiming that god does not exist. The impossible will either be because he is weak by nature or because he is enslaved by fear of something greater.

⁵⁴ If you dare to say that god is weak by nature, it seems to me you are putting the safety of that belief at risk. But if he is overcome by fear of something greater, then the bad would be greater than god, overpowering his own will. This seems to me to be a strange thing to say about god.

⁵⁵ For why wouldn't these things be more true of gods, if they can overcome god according to your reasoning, especially if we say that god is the one who has power over everything?

⁵⁶ But I want to ask you briefly about this very matter. Tell me, is the substance simple or complex? The differences in what has happened lead me to examine this reasoning. For if the substance is simple and uniform, while the world is complex, made up of different essences and mixtures, then the complex shows a mixture of simple things.

⁵⁷ But if you want to say again that the substance is complex, you will surely say it is made up of simple things. If it is made up of simple things, then at one time those simple things existed on their own, from which the substance was formed, and from which it is shown to be generated.

⁵⁸ For if the substance is complex, and the complex is made up of simple things, then there was a time when the substance did not exist, meaning before the simple things came together. But if there was ever a time when the substance did not exist, then there was never a time when the ungenerated did not exist, and the substance cannot be ungenerated.

⁵⁹ Then there will be many ungenerated things. For if god is ungenerated and the simple things from which the substance was formed, there will not be just two ungenerated things. Do you think that nothing among the existing things stands in opposition to itself? I think so.

⁶⁰ Is water opposed to fire? It seems to me that it is. Similarly, darkness is opposed to light, cold is opposed to heat, and dry is opposed to wet. This is how it seems to me.

⁶¹ Therefore, if nothing among the existing things stands against itself, there will not be one substance, nor will there be one substance formed from it. I want to ask you a similar question again. Do you think that the parts do not negate each other? I think so.

⁶² Are the parts of substance fire and water, along with the others? It is so. And what about this? Does it not seem to you that water destroys fire, light destroys darkness, and the other similar things? It seems so.

⁶³ Therefore, if the parts are not destructive of each other, there will not be parts of one another. And if there are not parts of one another, there will not be one substance. But also, they will not be substance if nothing among the existing things has something that destroys itself according to the reasoning of opposites.

⁶⁴ "For nothing is opposed to itself; opposites are naturally opposed to each other. For example, white does not oppose itself, but is said to be opposed to black, and light is shown not to oppose itself, but it seems to be so in relation to darkness. Many other things are the same way. Therefore, if there were one substance, it would not oppose itself. Thus, it is shown that the absence of opposites means there is no substance." So much is stated by the author. And since the description has been given, moving on to the eighth part of the Evangelical Preparation, calling upon God as an ally, we will fill in what remains for the current discussion.

Book 8, Section 1

Introduction. The lives of the ancient Hebrews, especially those godly men who confirmed the truth, were connected to the rewards of virtue before Moses appeared. They established both pious teachings and education, as well as their true and devout theology, which we have agreed to pursue with love and desire. Now, having gone through what came before, I will follow the order and move on to the way of life according to Moses, which represents a second level of piety after that first stage, established only for the Jewish nation.

² For the laws given through Moses were suitable only for the Jews, and not for the other nations of the world. I mean those who live far from the land of Judea, both Greeks and non-Greeks. We will show that they should be followed at the right time.

³ Now, regarding the way of life according to Moses, I will not speak in my own words, but will share the views of those men who have been tested in their own traditions. I believe it is fitting for me to do this, just as I began, by providing the testimonies from each of their own proofs.

⁴ Just as I called upon the Phoenicians, Egyptians, and Greeks for witnesses from their own lands, I believe that this present time is also suitable for bringing in these examples. However, we should not think of ourselves as outsiders in this matter.

⁵ Before reaching this point, I will discuss how the words related to the Greeks were presented and what method was used to interpret the divine writings they trusted. I will explain which men were involved and what royal effort led to the changes in the Greek language. I believe it is important to make these things clear to those who encounter them, as this will be valuable for understanding the explanation of these matters in preparation for what is to come.

⁶ Since the time when the message of our Savior was about to shine forth to all people during Roman rule, the words that spoke of him did not just happen by chance. They were based on the prophecies about him, the lives of the ancient God-loving Hebrews, and their teachings of piety, which had been hidden in their native language for a long time. These teachings were to be revealed to all nations, to whom some knowledge of God was to be given. God himself is the cause of these good things, having anticipated the future with divine foreknowledge. The Savior of all people was not to be revealed for a long time, nor was a single teacher of piety, the one God over all, to be established among all the nations under the sun. Predictions were to be revealed to everyone, coming to light and being made clear, as they were placed in public libraries. King Ptolemy was to take action regarding this, as it seems, in preparation for the future acceptance of all nations, which had not yet come.

⁷ For we would not have received these things from the Jews, who would have hidden their words from us out of jealousy. Instead, we were deemed worthy of this interpretation, arranged by God, through the writings of those men who were proven in both understanding and their native education.

⁸ These things are written by Aristaeus, a learned man in many ways, who also happened to be involved in what was done during the reign of the second Ptolemy, called Philadelphus. Under him, the interpretation of the Jewish writings was made with the king's great effort, and he was deemed worthy of the libraries in Alexandria. At the right time, he tells this story in his own words.

Book 8, Section 2

Demetrius of Phalerum, appointed over the king's library, was involved in many different tasks to gather all the books of the known world. By making purchases and copies, he fulfilled the king's intention as much as he could.

² So, while we were present, he was asked how many thousands of books there were. He replied, "More than twenty, O king; but I will work hard in a short time to gather fifty thousand more." It has also been reported to me that the Jewish laws are worthy of being copied and should be included in your library.

³ "Then what is stopping you from doing this?" he asked. "For everything you need has been arranged for you." Demetrius replied, "I need translations, because they use their own characters in Judea, just as the Egyptians use their own writing system, since they also have their own language. It is believed that they use Syriac, but that is not true; it is a different method."

⁴ After receiving this, the king said to write to the high priest of the Jews, so that he could complete what was mentioned earlier. He also added other matters.

⁵ When these things were completed, he ordered Demetrius to publish everything about the recording of the Jewish books, for everything was managed with careful orders and great accuracy for these kings, and nothing was left out or done carelessly. Therefore, both the copies of the publication and the letters were carefully organized, as well as the number of those sent and the preparation of each one, because each of them differed in size and skill. Here is a copy of the publication:

Book 8, Section 3

To the great king from Demetrius. Since you ordered, O king, regarding the books that were left out for the completion of the library, so that what has been lost may be gathered and receive the necessary repairs, I have made sure to mention this to you without any neglect.

² The books of the law of the Jews are left out along with a few others, for they are written in Hebrew letters and language. They have been overlooked and are not marked as they should be, as those who know have pointed out. They have not received the attention of the king.

³ It is also necessary for you to accurately record these things, because this legislation is more philosophical and complete, as it is divine. Therefore, both the writers and poets, as well as many historians, have gone far in mentioning the previously mentioned books and the men who have lived according to them, because the ideas in them are pure and serious, as Hecataeus of Abdera says.

⁴ If it seems good, king, a letter will be sent to the high priest in Jerusalem to send the best and oldest men, experienced in their law, six from each tribe. This way, after examining the agreement from the majority and obtaining an accurate interpretation, we can present it properly, both regarding the matters and your choice. May you always be successful.

⁵ When this decree was made, the king ordered a letter to be written to Eleazar about these matters, also mentioning the release of the captives that had taken place. He provided for the preparation of bowls, cups, a table, and libation vessels, giving fifty talents of gold and seventy talents of silver, along with a significant amount of stones.

⁶ He ordered the treasurers to give the craftsmen whatever they choose for the selection, and for sacrifices and other things, a total of one hundred talents. We will inform you about the preparations so that we can go through the copies of the letters. The king's letter had this form.

Book 8, Section 4

King Ptolemy sends greetings and wishes good health to High Priest Eleazar. Since many Jews are settling in our land, having been taken from Jerusalem by the Persians during their time of control, and also having been brought to Egypt as captives by our ancestors, we have freed many of them for military service with better pay. We have also returned those we judged to be trustworthy, building fortifications for them so that the Egyptian nation may have fear because of this.

As we take on the kingdom, we strive to be more humane to everyone, especially to your citizens. We have freed over ten thousand captives, giving those in power the proper silver payment, correcting any wrongs done because of the actions of the crowds. We have taken care to do this with respect, dedicating it to the greatest god, who has kept our kingdom in peace and glory throughout the whole world. We have assigned the strongest young men to the army, and those who are capable and worthy of being around us and trusted in the palace we have appointed.

² We also want to grant you and all the Jews around the world, including those who come after, that your law be translated into Greek letters from the Hebrew writings you have. This will also be kept with us in the library along with the other royal books.

³ Therefore, you will do well and honor our efforts by choosing men who have lived good lives—elders with experience in the law who are able to translate. Select six from each tribe so that a consensus can be reached from the majority, since this matter is very important. We believe that when this is accomplished, it will bring great honor.

⁴ We have sent Andrew, the chief bodyguard, and Aristaios, who is honored by us, to speak with you and bring first fruits for the temple offerings and sacrifices, along with one hundred talents of silver. Also, please write to us about anything you wish; you will receive favors and will be worthy of friendship. We will make sure this is done as quickly as possible regarding whatever you choose. Farewell.

Book 8, Section 5

Eleazar, the high priest, to King Ptolemy, my true friend, greetings. I hope you are well, along with Queen Arsinoe, your sister, and the children. May they all be well, as we wish, and we ourselves are healthy. After receiving your letter, we were very happy because of your good intentions and kind purpose. We gathered all the people and read it to them so they would know about the piety you have towards our God.

² We showed the bowls that you sent: twenty gold and thirty silver, five mixing bowls, and a table for offerings, as well as for the sacrifices and the needs of the temple. This includes one hundred talents of silver, which Andrew and Aristaios, the honored men you sent, brought. They are good and noble men, distinguished in education and worthy in every way of your leadership and justice.

³ They also gave us what you sent, which fits well with your needs. We will obey everything that is good for you, even if it seems unusual. This shows our friendship and love. You have greatly and consistently helped our citizens in many ways.

⁴ Therefore, we immediately offered sacrifices for you, your sister, your children, and your friends. The whole crowd prayed that everything may happen for you as you wish, and that the lord of all gods may keep your kingdom safe in peace and glory.

⁵ To ensure that the transfer of the holy law happens properly and safely, I chose good and noble men, elders, six from each tribe, whom we also sent with the law. Therefore, you will do well, just king, by ordering that the transfer of the books be carried out, so that the men may return to us safely. Farewell.

⁶ After this, having spoken a lot about the proposed matters, he adds the interpretation of the writings with these words: "As these texts were read, the priests, the elders of the interpreters, those from the government, and the leaders of the people said, 'Since it is interpreted well, piously, and accurately in every way, it is good that these things remain as they are, and that there be no changes.' When everyone shouted in agreement with these words, they commanded that it be lifted up, as is their custom. If anyone should alter or add anything to the whole of the written texts or make any removals, let this be done properly, so that it may always be kept unchanged."

⁷ When these things were addressed to the king, he was very pleased, for it seemed that his intention was being fulfilled safely. Everything was read to him, and he greatly admired the mind of the lawgiver. He said to Demetrius, "How is it that among such important matters, no one from the historians or poets has mentioned anything?" Demetrius replied, "Because the legislation is serious. It has come from God, and some who were affected by God, having been struck by the burden, withdrew."

⁸ He said that he had heard from Theopompus that someone was about to interpret some of the previously explained things more uncertainly from the law. This would cause a disturbance of the mind for more than thirty days. After that, with ease, he would make peace with God, so that it would be clear to him why this was happening. Through a dream, it was shown that the divine wanted to reveal things to ordinary people, so that he might be restored in this way.

⁹ I received from Theodectes, the poet of tragedies, that he was about to bring something from what was written in the book to a certain drama. His expressions became clear, and realizing that it had happened to him for the same reason, he made peace with God. After many days, he was restored.

¹⁰ And the king, having received this, as I mentioned earlier, regarding the matters about Demetrius, ordered that great care be taken of the books and that they be kept clean.

¹¹ Let us take these things from the revealed writing. Now, let us also consider the constitution of the law according to Moses from what is clear among the men. First, I will present Philo's account of the journey of the Jews from Egypt, which he describes under the leadership of Moses, starting from the first writing of the Hypotheticals, where he speaks about the Jews as if addressing their accusers, saying these things.

Book 8, Section 6

Their ancient ancestor was from the Chaldeans, and this people arose, having migrated from Egypt long ago from Syria, growing in countless numbers, and the land was not enough for them. Moreover, they were greatly inspired in their youthful thoughts, and at the same time, through visions and dreams, God was showing them a way out. They were also driven by a strong desire to return to their ancestral and ancient land. Therefore, after their ancestor came to Egypt, whether by the will of God or some kind of providence, they were especially blessed. From that time until now, both the nation has come to be and remains, and they have greatly increased in population.

² And shortly after, he says, "Indeed, a man led them out and on their journey, and none of the many was different, if you wish. Thus, he also mocked the sorcerer and the clever speaker. However, through a beautiful kind of magic and cunning, he not only saved the entire people from thirst, hunger, ignorance of the roads, and complete lack of resources, but also kept them stable among themselves and very obedient to him, just as in all prosperity and in the guidance of the nations that lay between."

³ And these troubles certainly lasted a long time, but it was such that no household could share in harmony with all prosperity. There was no thirst, no hunger, no decay of bodies, no fear about what was to come, and no ignorance of what would happen that did not stir up the deceived and ruined people against that sorcerer.

⁴ And yet, what do you want? Are you saying that he had such skill, or a way with words, or understanding, that he could control so many strange people and lead them all to destruction? For either he understood the natures of the people under him easily and with good sense about what was to come, or he thought them to be very bad while the god calmed their troubles, overseeing both the present and the future. Whatever you might think is most true about these matters, it seems to hold strength in praise, honor, and zeal for all of them.

⁵ And these things are indeed about the departure. But when they came to this land, how they were established and held the territory is shown in the sacred records. Yet I would prefer to explain these matters based on history rather than through some reasoning about what seems likely.

⁶ Do you want to say whether, with the number of people still remaining, even though they were finally defeated, they were still strong and held their weapons in hand? Did they then take the land by force, defeating the Syrians and Phoenicians who were fighting in their own territory? Or should we suppose that they were completely defeated and cowardly, very few in number, lacking the means for war, yet managed to take the land from those who were willing? And then, did they immediately build the temple and set everything up for worship and holiness?

⁷ For it shows that they seemed to be most beloved by the gods and had sworn oaths even against their enemies. The enemies were there out of necessity, having suddenly come to the land as if to take it away.

⁸ Therefore, how could those who receive honor and respect not seem to surpass others in good fortune? And what should we say about the second or third things related to them? Should we talk about their good order and obedience, or about their holiness, justice, and piety? But that man, whoever he was, who once served as their lawgiver, was so greatly admired that whatever he thought seemed wonderful to them.

⁹ Whether he himself was wise or received guidance from a spirit, he directed all of this to the god. After many years had passed, I cannot say exactly how many, but certainly more than two thousand years, not even a single word of what he wrote has been changed. Even if countless people were to die, they would rather endure that than be persuaded against his laws and customs.

¹⁰ Having said these things, he cuts off the government that was established among the Jewish people based on the laws of Moses, writing it this way.

Book 8, Section 7

Is there something similar to these things among those people that seems gentle and orderly, with rules, practices, delays, honors, and again, lower honors? Not at all—everything is simple and clear. If you engage in pederasty, commit adultery, or force a child, whether male or female, do not even speak of it. Likewise, if you corrupt yourself, suffer something shameful for your age, or even think you might, the penalty is death.

² If you abuse a slave's body, insult a free person, hold someone in chains, sell someone who has been captured, or commit sacrilege—not only through actions but also by any words that may come up—whether against a god (may the god be merciful to us and to our thoughts about these matters, which is not even worth mentioning), or against a father, mother, or your benefactor, the penalty is death. This is not a common penalty for anyone, but only for the one who speaks, as if they have committed a greater act of impiety.

³ But again, in other matters, what kind of women are enslaved to men? There is no insult, but there is complete obedience. Parents should rule for the safety and abundance of their own possessions, so that each one can be a master, not calling upon a god for help, nor thinking that these things are given to the god. If they only make promises with words, they should not touch or lay hands on them, but should be immediately shut off from everything.

⁴ Do not take what belongs to the gods, nor steal from others who have dedicated things, and do not take from your own, just as I mentioned before. If someone falls and accidentally speaks a word about a dedication, they should lose everything. If they change their mind or try to correct what has been said, they should be stripped of their very being.

⁵ And in other matters, the same rule applies if someone dedicates food: a man should serve as a priest for a woman, and he should take care of the food. If it is a father to a son, or a ruler to a servant, it is the same. The release from those who have been dedicated is the most complete and greatest when the priest has rejected it; for this is accepted by the god as lord. After this, it is also holy to show favor to the god from those who are always in charge, as if there is no need to accept the dedication.

⁶ There are countless other things related to these, as well as to unwritten customs and laws, and even in those laws themselves. If someone hates suffering, they should not cause it to others. What they have not dedicated, they should not take away, whether from a garden, a wine press, or a threshing floor. They should not take anything, large or small, from a storehouse. They should not be jealous when someone asks for grain. They should not block the waters for no reason, but they should generously provide food to the poor and the disabled as an offering to the god.

⁷ Do not disturb a dead body during burial, and also add to the sacred ground as much as possible. Do not move tombs or memorials that are already in place. Do not bring chains or harm to those in need. Do not cut off the lineage of men, nor prevent women from having children through other means. Do not offer animals, whether the god has shown this or a lawmaker has. Do not destroy seeds, and do not enslave what is born.

⁸ Do not impose an unfair weight, do not use an excessive measure, and do not use an unjust coin. Do not reveal secrets of friends during times of conflict. What do we have to do with those offerings to the god? Consider other related matters. Do not control the parents of children, even if you have captives. Do not take a wife from another man, even if you are a lawful master.

⁹ These things are indeed more serious and significant, while others are small and happen by chance. Do not abandon a nest of young birds, and do not harm animals seeking refuge, especially when they are fleeing. If something like this is weaker, it is not worth mentioning. These matters are truly important, for there is a great law concerning them, and it is responsible for all care. There are serious curses and threats regarding destruction, and the god watches over such matters and punishes everywhere.

¹⁰ And after a short time, he says, "It may happen all day, but not just for one, but for many. And these do not follow one another directly, but come in intervals (and there are seven of these, as is usual according to common customs). Would you not be amazed if you dared to break any of the commands?"

¹¹ Is this not about self-control for them, not just for practice? Is it as if they should act and endure equally well in their work, if necessary? Certainly not. But if the lawgiver thought it necessary for them to be capable not only of doing other things but also of not doing them in the same way, then they should also have a strong understanding of the ancestral laws and customs.

¹² What then did he do with these seven days? He thought it right for them to gather in the same place and sit together with respect and order, so that no one would be unaware of the laws.

¹³ And indeed, they always come together and meet with one another, some staying silent, unless someone thinks it right to add something to the laws being read. One of the priests present, or an elder, reads the sacred laws to them and explains each one until nearly evening twilight. From this, they leave with a strong understanding of the sacred laws and having devoted themselves greatly to piety.

¹⁴ Do you not think that these things are more necessary for them than any other effort? Therefore, they do not come together for practical matters, and without questioning themselves out of ignorance of the laws, they act carelessly. But whoever you ask about the ancestral customs is ready and quick to speak. A man to his wife, a father to his children, and a master to his slaves seems capable of teaching the laws.

¹⁵ And indeed, it is easy to talk about the seventh year, but perhaps not in the same way. For they do not stop their work as they did in those seven days, but they leave the land fallow for the future, for the sake of rest. It makes a big difference to take a break and then to farm again in a new way, rather than wearing themselves out with constant work.

¹⁶ You would see the same thing happening with bodies when it comes to strength. Doctors do not only recommend breaks and some rest from work for health. Continuous and uniform effort, especially in work, seems to cause harm.

¹⁷ Here is a sign: if someone were to promise them that they could work the land much more than before the seventh year and that all the crops would come together, they would not accept it at all. They do not think they should bear the burdens alone; (and even if they did, it would not be surprising). Instead, they want some rest and ease from the land, so they can start anew with care and farming again.

¹⁸ What was stopping her from giving it to God in the past year and collecting the payment from those working the land? But, as I said, they do not expect any of these things at all, it seems to me, from the care of the land.

¹⁹ This is a great sign of their kindness. Since they endure the work of that year, they do not think they should gather or store the crops, as if taking away from their own efforts. But because God has provided for them, they allow those who want or need it, including travelers and others, to use the land freely.

²⁰ I have said enough about these things. You would not ask me to establish the law for them regarding the seventh year, since you have likely heard many times from various doctors, naturalists, and philosophers about this, which has power over all of nature and indeed over human nature. This is the teaching about the seventh year.

²¹ Philo says a lot about this. Josephus shares similar ideas in his second book about the antiquity of the Jews, writing in a similar way.

Book 8, Section 8

Who was it that most successfully established the laws and achieved the truest faith about God, allowing us to understand the laws by comparing them? For it is already time to talk about these matters.

² Surely, there are countless differences in customs and laws among all people, which someone could summarize in a few main points.

³ Some have given power to monarchies, others to the rule of a few, and still others to the majority. But our lawgiver did not turn away from any of these. As someone might say, he clearly showed that the government is a theocracy, placing the beginning and power in God, and convincing everyone to look to Him as the source of all good things, which exist for all people and for whatever they have asked for in times of need. It is impossible to misunderstand His views, whether in actions or in anything someone might think about Him.

⁴ But he revealed Him as uncreated and unchanging through all time, different in beauty from all mortal ideas. He is known to us in His power, but unknown in His essence.

⁵ The wisest among the Greeks think these things about God: that He is uncreated, as Josephus taught, who provided the foundations for this idea. They also strongly testify that there are things that are beautiful and fitting to the nature and greatness of God. Both Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, and Plato, along with the philosophers who came after him from the Stoa, all seem to have thought this way about the nature of God.

⁶ But those who philosophize among the few did not dare to reveal the truth of the doctrine, as they were caught up in popular opinions. Our lawgiver, however, provided works that were in harmony with the laws. He not only convinced those of his own time but also instilled an unchanging faith about God in those who would come after them.

⁷ The reason is that the way of the lawgiver greatly contributed to the usefulness of everything. He did not make piety just one part of virtue; instead, he recognized and established it alongside other parts. I mean justice, temperance, endurance, and harmony among the citizens in all matters.

⁸ For all actions, activities, and words are related to our piety toward God. None of these things were left unexamined or unclear.

⁹ There are two ways of education and forming character. One is through teaching with words, and the other is through practicing habits. Some lawmakers chose to focus on one method and left the other behind. For example, the Spartans and Cretans educated through laws, not through words, while the Athenians and almost all other Greeks instructed what should or should not be done through laws, but they paid little attention to shaping habits through actions.

¹⁰ Our lawgiver carefully combined both of these approaches. He did not ignore the practice of habits, nor did he let the teachings of the law be ineffective. Starting from the very beginning, he set rules about food and the household life of each person, leaving nothing to the free choice of those who follow them. He also provided guidelines about what foods to avoid and what to offer, as well as rules for sharing meals. He established limits for both work and rest. He made the law a standard, so that while living under this father and master, we would not make mistakes either by choice or by ignorance.

¹¹ He did not ignore the importance of understanding ignorance, but he showed that the law is the most beautiful and necessary form of education. It was not just presented once to those who heard it, nor twice or many times, but every seventh day, after completing other tasks, he commanded that they gather to hear the law and learn it thoroughly. Indeed, it seems that all lawmakers have overlooked this.

¹² Most people are so far from living according to their own laws that they hardly even know them. But when they make a mistake, they learn from others that they have broken the law. Those who hold the highest and most important positions among them admit their ignorance. They depend on experts who claim to have experience with the laws.

¹³ If anyone among us were to choose, it would be easier for them to name all the laws than to name their own. Therefore, from the very first moment of awareness, we learn these laws as if they are engraved in our souls. While it is rare for someone to break them, it is impossible to escape punishment.

¹⁴ This has created a wonderful unity among us. Having the same belief about the divine and not differing in our lives and customs leads to the best agreement in the character of people.

¹⁵ For among us alone, there are no opposing views about the divine, unlike many others. It is not just the opinions of ordinary people that speak about what happens to each person, but also some philosophers who have dared to deny the whole nature of the divine with their words, while others take away its care for humans. In our way of life, there is no difference in practices; we all share common actions, and there is one belief that agrees with the law about the divine, saying that it watches over everything.

¹⁶ And indeed, regarding the practices of life, everything else must aim for piety, and this can be heard from women and servants as well. Therefore, the accusation brought against us by some is that we do not provide men who create new works or ideas, and this has come about for that reason.

¹⁷ For others, it is considered good to cling to none of their traditions, and those who dare to break them show their great wisdom. But we, on the contrary, believe that there is one understanding and virtue, which is to not act or even think anything completely opposite to what was established by the original laws.

¹⁸ This would rightly serve as proof that the law is beautifully established. For those who do not follow this way are shown to need correction; but for us, who believe that the law was set from the beginning according to the will of the divine, it is not even pious to neglect it.

¹⁹ For what could anyone possibly change about it? Or what better thing has been discovered, or what has been brought from others that is superior? Is it concerning the entire system of government? And who could be more beautiful or just than one who believes that the divine is the leader of all, allowing the priests to manage the most important matters together, while the high priest holds authority over the other priests?

²⁰ Those who are not in power because of wealth or any other greed were placed first in honor by the lawgiver. But those who stood out from others in obedience and self-control were entrusted with the service to the divine.

²¹ This was also the careful attention to the law and other practices. The priests were appointed as overseers of everything, judges of disputes, and enforcers of punishment for those found guilty.

²² Who then could be a more holy leader for this? And what honor could be more fitting for the divine? When all the people are ready for piety, the care of the trusted priests is special, just as the ceremony is the guiding force for the whole community.

²³ For what others cannot keep for just a few days, focusing on mysteries and rituals, we preserve with great joy and steadfast purpose for all time.

²⁴ What then are the prophecies and proclamations? They are simple and recognizable. The first speaks about the divine, saying that god holds the universe, is complete and blessed, and is self-sufficient for itself and for all. This god is the beginning, middle, and end of everything. In works and gifts, god is clear and more visible than anything, but in form and size, god is most hidden from us.

²⁵ Every material thing is worthless compared to the image of that one, even if it is luxurious. Every art that tries to imitate is unskilled. There is nothing similar that we have seen, thought of, or can imagine that is sacred.

²⁶ We see the works of that one: light, the sky, the earth, the sun, the moon, waters, the births of animals, and the growth of fruits. God made these, not with hands, not through labor, and not needing anyone to work. They came into being beautifully at once, simply because he wanted them to.

²⁷ Everyone must follow this one and serve him by practicing virtue, for this is the holiest way to serve God.

²⁸ There is one temple of one God, for everything similar is always dear to all. This temple belongs to everyone, the common God of all. The priests serve this temple at all times; the first among them leads by lineage. This one will offer sacrifices to God with the other priests, keep the laws, settle disputes, and punish those who are found guilty. Anyone who does not obey him will face judgment, as if they are being disrespectful to God.

²⁹ We offer sacrifices not for our own satisfaction or drunkenness, for these things are foolish to God and could lead to arrogance and extravagance. Instead, we offer them wisely, in an orderly manner, and properly, so that we may sacrifice with self-control. At the sacrifices, we must first pray for the common salvation, and then for ourselves, for we are part of a community. The one who is honored should especially be grateful to God for what is their own.

³⁰ Let our appeal to God be through prayer and supplication, not so that he gives us good things, for he has willingly given and placed them among us all. Instead, let us be able to receive them and, once received, keep them safe.

³¹ The law has set apart purity at the sacrifices from mourning, from the bed, and from relations with a woman. There are many other things as well, but it would take a long time to write about them now.

³² This is the teaching about God and his service to us; the law is the same. But what are the laws about marriage? The law recognizes only the natural union with a woman, and this is for the purpose of having children. The union with a man is forbidden, and death is the punishment for anyone who tries to engage in it.

³³ Marriage should not be based on a dowry, nor through forceful seizure, nor by trickery and deceit. Instead, there should be a betrothal either by the will of the giver or according to family ties. A woman is said to be lesser than a man in all things; therefore, she should obey, not in a way that leads to insult, but so that he may lead. For God has given power to the man.

³⁴ The one who is married must be with his own wife only; trying to be with another is wrong. If anyone does this, there is no escape from death. This applies whether he forces a virgin who is promised to another or tries to persuade a married woman.

³⁵ All children must be raised. He told women not to harm the seed or destroy it. If it becomes clear that a woman has caused the death of a child, she would lose her own soul and reduce her family line.

³⁶ Therefore, if anyone causes harm while on the bed, they should be considered unclean. After the lawful union of a man and a woman, they must wash, as the soul has a share in another place. The soul suffers when it is mixed with bodies, and then it is separated again by death. This is why he set rules for purity in all such matters.

³⁷ Indeed, he did not allow feasting and drunkenness during the upbringing of children. Instead, he set a wise foundation for their nourishment. He ordered that they be taught letters related to the laws and to know the deeds of their ancestors, so that they might imitate them and, by doing so, neither break the rules nor have an excuse of ignorance.

³⁸ He thought about the proper way to honor the dead, not with expensive funerals or grand tombs. Instead, he ordered that the closest family members carry out the burial rites. He made it lawful for all who pass by to attend the burial and to join in the mourning. He also commanded that both the house and the residents be cleansed from mourning, so that no one would seem pure if they had committed a murder.

³⁹ He established the honor of parents as the second most important after the honor given to the gods. He did not allow anyone to repay the kindnesses received from them, but he said that whatever is lacking will be provided.

⁴⁰ He says that young people should honor all elders, since the oldest of all is the god.

⁴¹ He does not allow anyone to hide anything from friends, because friendship is not real if it does not trust completely. If someone has a conflict, he has forbidden them from sharing these secrets.

⁴² When deciding if someone has received a gift, the penalty is death. If a person in need is seen, they must be helped, as it is their responsibility. What no one has given will not be taken away. No one may touch anything that belongs to others. If someone borrows, they will not charge interest. These rules and many similar ones help keep our community together.

⁴³ It is worth noting how the lawgiver thought about fairness towards outsiders. It will be clear that he planned very well so that we neither harm our own belongings nor envy those who choose to take part in what is ours.

⁴⁴ For those who wish to live under the same laws as us, he welcomes them kindly, not only because of their background but also because he sees their choice of life as a sign of belonging. However, he did not want those who come by chance to mix with the community.

⁴⁵ He has mentioned other things that are necessary for sharing: to provide fire, water, and food to those in need, to keep the roads clear, and not to neglect the unburied.

⁴⁶ He also decided that there should be fairness towards enemies. He does not allow their land to be burned, nor does he permit cutting down cultivated trees. He also forbids looting the dead in battle and has made plans for how to treat prisoners, so that they are not mistreated, especially women.

⁴⁷ In this way, he worked hard to teach us gentleness and kindness, so that he did not look down on even the irrational animals. He allowed only the customary use of them, but he forbade any other use. When they came seeking refuge at homes, he refused to allow them to be killed. He also did not permit young animals to be taken from their parents. He urged that working animals be spared in war and not killed.

⁴⁸ In this way, he considered everything related to fairness, using the previously mentioned laws for teaching while establishing punishments for those who break them, and there is a good reason for this. For most offenders, the penalty is death: if someone commits adultery, if someone forces a girl, if someone dares to approach a boy, or if someone suffers harm after being tempted.

⁴⁹ The law is also strict regarding slaves. It also addresses measures: if someone commits a crime, or if they use false weights, or if they engage in unfair dealings and deceit, there are punishments for all these actions. These punishments are harsher than those imposed by others. For injustices against parents or disrespect towards the gods, if someone is about to commit such acts, they will face immediate destruction.

⁵⁰ For those who act according to the laws, the reward is not silver, nor gold, nor a crown of wild olive or parsley, nor any such announcement. Instead, each person trusts their own conscience as a witness. (The lawgiver has prophesied this, and the god has given strong faith.) Those who protect the laws, even if they must die for them, willingly accept death. The god has granted that they may be reborn and receive a better life in return.

⁵¹ I would hesitate to write these things now if it were not clear from the actions of many of our people that they have often chosen to endure everything rather than speak a word against the law. And yet, if it had not happened that our nation is known to all people, and that our willingness to follow the laws is evident, someone might say that they themselves read this among the Greeks, or perhaps claim that outside the known world, people have such a serious opinion about the god. They might say that with such laws, they have firmly lasted for a long time. I believe everyone would be amazed at their constant changes. They neglect to write something similar about the government and laws, claiming that those who tried to create such wonderful laws are accused of taking on impossible tasks.

⁵² And I will set aside the other philosophers, those who have written about such matters. However, Plato is admired among the Greeks for his serious way of life. With the power of his words and his ability to persuade, he has inspired everyone who has engaged in philosophy. Yet, he is mocked and ridiculed by those who claim that political matters are of little importance.

⁵³ And yet, while mocking him, one would often find it easier to point out the habits of the many. Plato himself admitted that it was not safe to share the true opinion about the god with the madness of the crowds.

⁵⁴ But some believe that the words of Plato are empty, crafted with great skill. Most of all, they admire the lawgiver Lycurgus, and everyone praises Sparta, saying that they have thrived the most because of his laws.

⁵⁵ Therefore, let it be agreed that obeying the laws is a sign of virtue. The Spartans, reflecting on their own time, were more than two thousand years ahead of our government. They should also consider that as long as the Spartans had their freedom, they carefully protected their laws. However, when changes in fortune came upon them, they almost completely forgot all their laws. We, on the other hand, have faced countless changes due to the shifts of the rulers of Asia, and even in the worst times, we did not abandon our laws.

⁵⁶ These are the things that Josephus says about the government of the Jews according to Moses. As for the laws he established, which are often seen as shadowy and have many allegorical interpretations, I believe the accounts of Eleazar and Aristobulus are sufficient. One was a man from the Hebrews of ancient times, while the other was notable during the time of the Ptolemies.

⁵⁷ Eleazar, who was honored with the rank of high priest, recently showed us that he was sent as an ambassador by the king. He was sent because of the changes in the Hebrew teachings to Greece, and he explained the allegorical ideas found in the sacred laws. He has developed a teaching based on these ideas.

Book 8, Section 9

It is worth mentioning briefly some of the things he pointed out about what we have been seeking. Many people believe there are unnecessary details in the laws. I am referring to food and drinks and what is considered unclean, such as certain plants.

² When we asked why, since there is one source, some things are considered unclean for eating while others are unclean just by touch, it appears that most of the laws are based on superstition. Within these, there is also a sense of superstition. He began to explain these matters in this way.

³ "You see," he said, "the behaviors and conversations have a certain effect. When people associate with bad company, they fall into bad habits and suffer throughout their lives. But if they live with wise and sensible people, they can improve their lives, even if they started out in ignorance."

⁴ Therefore, our lawgiver first explained the matters of piety and justice, teaching each of these not only by forbidding certain actions but also by providing examples. He revealed the harms and the punishments from the gods for those who are guilty.

⁵ For he first demonstrated that there is only one god, and through everything, his power becomes evident. His authority fills every place, and nothing that happens on earth by people in secret escapes his notice. Instead, whatever someone does is made clear to him, along with what is going to happen.

⁶ Therefore, by carefully and clearly explaining these things, he showed that even if someone thinks about doing something bad, they will not escape notice. This is not just because of their actions, but because throughout all the laws, he reveals the power of god.

⁷ Having established this foundation, he showed that all the other people among us believe there are many gods, but they themselves are much weaker than those they worship in vain. For having made statues from stone or wood, they say these are images of those who found something useful for their lives, to whom they bow down, while they remain unaware at their feet.

⁸ For if someone were to call upon a god based on their discovery, it is completely foolish. They took something from creation, put it together, and claimed that their own creation is very useful, even though they did not make it themselves. Therefore, it is empty and vain to worship those like them.

⁹ And even now, there are many who are more inventive and more knowledgeable than the people of the past, and they would not be able to reach them by bowing down.

¹⁰ And those who have shaped and created these things believe that the wisest of the Greeks have established them. What can we say about others, like the Egyptians and those nearby, who have made their gods mostly from wild animals and reptiles? They worship these creatures, sacrifice to them, and live and die for them.

¹¹ Therefore, being wise, the lawgiver, who was prepared by god for the knowledge of all things, surrounded us with unchanging laws and strong walls, so that we would not mix with any of the other nations in any way. We remain pure in body and soul, freed from empty beliefs, honoring the one god, the powerful being throughout all creation.

¹² Therefore, the Egyptian priests, who are leaders, have become deeply involved in many matters and call us by the name of god. This is not the case for others, unless someone truly honors the true god. But they are people focused on food, drink, and shelter, for their entire way of life depends on these things.

¹³ But among us, none of these things are taken into account; instead, their focus is on the power of god throughout all of life. Therefore, to avoid mixing with anyone or getting caught up in foolish distractions, we have been surrounded by purity from all sides, including through food, drink, touch, hearing, and lawful sight.

¹⁴ For everything in the universe is arranged according to natural reason, governed by a single power. Each thing has its own deep meaning, which we avoid based on its use and with which we interact.

¹⁵ For the sake of an example, I will point out one or two things to you. Do not fall into the mistaken belief that Moses established these things out of curiosity about flies and cats or similar creatures. Instead, everything is arranged with seriousness for the sake of justice and for a pure examination and improvement of our ways.

¹⁶ For all the birds that we use, everything is arranged to be tame, and they differ in cleanliness. The birds we eat include grains and legumes, such as doves, quails, partridges, and also geese and other similar ones. However, concerning the birds that are forbidden, you will find both wild and meat-eating ones, which overpower the others by their strength. Their food comes at the cost of the lives mentioned earlier, with injustice. Not only do they do this, but they also prey on lambs and kids, and they harm humans, both the dead and the living.

¹⁷ Therefore, he established a sign through these things, labeling them as unclean. This is necessary for the soul, so that those to whom the law is directed can practice justice and not dominate anyone with their own power. They should not take anything away but should govern from a just life. Just as the tame animals of the previously mentioned birds consume the plants of the earth, they do not overpower the fallen ones or their relatives.

¹⁸ Through these things, the lawgiver instructed that those who are wise should be recognized as just and should not act by force or rely on their own power, believing they can dominate others.

¹⁹ For where he did not even allow touching the previously mentioned things due to the arrangement concerning each one, how should all methods be protected to prevent them from being completely destroyed?

²⁰ Therefore, all the things permitted regarding these and the changes in the animals have been explained. For having two mouths and distinguishing the types of claws is a sign of differentiating each action for what is good.

²¹ For the strength of all bodies, along with energy, rests on the shoulders and the legs. Therefore, with distinction, it compels everything to be completed for justice, marked by these things, and also because we are set apart from all people.

²² For most of the others, they pollute themselves by mixing in, committing great injustice, and all the places and cities respect these things. For they not only bring this to males, but also to mothers, and even pollute daughters. But we are set apart from these.

²³ About which there is the mentioned way of distinction, concerning this, it has been marked as the character of memory. For everything that has two mouths and brings up chewing clearly reveals the nature of memory to those who think. For chewing is nothing other than a reminder of life and structure.

²⁴ For living is believed to be sustained by food. Therefore, it is encouraged through writing, saying, "Thus you will remember the Lord your God, who has done great and wonderful things for you."

²⁵ For the glorious things that are understood appear first as the unity of the body, the management of food, and the distinction of each part. But even more important is the beauty of the senses, the activity of the mind, and the invisible movement, along with the sharpness to act on each thing and the discovery of arts, which offers endless possibilities.

²⁶ Therefore, it is encouraged to keep remembrance, as the things mentioned before are maintained by divine power. For everything has its place and time, so that one may always remember the ruling God, who sustains the beginnings, the middle, and the ends.

²⁷ For even when we start to eat and drink, it immediately tells us to use them. It has also given us a reminder from our clothing. Similarly, it has instructed us to put words on the gates and doors of cities and homes, so that we may remember God. On our hands, it clearly commands that a sign be placed, showing that every action should be done with justice, while keeping in mind our own creation, and above all, the fear of God.

²⁸ It commands those who are lying down, getting up, and going to reflect on the works of God, not just in words but also by observing their own movements and thoughts when they are about to sleep. Waking up is seen as something divine and beyond understanding, marking their change.

²⁹ It has also been shown to you the importance of reasoning about distinction and remembrance, as we have discussed the duality and the murmuring. For it is not without purpose that it has been established in the soul, but rather to lead us toward truth and to indicate correct reasoning.

³⁰ For it has arranged everything about food and drink and the things related to touch, it commands that nothing be done carelessly. We should neither act nor listen carelessly, nor should we be led by the power of speech toward injustice.

³¹ It is the same when it comes to pests. The way they act is harmful, both for weasels and mice and others like them, as has been described. They all cause corruption and harm, not only for their own food but also to make anything that is thrown at a person completely useless.

³² The nature of the weasel is unique; it has a corrupt way of life that is different from what was mentioned before. It catches things through its ears and reproduces through its mouth. For this reason, its way of life is unclean for humans. Whatever they take in through hearing, they turn into harmful words and spread filth, becoming completely polluted by the stain of wickedness.

³³ Your king does well by removing such people, as we agree. But I said that I think you are talking about those who are visible, for he continually compares them to tortures and deadly pains. These are the ones I mean; being watchful leads to the ruin of people in a wicked way. Our law commands that no one should do harm, either by word or by deed.

³⁴ And about these things, then, I want to point out to you briefly that everything is arranged for justice, and nothing is written down without purpose or in a fanciful way. Instead, we should practice justice towards all people in every part of life and in our actions, remembering the god who rules.

³⁵ Concerning food, the unclean, creeping things, and insects, the whole discussion points towards justice and fair treatment of people.

³⁶ I thought it was good to discuss each matter. He also mentioned that for the offerings of bulls, rams, and goats, these should come from herds and flocks, using tame animals and nothing wild. This way, those who bring the sacrifices do not present anything that makes them feel proud, keeping in mind the instructions of the one who ordered it.

³⁷ For the one who brings the sacrifice offers a gift from his own soul in every way. Concerning these matters, I believe it is worth discussing the issues of the community because of the seriousness of the law, which I have explained to you, Philocrates, and for which you have a love of learning.

³⁸ The high priest explained these things to those present, as he had interpreted the allegorical ideas in the sacred laws for the Greeks. This was so they could be ready for the interpretations of the writings that would be published. Aristobulus, who had studied the philosophy of Aristotle, also discusses these matters related to God found in the sacred books, and it was a good time to hear this. He is the same person mentioned at the beginning of the second book of the Maccabees. In a letter to King Ptolemy, he also explains this method.

Book 8, Section 10

However, after enough has been said about the matters at hand, you also spoke up, king, because the law among us signifies hands, arms, face, feet, and walking in the divine power. This will lead to a fitting explanation and will not contradict what we have previously stated.

² I want to encourage you to understand the interpretations naturally and to keep the right idea about God, without falling into a mythical or human-like view.

³ In many ways, our lawgiver Moses wants to express different ideas, making statements about various matters. What I mean is that, based on appearances, he reveals natural conditions and the arrangements of great things.

⁴ Those who can think clearly admire the wisdom about him and the divine spirit, which is why he has also been called a prophet. This includes the philosophers mentioned earlier and many other poets who have drawn great inspiration from him, and that is why they are amazed.

⁵ But to those who do not share in power and understanding, but only hold on to the written text, nothing truly great seems to be explained.

⁶ I will start to explore each meaning as best as I can. But if I do not find the truth, do not blame the lawgiver for my lack of understanding; instead, blame me for not being able to separate what he intended.

⁷ Hands are understood clearly and more commonly among us. For when you, as a king, send out your power to achieve something, we say that the king has a great hand, as those who hear are drawn to the power you possess.

⁸ This is also noted in our laws, as Moses says, "God brought you out of Egypt with a mighty hand." And again, "I will send my hand," says God, "and I will strike the Egyptians." Regarding the death of the animals, Moses tells Pharaoh, "Behold, the hand of the Lord will be upon your livestock and upon all that is in the fields, a great death." Therefore, hands are seen as a sign of God's power. It is also understood that all human strength and actions are found in their hands.

⁹ For this reason, the lawgiver rightly describes the hands as divine, saying that they are the works of God. The divine order of the world could also be rightly called great.

¹⁰ For indeed, God is above all, and everything is under His authority, and He has established order. This causes humans to be still and unmoving. I say this: the sky has never become earth, nor has the earth become sky; the shining sun has never become the moon, nor has the moon ever become the sun again; rivers have never become the sea, nor has the sea ever become rivers.

¹¹ And again, the same principle applies to animals. A human will not become a beast, nor will a beast become a human. The same is true for plants and other living things; they are unchanging, yet they experience the same changes and decay.

¹² The divine order, therefore, could be called a stillness, with everything being subject to God. It is said that there is a descent to the mountain, which has come about through the writing of the law, by which He established a time so that all may see the action of God. This descent is clear; and regarding these matters, one could explain it this way, wishing to maintain the discussion about God.

¹³ For it is shown that the mountain was burning with fire, as the law says, because God had descended with the sound of trumpets, and the fire was burning continuously.

¹⁴ For among the vast crowd of myriads, there were no fewer than a hundred, not counting those who were not included, gathering all around the mountain. The period lasted for no less than five days, and everywhere they looked, they all saw the fire burning as they stood in place.

¹⁵ So the descent is not limited to one place; for God is everywhere. However, the power of the fire is wonderfully present, because it consumes everything. It would not have appeared to be burning continuously, consuming nothing, if it were not for the power from God that was with it.

¹⁶ For the plants growing on that mountain were being fiercely consumed, yet nothing was destroyed. The greenery of everything remained untouched, and the sounds of trumpets were heard more loudly along with the flashing appearance of the fire, even though no instruments were present and no voice was heard. Everything was happening through a divine arrangement.

¹⁷ So it is clear from these things that the divine descent has occurred, because those who were present clearly perceived everything. Neither was the fire burning, as mentioned before, nor were the sounds of the trumpets produced by human effort or the use of instruments. Instead, God showed His greatness through everything without any visible sign.

¹⁸ This is what Aristobulus says. Since we have discussed the commandments of the sacred laws and how they interpret ideas, it should also be noted that the entire Jewish nation is divided into two parts. One part follows the laws according to their clear meaning, while the other part, influenced by a certain higher philosophy, is considered to be more inclined toward the many ideas found in the laws as understood in their meaning.

¹⁹ There was a group of Jewish philosophers whose way of life amazed many outsiders. Among their own, the most famous and unforgettable were Josephus, Philo, and many others. Of these, I will only mention the testimony of Philo regarding the current matter, which he has presented in many of his own writings. From this, you should read these things taken from his 'On Behalf of the Jews.'

Book 8, Section 11

Our lawgiver has chosen many of the well-known ones for community, who are called Essenes, and I believe they have been honored for their holiness. They live in many cities of Judea, as well as in many villages and large, populated groups.

² Their choice is not based on race, for race does not apply to voluntary matters, but rather on a desire for virtue and kindness.

³ Among the Essenes, there is no one who is a child or a young person, since their ways are not uncertain because of age. Instead, there are mature men who have already entered old age, no longer influenced by the desires of the body or led by passions, enjoying true and lasting freedom.

⁴ Their way of life is a testament to their freedom. No one among them claims anything as their own—not a house, not a slave, not a piece of land, not livestock, or any other resources of wealth. Instead, they gather everything together and share in the benefits with everyone.

⁵ They live together in groups, organized into fellowships and communal meals, and they remain dedicated to working for the common good.

⁶ But others have different activities that they pursue tirelessly, not hiding, not in secret, and not making excuses about the air or new things. Before the sun rises, they turn to their usual tasks, and when the day is nearly over, they return, happy, just like those who are tested in athletic competitions.

⁷ For they believe that whatever they practice is more beneficial and more enjoyable for both the soul and body than athletic training, and that it lasts longer than what is found in competitions, without being tied to the peak of physical strength.

⁸ For among them, some are farmers who are experts in planting and agriculture; others are leaders of different kinds of livestock, and some take care of bees.

⁹ But others are craftsmen, making sure they do not have to suffer from any necessary needs, and they do not delay anything needed for their livelihood.

¹⁰ From these very different people, each one receives their pay and gives it to the elected treasurer. That person then immediately buys the necessary supplies and provides plenty of food and other things needed for human life.

¹¹ Those who share the same table and are friends enjoy each day together, appreciating simplicity and avoiding excess, since it is a sickness of both the soul and body.

¹² They not only share a common table, but also their clothing. In winter, they have thick cloaks, and in summer, simple tunics, so that anyone who wants can easily take whichever they wish, since everything belongs to everyone and is cared for by one.

¹³ If any of them becomes ill, they are cared for with the common resources, receiving attention and care from everyone. The elders, even if they happen to be childless, just like those with few children, as well as those who are very fortunate to have many children, are used to living their lives in the happiest and most comfortable old age. They deserve such privileges and honor, being cared for by choice rather than by the necessity of nature.

¹⁴ Furthermore, they wisely avoided what would most likely break up their community by rejecting marriage and practicing self-control in a different way. Among the Essenes, no one takes a wife because a woman is naturally self-loving and jealous, making it dangerous for a man to struggle with her character and face constant temptations.

¹⁵ For by studying flattering words and other forms of deception, just like on a stage where sights and sounds entice, those who are easily led are tricked, and the leader's mind is misled.

¹⁶ But if children were to be born, filled with understanding and boldness, they would openly express what had previously been hinted at with irony. With greater courage and shamelessness, they would act on those things, each of which would be an enemy of the community.

¹⁷ For a man who is bound by the charms of a woman or worried about the needs of children is no longer the same person. Instead, he has become a different man, unknowingly a slave rather than being free.

¹⁸ Indeed, their life is so full of struggle that not only private citizens but even great kings are captivated by it. Their dignity is made even more serious by honors and rewards.

¹⁹ Let these things be noted from the mentioned writing. From the work 'On the Importance of Being Free,' I will add what relates to these matters.

Book 8, Section 12

There is also in Palestine, Syria, a place of goodness and beauty that is not barren, where a large portion belongs to the very numerous Jewish people.

² There are some among them called Essenes, a group of more than four thousand. In my opinion, they do not speak a pure form of Greek, but their name is linked to holiness, since they are especially devoted to God. They do not sacrifice animals; instead, they aim to prepare their minds in a sacred way.

³ These people, first of all, live in villages, avoiding the cities because of the wickedness of those involved in politics. They know from experience that it is like a destructive disease, bringing an incurable affliction to the souls.

⁴ Some of them are farmers, while others practice crafts that promote peace. They benefit themselves and those around them, not hoarding silver and gold, nor acquiring large plots of land out of greed for profit. Instead, they focus on providing only what is necessary for their daily needs.

⁵ For they alone, almost of all people, have become free from money and possessions. They are considered the richest, whether they have plenty or little, judging wealth by their simplicity and ease.

⁶ Whether it be arrows, spears, swords, helmets, or shields, you would find no maker among them, nor any armorer or engineer, or anyone involved in war. They do not even have what could lead to wrongdoing in peace; for they know nothing of trade, retail, or shipping, avoiding all opportunities for greed.

⁷ There is not even one slave among them; all are free and help each other. They see their masters not only as unjust oppressors but also as disrespectful to natural law. They believe that nature has made all people equal, raising them like true brothers, not just in name, but in reality.

⁸ Harmful greed has shaken their kinship, replacing closeness with distance and turning friendship into hatred.

⁹ In philosophy, the logical part is not necessary for gaining virtue, as it is just words. The natural part, which is greater than human nature, is left to those who discuss the heavens, except for what it says about the existence of a god and the creation of everything. However, they focus very well on the ethical part, using the ancient laws, which it is impossible for a human mind to conceive without divine inspiration.

¹⁰ They are taught these things not only at other times but especially on the seventh day. The seventh day is considered sacred, during which they leave behind other tasks to go to holy places called gatherings. Young people sit in order by age under the elders, listening respectfully. One person reads the books, while another, one of the most experienced, teaches what is not known. Most of their teachings are discussed through symbols, following an ancient style.

¹¹ They are educated in piety, holiness, justice, self-control, citizenship, and knowledge of the truth about good and evil, as well as things that do not matter. They learn to choose what is right and to avoid what is wrong, using laws and rules that are of lesser importance, with a love for the divine, for virtue, and for humanity.

¹² Therefore, the signs of love for the divine are many, shown through a life of continuous and repeated purity, the unbreakable, the truthful, which is the cause of all good things, and the belief that the divine is not the cause of any evil. The signs of love for virtue include being free from greed, being humble, being free from desire, being self-controlled, being patient, and also having simplicity, freedom from excess, ease, being untroubled, being lawful, being stable, and anything similar to these. The signs of love for humanity are goodwill, equality, and a community that is better than any words can express, which is worth mentioning briefly.

¹³ First of all, there is no house that belongs to just one person; it has become common to all. For it is arranged that people live together in groups, and those coming from outside join those who are similar to them.

¹⁴ Then there is one treasury for all and shared expenses. Both clothing and food are common in communal meals. For one would not find anything more firmly established among others than living together, whether in the same house, sharing the same meals, or sitting at the same table, and this is not unreasonable.

¹⁵ For whatever they earn in a day as wages, they do not keep it for themselves. Instead, they place it in a common fund for those who want to use it, creating benefits from it. Those who are sick do not neglect to provide for their needs, as they have access to shared resources for their care, allowing them to spend freely without worry.

¹⁶ Respect for elders and care, similar to that of parents for their legitimate children, is shown in many ways and is abundant in all aspects of life. Philosophy, through its careful study of Greek names, shapes such individuals into athletes of virtue, presenting practices of commendable actions, from which true freedom is secured.

¹⁷ Moreover, there are signs from many times when rulers have risen up against the land, using different natures and choices. Some, trying to overcome the wildness of beasts, left nothing untouched in their cruelty, treating their subjects like a herd of animals. Others, even while still alive, cooked them in parts, until they faced the same misfortunes under the watchful eye of human justice, and they did not stop.

¹⁸ They have turned to another kind of evil, stirring up bitterness without remedy, speaking softly, and showing a heavy character with a false tone, resembling the barking of rabid dogs. They have become the cause of unhealable troubles, leaving behind in the cities reminders of their own wickedness and hatred, the lasting misfortunes of those who have suffered.

¹⁹ But indeed, neither those who are very cruel nor those who are very deceitful and treacherous have been able to blame the group of Essenes or the group of the Holy. All have become weaker than the goodness of true men, as if they were naturally free and independent. They sang praises of their shared meals and the superior fellowship of all kinds of conversation, which is the clearest proof of a complete and very happy life.

²⁰ Let the teachings of the philosopher about the practice and way of life among the Jews be presented through these things. But the topics concerning the rest of life, which the divine laws explained to most of the entire nation, have been addressed first by this discourse.

²¹ What then is left to say about these things, or to present the agreements between the theology of the young and the piety of the ancestors, so that the discourse may be fully delivered to us in this discussion?

²² Since the words of the inspired scripture are presented in this previous writing, let us now examine the thoughts of the wise among the Jews, so that we may learn what kind of children the Hebrews have become in both theology and the virtue of speech. Again, let us refer to Philo from the beginning of his work, 'On the Law'.

Book 8, Section 13

For some, marveling more at the world than at its creator, declared the uncreated and eternal to be God, greatly misrepresenting God's inactivity. They should instead be amazed at his powers as the creator and father, and not regard the moderate as unworthy.

² Moses, having reached the height of philosophy and learned the most important and connected truths about nature through oracles, understood that it is absolutely necessary for what exists to have a driving force. The mind of all things is the truest and purest, greater than knowledge, and greater than goodness and beauty itself. The passive, lifeless, and unchanging comes from it, but when moved, transformed, and animated by the mind, it became this most perfect work, the world. Those who claim it is uncreated overlook the most useful and necessary aspect of piety, which is providence.

³ For what has come into being, reason chooses the father and creator to take care of it. The father of offspring and creator of created things considers their well-being. He removes everything harmful by any means and desires to provide everything useful and beneficial in every way. But for what does not exist, there is no connection to what has not been made.

⁴ But it is a foolish and useless belief to think that this world is built without a ruler, like a city without a governor, judge, or overseer. Without such a figure, it is not right for everything to be organized and managed.

⁵ But the great Moses believed that the uncreated is completely different from what can be seen (for everything that can be sensed is always changing and never stays the same). He assigned the name of eternity to the invisible and intelligible, like a brother and relative, while he gave the name of creation to what can be sensed.

⁶ Since this world is both visible and can be sensed, it must necessarily be created. Therefore, he wrote about its creation not from a distance, but with great seriousness, discussing divine matters.

⁷ These points are about the world being created. The same man also talks about how everything is governed by providence in his work, "On Providence," where he presents the arguments of the atheists and responds to them one by one. Even if these may seem lengthy, I will summarize the most important parts. He organizes this argument in this way.

Book Nine

Do you really say that providence exists in such confusion and disorder of things? What is arranged in human life? Does it not seem full of chaos and burdens? Or do you alone not see that the very worst and most wicked people are given an abundance of good things, like wealth, fame, and honors among the masses? Additionally, they enjoy leadership, health, beauty, strength, and unrestrained pleasures, both through great wealth and through the most peaceful condition of the body. But those who love wisdom and all virtue are mostly poor, unknown, without fame, and humble?

² After saying these things and many others to refute the arguments, he goes on to answer the objections. God is not a tyrant who acts with cruelty and violence like a master of lawless power, but rather a king who rules gently and justly, rewarding the entire universe and world with justice.

³ But for a king, there is no closer relationship than that of a father. Just as parents have a bond with their children, a king has a bond with his city, and God has a bond with the world. He unites these two beautiful aspects of nature—the ruling and the caring—in an unbreakable and stable connection.

⁴ Just as parents do not overlook their wayward sons, but instead, feeling pity for their misfortune, they embrace and care for them, believing it is the work of enemies to interfere with their wrongdoings, while they ease the faults of friends and relatives.

⁵ Often, they give more help to these wayward sons than to the sensible ones, clearly knowing that self-control offers a great chance for success to the sensible. But for those who stray, if they fail, their parents will face difficulties and lack the necessities.

⁶ In the same way, God, being the father of reason, cares for all who have understanding. He also provides for those who live wrongly, giving them time to correct themselves, while staying true to his kind nature, from which virtue and kindness come, making it fitting for the divine to dwell within.

⁷ Accept this saying, O soul, as a treasure for yourself. And do not ever believe that it is a lie about the truth, that some of the worthless are considered happy, even if one is richer than Croesus, sharper-eyed than Lynceus, braver than Milo of Croton, or more beautiful than Ganymede, whom the gods took to serve wine to Zeus because of his beauty.

⁸ Surely, if someone dismisses their own spirit, meaning their own mind, as a servant to countless masters like love, desire, pleasure, fear, sorrow, carelessness, immorality, cowardice, and injustice, they could never be happy. Even if many, misled by false judgment, believe they are happy, trapped by the double evil of ignorance and empty reputation, they struggle against terrible things and lead unanchored souls astray, which most people are consumed by.

⁹ If, however, you stretch the eye of the soul and wish to see the care of the god, as human thought allows, you will gain a clearer vision of the good in relation to the truth and laugh at the things we have, which you once admired. For whenever better things are absent, the worse are honored, inheriting their place; but when the better appear, they step back, satisfied with second-place prizes.

¹⁰ Therefore, being amazed by that divine good and beautiful thing, you will surely realize that none of the things mentioned are worthy of the good fate from the god. This is because the metals of silver and gold represent the lowest fate, lacking in the true nature of what is genuinely good and absent from everything.

¹¹ For there is nothing like food, without which it is impossible to live, when compared to the abundance of money. Hunger is the clearest test of need, showing what is truly necessary and useful; for someone would gladly trade all treasures everywhere for a brief supply of food.

¹² But when the abundance of necessities pours into the cities in countless and uncontrolled ways, we do not think it worth our time to focus only on the good things of nature. Instead, we make greed our leader in life, believing that wealth in silver and gold will bring us profit. We are like the blind, covered in dust, no longer seeing with our minds because of our love for money, failing to realize that these are just piles of earth, surrounded by constant and unending conflict.

¹³ Indeed, there are garments made from sheep, as the poets say, flowers, and praise for the art of weavers. But if someone thinks highly of their reputation, having accepted the approval of the unworthy, they should know that they themselves are unworthy; for like rejoices in like.

¹⁴ Let those who have been made pure pray to be healed in their ears, through which great diseases can afflict the soul. And let those who are born into comfort learn not to be arrogant, turning their gaze away from the countless herds of wild animals, where strength and power are found. For the most remarkable virtues can be seen in wild beasts, and these should be respected. Let a person be honored by these.

¹⁵ Why should someone who thinks well of themselves take pride in the beauty of their body, which fades quickly, before it has fully blossomed, dimming its deceptive peak? And seeing this, among lifeless things, they admire the beautiful works of skilled artists, both in paintings and statues, as well as in the varied fabrics, thriving in each city of Greece and among the barbarians?

¹⁶ Therefore, as I said, nothing is valued by the god of good fortune. And what will we admire if not from the gods? For neither among those who are beloved by the gods, where good and beautiful things are honored according to the truth, do those who receive a fortunate nature improve their nature through study and practice, of which the highest philosophy is the creator.

¹⁷ But those who cared for false education did not imitate the doctors who heal the servant body of the soul while pretending to heal the mistress. For when someone becomes ill, even if they are a great king, they go beyond everything around them: the men's quarters, the women's quarters, the writings, silver, gold, and countless other things, whether from cups or fabrics, the glorious treasures of kings, and even the household crowd, along with friends or relatives, all rushing to bring healing, including the bodyguards, reaching all the way to the bed. They ignore what is around the body, neither marveling at the stone and gold beds, nor at the soft or linen sheets, nor at the different kinds of clothing. Furthermore, they wrap the cloaks around themselves, touching the arms and pressing the veins to check the pulses, to see if they are safe. Often, they even lift the tunics to see if the stomach is swollen, if the chest is burning, or if the heart is beating wildly; and then they offer their own treatment.

¹⁸ And the philosophers should also practice medicine, recognizing the nature of the royal soul and despising all things that are just empty opinions of blind chance. They should approach and examine the mind to see if, when angry, the pulses are uneven and moving against nature. They should check the tongue to see if it is rough and accusatory, if it has been corrupted and is unrestrained. They should examine the stomach to see if it is driven by insatiable desire. And they should look into all the passions, diseases, and conditions to understand if they seem mixed, investigating each one carefully so that they do not miss the remedies for healing.

¹⁹ But now, under the brightness of those outside, unable to see the true light of understanding, they wander and remain lost forever. They could not reach the king's reasoning and barely made it to the gates. They worshipped those at the doors of virtue, marveling at wealth, fame, health, and their relatives.

²⁰ But just as it is absurd for blind or deaf judges to judge colors or musical sounds, it is the same for foolish men when it comes to the truths of good things. For these men have lost the most important part of themselves, their understanding, which is trapped in deep darkness and foolishness.

²¹ Now we wonder if Socrates and other serious individuals lived in poverty, men who never engaged in making a living and did not accept great gifts from wealthy friends or kings. They considered only the good and beautiful as the true possession of virtue, for which they struggled while others talked about all the other goods.

²² Who wouldn't think poorly of the illegitimate because of the care given to the legitimate? If they share in a mortal body and are filled with human troubles, living among so many unjust people, of whom it is hard to even count, why do we blame nature when we should criticize the cruelty of those who attack?

²³ For if they were born in the air during a plague, they should certainly be sick; and in a situation of plague, evil is just as destructive. Just as when it rains, the wise person, if they live outdoors, must get wet, and when the cold north wind blows, they must feel the chill, and when summer is at its peak, they must be scorched (for it is the law of nature that bodies suffer from the yearly changes), in the same way, those living in such places, where murders occur and other nations suffer, must necessarily change their honors in response to such things.

²⁴ Since indeed for Polycrates, who committed terrible acts and was impious, the sponsor was present, the burden of life is worse; but as he was being held and bound by a great king, he was giving a prophecy. "I know," he said, "that not long ago I thought I was being washed by the sun and cleansed by Zeus." Ah, for through events, these puzzling statements, which have long been unclear, were gaining the clearest trust through actions.

²⁵ Not only at the end, but throughout all of life from the beginning, the soul hung before the body. For always fearing and trembling at the crowd of attackers, he was terrified, clearly realizing that no one was friendly, but all were relentless enemies in their misfortune.

²⁶ Those who wrote the Sicilian accounts are witnesses to the unbroken and constant caution of Dionysius. They say that he had a very suspicious wife as a sign; at the entrance to the house, through which he was about to enter, he ordered that it be covered with boards so she would not slip in unnoticed, and that the noise and banging of the entrance would announce his arrival. Then, not only was she not to be alone, but she was also to pass through all parts of the house naked, which is not right for men to see. In addition to this, the ground along the road was to be dug out to the width and depth of an agricultural ditch, out of fear that something might be secretly hidden for an attack, which would be discovered either by jumps or by long crossings.

²⁷ How many troubles does the one who watches and schemes over a woman face? Should he trust anyone else, or is he filled with doubt? For it is like those who, through a steep mountain, try to understand the clear signs in the sky. They barely reach the neck they were aiming for and can neither retreat nor go down, having given up on the remaining height. They do not dare to descend, feeling dizzy at the sight of the chasms.

²⁸ For having fallen in love, he thought that neither staying nor escaping from the tyranny was safe, as it was a matter of divine importance and great struggle. While he stayed, countless evils overwhelmed him, and when he wanted to escape, the danger of living pressed down on him, armed not with bodies, but with thoughts against him.

²⁹ It also reveals the deed for which they say Dionysius served the life of the tyrants. After calling him to a very splendid and luxurious dinner, he ordered that a very thin axe be sharpened from a leg of lamb. But when he was reclining, he suddenly realized that he could neither rise up in courage because of the tyrant nor enjoy any of the prepared dishes due to the fear he felt. Being a man who had ignored the abundant and rich pleasures, he looked up and expected his own destruction.

³⁰ And Dionysius, understanding, said, "Do you already see the famous and great struggle of our life? For it is like this, unless someone wants to deceive himself. Our life is full of countless resources, yet it offers no enjoyment of anything good. It brings repeated fears and endless dangers, along with a creeping sickness and a more difficult decline, always carrying an incurable destruction."

³¹ But many of those who do not examine themselves, deceived by the bright appearance, suffer the same fate as those who are caught by ugly companions. These companions hide their ugliness with clothing and gold, along with the features of the face, lacking true beauty and creating a false image in the eyes of those who look.

³² Those who are very fortunate are filled with such heavy misery, which they themselves judge to be excessive but do not acknowledge. Instead, like those who, forced by illness, let out the truest cries from their suffering, they live in a mix of punishments, both present and expected, just like livestock being fattened for sacrifice. For these animals receive great care in order to be slaughtered for a lavish feast.

³³ There are some who are clear about money matters and have given clear judgments, for which the effort to list the details is too much. One example is enough to represent all. It is said that the sacred war in Phocis, where a law was made to destroy the sacred site—either by being thrown down, sunk, or burned—involved three men who seized the sanctuary at Delphi: Philomelos, Onomarchos, and Phayllos, who divided the punishments among themselves. One was to be thrown down a steep and rocky cliff, another, after the horse carrying him was released and he went down to the sea, was to be swept away by the waves into a vast depth. Phayllos was to die from a wasting disease (for there are two accounts about him) or perish in the fire at the sanctuary in Abai.

³⁴ For these matters, it is very debatable to say that they happened by chance. If some were punished at different times or in different ways, it would be reasonable to think that the randomness of fate was to blame. But when everyone was punished together at the same time and not in different ways, but by the punishments described in the laws, it makes sense to say that they fell under the judgment of a god.

³⁵ "If some of those left behind were violent, and when the masses rose up and enslaved not only other communities but also their own homelands, it is not surprising that they went unpunished. For first, a human judges differently than a god, because we look into what is obvious, while a god goes deep into the soul, shining a bright light on the mind, revealing the hidden things that have been covered, and laying bare the intentions, quickly distinguishing both the signs and the worthiness."

³⁶ Therefore, we should never think of the divine court as more truthful and wiser than our own. For that is not right. In one situation, there are many things that can lead to mistakes: misleading senses, harmful passions, and the strongest barriers of wrongdoing. But in another situation, there is nothing that deceives; instead, there is justice and truth, where everything is naturally corrected and praised.

³⁷ Then, noble one, do not think that tyranny is without purpose. For punishment also has a purpose; it brings justice to the good, whether it is more useful or not needed at all. For this reason, all the laws that are written correctly include it. Those who write them are praised by everyone. What is tyranny in a community is punishment in the law.

³⁸ When a terrible lack of virtue and a scarcity of goodness seize the cities, and an abundance of foolishness overwhelms them, then the god, like a rushing stream from a winter flood, removes the flow of evil so that our kind may be cleansed. He gives strength and power to those who have the original nature.

³⁹ For evil cannot be removed without the soul. Just as cities raise up public enemies, like murderers, traitors, and those who commit sacrilege, they do not accept the opinions of men but instead examine the usefulness of their service. In the same way, the guardian of this great city of the world places tyrants over the cities where violence, injustice, and impiety are felt, flooding them with other evils, so that they may stand and be swept away.

⁴⁰ Then, those responsible, as if they have served from a difficult and merciless soul, are considered worthy of punishment, like certain leaders. For just as the power of fire, when it consumes material, ultimately turns back upon itself, in the same way, those who have seized control over the masses of tyranny, when they have wasted the cities and left them empty of people, are judged and destroyed for the sake of all.

⁴¹ And why should we be surprised if, through tyrants, the god drives away the evil that has spread in cities, lands, and nations? For often, without relying on others, he himself brings about this destruction, sending famine, plague, or earthquakes, and all other divine punishments, by which large groups of people are destroyed every day, leaving a great part of the world desolate because of the neglect of virtue.

⁴² Indeed, enough has been said about the current situation regarding whether any of the wicked can be happy, as I believe. This is where the need for foresight becomes most clear. But if you are not yet convinced, encourage the one who is hesitating to be brave: for both of us, having sought the truth together, will come to understand it.

⁴³ And again he says, "The god does not bring storms and rains for the harm of the many, as you thought, or just for the farmers, but for the benefit of all our kind." For he cleanses the earth with water and fills every place under the sky with life. He nourishes, grows, and perfects both animals and plants.

⁴⁴ But if there are times when he harms those who are not sailors or farmers, it is not surprising. For these are a small part, while the care is for all of humankind. Just as in the gymnasium, oil is applied for benefit, but often the trainer changes the order for the needs of the city, causing some who are being oiled to miss out. In the same way, the god, caring for the order of the whole world, is used to bringing summer during winter and spring during summer for the benefit of all, even if some sailors or workers of the land might suffer from these changes.

⁴⁵ Therefore, knowing the necessary changes of the elements, from which the world is made and formed, he provides them without hindrance. For snow and frost and whatever else follows the air brings cold, and again he gathers and stirs up clouds, along with lightning and thunder. None of these things happen by chance; rather, rain and winds are the causes of life, nourishment, and growth for those on the earth, and these are their results.

⁴⁶ Just as when the gymnastic trainer often spends money on his ambitions, some of the beautiful athletes sprinkle oil on the ground instead of water, and it quickly becomes very slippery mud. But no one who thinks clearly would say that the mud and slipperiness came from the trainer's planning; rather, these things are simply a result of the abundance of the supplies.

⁴⁷ The rainbow and the halo, along with anything similar, are results of the rays mixing with the clouds. They are not things that come before nature, but rather events that happen alongside natural processes. However, these also provide a necessary understanding for those who are wiser, as calm weather and winds, along with fair weather and storms, can be predicted from them.

⁴⁸ Do you not see the porticoes in the city? Most of them face south, so that those walking there can be sheltered from the winter and can enjoy the breeze in the summer. There is also something else that does not follow the builder's plan. What is this? The shadows that fall from the feet mark the hours.

⁴⁹ Fire is indeed the most necessary work of nature, and smoke follows it, but it can also provide some benefits at times. For example, during the midday fires, when the fire is dimmed by the rays of the sun, the smoke signals an enemy attack.

⁵⁰ Just as there is a reason for the rainbow, there is also a reason for eclipses. Eclipses follow the divine nature of the sun and moon. They are signs of either the end of kings or the downfall of cities; this is what Pindar hinted at regarding the previously mentioned eclipse.

⁵¹ But the circle of milk has changed from the same substance to other stars. If there is a reason for this, let those who are used to exploring nature not be discouraged. For discovery is very useful, and the search itself is also the sweetest thing for those who love to learn.

⁵² Just as the sun and moon have come into being by design, everything in the sky has a purpose too. Even if we cannot understand the nature and powers of each one, let us remain calm.

⁵³ Earthquakes, plagues, strikes of lightning, and all such things are said to be divine. But in truth, no god is the cause of any evil at all. Instead, these events arise from changes in the elements, not from earlier works of nature, but as a result of necessary and preceding events.

⁵⁴ If some of the more graceful things share in the harm from these events, the administration should not be blamed. First, if some are thought to be good among us, and they truly are, it is because the judgments of the divine are more precise than all human understanding. Second, foresight tends to focus on the most connected things in the world, just as in kingdoms and armies, regarding the cities and the camps, without caring for any of the neglected and hidden ones that may arise.

⁵⁵ Some say that, just as it is considered lawful to punish relatives in cases of tyrannicide because of the severity of the punishment, in the same way, during deadly diseases, some who are not guilty may also be swept away so that others may be warned from afar. However, it is not necessary for those affected by the sickly air to suffer, just as those in a ship caught in a storm are equally at risk.

⁵⁶ The brave qualities of beasts have emerged, and it should not be kept quiet, even if it is difficult to say that you have weakened the defense for the sake of training for military contests. For exercises and constant training strengthen and greatly improve the bodies, and they prepare the souls for sudden attacks from enemies, making them unthinking in their endurance of strength.

⁵⁷ For those with peaceful natures, it is possible to live safely not only within walls but also in sheltered places, without fear of attack, enjoying the most abundant days. Pigs, lions, and all similar creatures, using their natural instincts, have moved far from the city, seeking to avoid any harm from human threats.

⁵⁸ But if some, out of laziness, live unarmed and unprepared, fearlessly among the attacks of wild animals, they should not blame their nature for what happens to them, since they neglected to protect themselves. Indeed, I have seen some at horse races who, acting thoughtlessly, stood in the middle when they should have taken their seats and watched properly. They were swept up by the rush of the horses, crushed underfoot and by the wheels, finding themselves in a state of confusion.

⁵⁹ Therefore, it is important to consider what has been said about these matters. The poisonous creatures did not come about by design, but rather as a result of natural processes, as I mentioned earlier. Life is created when the existing moisture changes to a warmer state. Some creatures are also brought to life through decay, like worms from food and lice from sweat. Anything that comes from its own material, having a natural seed and a prior origin, is rightly said to have a purpose.

⁶⁰ I also heard two opinions about those things that have been beneficial to humans, which I would not want to hide. One opinion was this: some said that poisonous creatures can assist in many medical practices and for those who study the art, using their knowledge wisely to provide remedies, especially in cases of unexpected danger. Even now, we can see those who do not carelessly or thoughtlessly try to heal, using the mixtures of medicines appropriately for each situation.

⁶¹ The other opinion was not medical, but philosophical, it seems. They said that these things are meant by God to serve as punishments for those who sin, like whips or iron for leaders and commanders. They do not allow calmness during other times, but instead stir up strength against those who are condemned, whose nature has judged itself to death in a court that does not accept bribes.

⁶² What is hidden in the houses is more of a lie; for outside the city, in the fields and deserts, it can be seen that humans flee as if from a master. However, even if it is true, it has some meaning. For in the corners, there is a collection of dirt and a great deal of filth, which, if one wishes to enter, has the power to carry away the smell.

⁶³ If swallows live with us, it is nothing surprising; for we stay away from their hunting. But the desire for safety is found not only in rational souls but also in irrational ones. As for enjoyment, there is nothing similar because of the plots against us, except among those for whom the law has forbidden such things.

⁶⁴ There is a city by the sea in Syria called Ascalon. While I was there, as I was being sent to the ancestral temple, praying and making sacrifices, I saw a great number of the Pleiades over the trees and around each house. When I asked about the reason, they said it was not lawful to gather them; for it has been forbidden to the inhabitants for a long time. In this way, the animal is tamed by freedom, so that it not only becomes a shelter but also always sits at the same table and shares in the offerings.

⁶⁵ In Egypt, it is even more amazing to see. The crocodile, which is the most dangerous to humans and wild animals, is born and raised in the sacred Nile. Even though it lives deep in the water, it is aware of what is happening around it. In some places, it is honored and grows in number, but among those who are harmed, it does not even appear in their dreams. The boldest people dare to stretch out a finger, while the very fearful run away with their children.

⁶⁶ The land of the Cyclopes, since their race is a creation of myth, does not produce tame crops like those of farmers, just as nothing comes from what does not exist. Greece, however, should not be accused of being barren and unproductive; for even here, the depths of the earth are rich. If the land of the barbarians differs in its abundance of food, it has more to eat but provides less for those who are fed. Because of this, Greece alone truly produces humans, with a heavenly plant and divine growth, leading to well-formed knowledge. The reason for this is that the thinness of the air sharpens the mind.

⁶⁷ For this reason, Heraclitus says, "Dry light is the wisest and best soul." One could also show that those who are sober and have little are more understanding, while those who are always filled with drink and food are the least wise, as if they are being overwhelmed by the thoughts that come to them.

⁶⁸ For this reason, in the land of the barbarians, there are rich crops and very tall plants, but it produces the least understanding among the irrational animals. This is because the rising air has been overwhelmed by the constant and continuous vapors of the earth and water.

⁶⁹ For fish, birds, and land animals, there are no natural urges that call for pleasure, but there is a serious blame for our own lack of self-control. It was necessary for the completion of the whole, so that a world could be formed in each part, to create the forms of all animals. However, it is not necessary to push humans, who are the closest to wisdom, to seek enjoyment, as they can turn into the wildness of beasts.

⁷⁰ For this reason, even now, those who are far from the teachings of self-control enjoy the sweetest pleasures from green vegetables and the fruits of trees. But for those who believe that the wildness mentioned above is natural, teachers, wise individuals, and lawmakers have been established in the cities. They aim to limit the excess of desires, not allowing everyone to use everything without restraint.

⁷¹ If roses, saffron, and other types of flowers exist for health, they are not meant for pleasure. Their powers are plentiful, and on their own, through their scents, they benefit everyone by filling them with sweet fragrances. This is especially true in the medicinal mixtures of remedies. For some, when their own powers are combined, they provide clearer effects, just as the mixing of male and female in the generation of animals creates something that neither can produce alone when both come together.

⁷² These things have been said out of necessity regarding the other matters you have asked about, to provide enough confidence for those who do not argue about the divine care of human affairs.

⁷³ So, I have taken these things from what has been said about a man, showing how the children of the Hebrews have become like this among the young. I have also highlighted their pious understanding of God, making clear their agreement with their ancestors. Now it is time to move on to the testimonies from outside about these same matters.

Book 9, Section 1

And regarding the acceptance of the writings from the Hebrews, we examine them with careful thought and judgment. Since the proofs are clear, it is time to recognize that the Greeks, especially those who are most knowledgeable about the Hebrews, are not unaware of these matters. Some have confirmed the truth through the historical accounts they have received, while others have also followed their theology in a similar way.

² First, I will present the basics, showing how many of the Greek writers mentioned the Jews and Hebrews, along with their ancient philosophy and the history of their ancestors.

³ But my discussion will begin with the lives of men, so that you may understand that we have valued the philosophy of the Greeks, which is clearly shown through sound reasoning.

⁴ Therefore, following what has been explained in the previous writing, both the sacred books among them and the works of Greek philosophers, which are very clear and have been confirmed by us, show that they also practice moral training. Indeed, take a moment to read the writings of Theophrastus in the texts of Porphyry about the separation of living beings, in this manner.

Book 9, Section 2

And yet, Theophrastus says that the Jews, because of their ancient custom of sacrifice, even now, if someone were to command us to sacrifice in the same way, we would withdraw from the act. For those who are being sacrificed do not eat, but they burn these offerings at night, pouring out much honey and wine over them, quickly consuming the sacrifice, so that not even the all-seeing one would become a witness.

² And they do this while fasting on the days in between. During this time, since they are philosophers by nature, they talk to each other about the divine, and at night they observe the stars, looking at them and calling upon the gods through their prayers. For these people were the first among all living beings, acting out of necessity and not out of desire.

Book 9, Section 3

And in the fourth part of the same discussion, Porphyry tells us about them. Therefore, the Essenes are Jews by birth, but they are friendly to others as well.

² They turn away from pleasures as if they were bad, but they see self-control and not giving in to passions as a virtue. They look down on marriage, but they take in the children of others, believing that those who are still young and related to them are suitable for learning, and they shape them according to their own customs. They do not reject marriage and its continuation, but they are careful about the immoral behavior of women. They despise wealth and find their community life remarkable, and there is nothing among them that stands out in terms of possessions.

³ For there is a law that those who join the community must give up their possessions to the group, so that in everything neither the shame of poverty nor the pride of wealth is seen. The belongings of each person are mixed together, creating one shared property as if they were all brothers.

⁴ They see oil as a stain, and even if someone is anointed against their will, their body becomes unclean. They believe that being moist is a bad thing, and they always try to avoid being pale.

⁵ The elected leaders of the community take care of everyone's needs, and they work together without division. There is not just one city for them; instead, many people live in each place, and newcomers are welcomed as guests. When they first arrive, they are treated as if they are among friends. Because of this, they do not bring anything with them when they travel, as they do not need to spend money.

⁶ They do not change their clothes or shoes until they are completely worn out or used up over time. They do not buy or sell anything; instead, each person gives what they have to those in need and receives what they need in return. Without any exchange, they share freely with anyone they choose.

⁷ They show great respect for the divine. Before they can look at the sun, they do not say anything unholy, but they offer prayers to it as if they are begging for it to rise. After this, each person is allowed to practice their skills under the leaders, and they work hard until the fifth hour. Then, they gather together in one place, and after wrapping themselves in cloths, they wash their bodies with cold water. After this purification, they go to their own homes, where no outsiders are allowed to enter.

⁸ They come together clean, as if entering a holy place for a meal. Once they are seated in peace, the baker places the loaves in order, and the cook serves each person one dish from a single pot. The priest offers a prayer for the food, which is pure and clean, and no one is allowed to taste anything before the prayer. After they have eaten, he prays again, both at the beginning and the end, honoring the god.

⁹ Then, after setting aside their sacred garments, they return to work until evening. When they come back to dine, they sit down together in the same way, and the guests join them if they happen to be present.

¹⁰ Neither shouting nor noise ever pollutes the house. They allow their conversations to flow in an orderly manner, and the silence inside seems like a frightening mystery to those outside. The reason for this is their constant sobriety and the way they measure their food and drink until they are full.

¹¹ For those who desire this way of life, the path is not immediate. Instead, they stay outside for a year, following the same diet, and they receive a knife, a belt, and a white garment. When they show self-control during this time, they are allowed to approach the diet more closely and receive purer water for their cleanliness.

¹² They are not yet accepted into the community. After showing endurance, their character is tested for two more years. If they prove worthy, they are then admitted into the group.

¹³ Before they share in the common food, they swear terrible oaths. First, they will honor the divine, then they will keep justice towards people, and they will not harm anyone, either intentionally or accidentally. They will always hate the unjust and side with the just. They will provide trust to all, especially to those in power, for no one should rule without the support of the divine. Even if they themselves are in charge, they must never abuse their authority, nor should they elevate those under them with clothing or any other outward show. They will always love the truth and expose those who lie. They will keep their hands free from theft and their souls pure from unjust gain. They will not hide anything from their fellow initiates nor reveal anything to others, even if someone is forced to do so until death.

¹⁴ In addition to these, they swear not to share any of the teachings with anyone else, except as they received them. They will reject theft and will protect both the books of their group and the names of the angels.

¹⁵ Such are the oaths. But those who are caught and expelled in a bad way are destroyed. Those bound by the oaths and the rules cannot partake of the food shared with others. By eating poorly and being consumed by hunger, they perish.

¹⁶ Therefore, having shown mercy to many in their greatest needs, they believed they had given enough punishment for the wrongdoings, which was a torment until death.

¹⁷ They give the ladder to those who are about to be chosen, since they themselves do not hide in any other way than by digging a deep pit and covering it with cloth, so that it does not offend the rays of the god.

¹⁸ Such is their simplicity regarding their diet and their frugality that, on the seventh day, they do not fear being empty. They are used to keeping this time for hymns to the god and for rest.

¹⁹ From this practice, they have gained such strength that, even when twisted, bent, and burned, and facing all kinds of torture, they either blaspheme the lawgiver or endure eating something that is neither familiar nor acceptable.

²⁰ They demonstrated this during the war against the Romans. They do not flatter those who are being tortured, nor do they shed tears while enduring their pain. Instead, they smile through their suffering and mock those who inflict the tortures. They freely let their souls go, as if they were being taken up again. This glory is strong among them: their bodies are perishable, and their material is not lasting, but their souls remain immortal forever. When they are released from the bonds of the flesh, as if freed from long slavery, they rejoice and are carried away.

²¹ From such a way of life and their practice of truth and piety, many among them, who can foresee what is to come, are rooted in sacred books, various forms of purity, and the sayings of prophets. It is rare for them to miss the mark in their predictions.

²² Porphyry testified about these things in the fourth book of his studies, likely based on ancient writings. He spoke of the piety and philosophy of the revealed men concerning the separation of living beings.

Book 9, Section 4

Hecataeus of Abdera, a philosopher skilled in his actions, wrote a special book on the history of the Jews, where he discusses many things about them. From this, what is presented here will be sufficient for now.

² Indeed, among the Jews, there are many strongholds throughout the land and in the villages. However, Jerusalem is a strong city, with a perimeter of fifty stadia, where about twelve myriads of people live, and they call it Jerusalem.

³ Here, in the center of the city, there is a stone enclosure that is about five times as long as it is wide, measuring one hundred cubits across. It has double gates. Inside, there is a square altar made of gathered stones, arranged in this way: each side measures twenty cubits, and its height is twelve cubits.

⁴ Next to it, there is a large building that contains an altar and a lampstand. Both are made of gold and weigh two talents. Above them, there is an everlasting light that shines both day and night. There is no statue or offering of any kind, nor any plants, or anything like a grove, or anything similar.

⁵ In it, both day and night, priests spend their time observing certain rituals of purity, and they do not drink any wine at all in the temple.

⁶ After saying this, he mentioned that they had also fought alongside King Alexander, and afterward, he testified about his successors. He claims that he himself met a Jewish man during the campaign, and I will share this. He says:

⁷ While I was walking to the Red Sea, a man named Mosomamos accompanied me with the other Jewish horsemen. He was a strong and well-built man, recognized by both Greeks and non-Greeks as the best archer.

⁸ This man, while many were walking along the road and a certain seer was watching birds and asking everyone to wait, asked why they were waiting. When the seer showed him the bird and said that if it stayed, it was good for everyone to wait, but if it flew forward, they should move on, and if it flew back, they should retreat, he fell silent. Then he drew his bow and shot the bird, killing it.

⁹ When the seer and some others became angry and cursed him, he said, "Why are you so upset, you unlucky ones?" Then, taking the bird in his hands, he added, "How could this one, not knowing his own safety, announce anything good about our journey? If he could foresee the future, he wouldn't have come to this place, fearing that Mosomamos the Jew would kill him with an arrow." And this is what Hecataeus said.

Book 9, Section 5

Clearchus the Peripatetic philosopher, in the first book On Sleep, shares a certain account about the Jews with Aristotle the philosopher, writing something like this:

² "But it would take a long time to talk about many things. However, it is not worse to discuss some of the wonders and philosophy of those people. Clearly understand this," he said, "Hyperochides, I think it is wonderful to speak to you about dreams."

³ And Hyperochides, being careful, said, "For this reason, we all want to hear this."

⁴ "Well then," said Aristotle, "following the guidance of the rhetoricians, let us first discuss his type, so that we do not go against the teachers of rhetoric."

⁵ "Speak," said Hyperochides, "if that seems right."

⁶ That person, then, was a Jew from Coele-Syria; these are descendants of the philosophers from India. They are called, as they say, the philosophers: among the Indians, Kalanoi, and among the Syrians, Jews, taking their name from that place. They are called Jews because they live in a region known as Judea; however, the name of their city is quite unusual, for they call it Jerusalem.

⁷ This man, then, was Greek, not only in language but also in spirit, as he often visited many and came down from the higher regions to the coastal areas. While we were discussing Asia, a man approached us in those same places, meeting with us and some other scholars, trying to learn from their wisdom. Since he was acquainted with many in education, he shared more of what he knew. These things also came from Clearchus.

Book 9, Section 6

Our Clement also mentions this man in the first Stromateis, where he speaks of these matters.

² "Clearchus the Peripatetic says that he knew a certain Jew who was a contemporary of Aristotle." He also adds other remarks.

³ Numas, the king of the Romans, was a Pythagorean. With the help of the teachings of Moses, he stopped the Romans from creating images of God that looked like humans or animals.

⁴ In the first one hundred and seventy years, they built no temples, nor statues or paintings. Numas showed them, through secrecy, that it was not possible to express the best with words, but only with the mind. Furthermore, after this, he says the following.

⁵ Most clearly, Megasthenes, the writer who lived with Seleucus Nicanor, writes this in the third book of the Indica: "All things about nature that have been mentioned by the ancients are also said by those who study philosophy outside of Greece; some by the Indians through the Brahmins, and others in Syria by those called Jews."

⁶ Moreover, Clement mentions Aristobulus the Peripatetic and Numenius the Pythagorean, saying: "Aristobulus writes in the first of his works to Philometor, word for word: Plato was influenced by our laws, and it is clear that he carefully examined each of the things said in it."

⁷ It is explained by others before Demetrius, before the rule of Alexander and the Persians, about the departure of our citizens, the Hebrews, from Egypt, the appearance of all the events to them, the control of the land, and the explanation of the whole law.

⁸ Therefore, it is clear that the philosopher mentioned has learned many things; for he has become very knowledgeable, just as Pythagoras took many ideas from us into his own teachings.

⁹ Numenius the Pythagorean philosopher writes directly: "What is Plato or Moses saying in Attic?" This is what Clement says.

Book 9, Section 7

From the first book 'On the Good' by the Pythagorean philosopher, I, speaking of Numenius, will present the following: "In this, it will be necessary to say and point out that the testimonies of Plato should be set aside and connected with the words of Pythagoras. The honored nations should be called upon to offer their rituals and teachings, with the foundations being completed according to Plato, as many as the Bactrians, Jews, Magi, and Egyptians have passed down." This is what I have to say about these matters.

Book 9, Section 8

And in the third book of Moses, the same one says the following: "And after this, the Egyptian scribes, Jannes and Jambres, who were men judged to be no less than magicians, opposed the Jews as they were leaving Egypt."

² Indeed, in the account of the Jews given by Moses, he prayed to the most powerful God. Those who were deemed worthy to stand by him were from the multitude of the Egyptians. They were seen as strong enough to handle the disasters that Moses brought upon Egypt, freeing their youngest ones.

³ Because of these things, Numenius also testifies that those under Moses were involved in remarkable wonders and that he himself became beloved by God.

Book 9, Section 9

Chorilus, an ancient poet of the Jewish nation, also mentions how they campaigned with King Xerxes against Greece. He says this: "Behind them passed a remarkable race to be seen, speaking a Phoenician language, and they lived in the mountains of Solyma, wide by a lake, with heads captured, like wheels." But above them, they wore horse-like faces covered with smoke.

² It is clear that these things were said about the Jews, as he also mentions that Jerusalem is located in the mountains called Solyma by the Greeks, and that Lake Asphaltitis is nearby, being the widest and largest of all the lakes in Syria, according to the poet. These are indeed the things he said.

Book 9, Section 10

But Porphyry introduces his own god in the first part of his work on philosophy, showing wisdom alongside the other nations that cry out for understanding among the Hebrews.

² "And Apollo, who is with him, says these things through a prophecy. After discussing the sacrifices, he adds what should be focused on, as they are full of all wisdom: 'The path of the blessed is high and rough, opening first at the gates of bronze; the ways are countless and unfathomable, which the first mortals revealed for endless deeds, those who drink the beautiful water of the Nile. Many paths of the blessed have been traveled by Assyrians, Lydians, and men of the Hebrew race,' along with what follows from these things, which the author chooses."

³ For the path to the gods is made of bronze, both high and rough. Many paths have been found by the barbarians, while the Greeks have wandered off, and those in power have already destroyed them. The god testified to this discovery among the Egyptians, as well as the Phoenicians and Chaldeans, for these are Assyrians, Lydians, and Hebrews.

⁴ Moreover, in another prophecy, Apollo says, "Only the Chaldeans have obtained wisdom, and the Hebrews, honoring their own god, the self-born lord, with purity."

⁵ And again, when asked why they say there are many heavens, he answered, "In the whole universe, there is one circle, but it is carried with seven zones into the starry paths. The Chaldeans and the famous Brahmins named these heavenly, as they move in a sevenfold course."

⁶ Now, let's talk about the names of the Jews and Hebrews, and their long-standing reputation for piety and philosophy. As for their ancestral history, let those who agree share their thoughts.

⁷ Moses, in his writings about the whole world, recorded the flood and how Noah, known among the Hebrews, was saved in a wooden ark with his family. Berossus the Chaldean, Jerome the Egyptian, and Nicholas of Damascus, all historical writers, mentioned the same events. Josephus, in the first book of his Antiquities, shares this account.

Book 9, Section 11

All those who have written about foreign histories remember this flood and the ark, including Berossus the Chaldean. When he describes the flood, he explains it like this:

² It is said that part of the ship is still in Armenia, near the mountain of the Gordyæans, and that some people take pieces from it. The people mostly use what is taken from it to ease their fears.

³ Jerome the Egyptian also remembers these events; he wrote about the ancient history of the Phoenicians, along with Manasseh and many others. Nicholas of Damascus also discusses them in the ninety-sixth book, saying this:

⁴ "There is a great mountain beyond Minyas, called Baris, where many people are said to have escaped during the flood. Some are said to have rested on a raft at the peak, and the remains of the wood are said to have survived for a long time. This is what Moses, the lawgiver of the Jews, wrote about." This is what Josephus says.

Book 9, Section 12

But I will go through the Medes and Assyrians and share with you these words of the man from the writing of Abydenus about the same history.

² After him, others ruled, including Seisithros, to whom Cronus foretold that there would be a great flood on the fifth day of the month Desius. He ordered that all writings kept in the city of Helios in Sippar be hidden away.

³ Seisithros, having completed these tasks, immediately sailed to Armenia, and soon he was caught by the will of the god. On the third day, when the rain stopped, he sent out birds to see if they could find land that the water had receded from.

⁴ But while they were waiting, they were troubled by the vast sea, wondering where they would land near Seisithros. They were also being pushed back by other waves.

⁵ When the third day came, he was fortunate, for indeed the mud covered the feet of the birds. The gods were hiding him from people. The ship was in Armenia, surrounded by protective wood provided by the local people.

Book 9, Section 13

Again, when Moses said that the first humans lived a long time, the Greek writers are included as witnesses to this statement, as Josephus mentions here.

² Let no one, when comparing our present life and the shortness of the years we live, think that what is said about the ancients is false. No one today can extend life to that extent, nor could those people reach such a long life.

³ For those who are beloved by the gods and created by the god himself, and because their food was suitable for a longer time, they lived many years with ease.

⁴ Then, because of their virtue and usefulness, which they practiced in astrology and geometry, the god allowed them to live longer. However, it was not certain that they would not live for six hundred years; for because of these things, the great year is completed.

⁵ All those who have written about ancient history, both among the Greeks and non-Greeks, support my words. Manetho, who recorded the history of the Egyptians, Berossus, who collected the Chaldean writings, and Molos and Hestiaeus, along with the Egyptian Hieronymus, who wrote about the Phoenicians, all agree with what I say. Hesiod, Hecataeus, Hellanicus, and Acusilaus, along with Ephorus and Nicolaus, also mention that the ancients lived for a thousand years. Therefore, let each person consider these things as they wish.

Book 9, Section 14

Again, regarding the construction of the tower and how many languages mixed into different dialects from one original language, the writer who discussed the Assyrians shortly before confirms this, saying:

² Indeed, those who say that the first people, having risen from the earth, grew strong and great, and then despised the gods, are better off. They built a tower to reach the heavens, which is now known as Babylon. It is already closer to the sky, and the winds are turned by the gods around it. Therefore, the ruins are called Babylon. At first, they all spoke the same language and had a loud voice from the gods, but later, with Cronus and the Titans, they waged war.

³ But the place where they built the tower is now called Babylon, because of the confusion surrounding the language that was once clear. For the Hebrews call this confusion Babel.

Book 9, Section 15

About this tower and the different languages of the people, the Sibyl also speaks, saying that when all the people spoke the same language, some built a very tall tower to reach the sky. But the gods sent winds and overturned the tower, giving each person their own language. For this reason, the city came to be called Babylon. Additionally, regarding the plain called Shinar in the land of Babylon, Hestiaeus mentions that the surviving priests, after taking the sacred items of Enyalius (the god of war), went to Shinar in Babylon. From there, they scattered because of the different languages, creating communities everywhere, and each person took the land they encountered.

Book 9, Section 16

Again, Moses tells the story of the Hebrew ancestor Abraham in detail. Josephus also says that he can confirm this and the accounts of other historians.

² Beeros mentions our father Abraham, though he does not name him. He says that after the flood, there was a righteous and great man among the Chaldeans in the tenth generation, who was knowledgeable about heavenly matters.

³ Hecataeus is also very sure that he should be mentioned more. He wrote a book about him and left it behind.

⁴ Nicolaus of Damascus says in the fourth book of his histories: "Abraham ruled in Damascus, having come as a newcomer with an army from the land above Babylon, known as Chaldea. After a short time, he left that place and, with his own people, moved into what was then called Canaan, now called Judea. Those who came from him grew in number, and I will tell more about them in another account."

⁵ The name of Abraham is still honored in Damascus, and there is a village there called Abraham's dwelling. After some time, when he had taken over Canaan, Abraham learned that the Egyptians were prospering and was eager to share with them, enjoying their abundance and listening to their priests, who spoke about the gods. He thought it better to either follow those who were found to be superior or to guide them toward what is better, believing himself to be wiser.

⁶ Then he adds, "He associated with the most learned Egyptians, and from this, both his virtue and his reputation became even more remarkable."

⁷ For the Egyptians, who were pleased with different customs and criticized each other's laws, were unfriendly toward one another. By engaging with each of them and examining the things they said about their own matters, he showed that their words were empty and lacked truth.

⁸ "Therefore, being admired by them in their gatherings as the wisest, and being a remarkable man not only for his understanding but also for his ability to persuade by speaking about whatever he attempted to teach, he offered them arithmetic and shared knowledge about astrology. Before Abraham's arrival, the Egyptians were ignorant of these subjects. These teachings came from the Chaldeans into Egypt, from where he also brought them to the Greeks." This is what Josephus says.

Book 9, Section 17

Also agreeing with this is Polyhistor Alexander, who was a very learned man and well-known among the Greeks for his knowledge gained through education. In his work, 'On the Jews,' he recounts the story of Abraham word for word.

² Euhemerus, in his work 'On the Jews,' says that the city of Babylon was first built by those who survived the flood, and that they were giants who constructed the tower that is being described.

³ When he fell, by the power of god, the giants were scattered all over the earth. In the tenth generation, he says, in the city of Babylonia called Camarina, which some refer to as the city of Ur; it is translated as a city of the Chaldeans. In the thirteenth generation, Abraham was born, surpassing everyone in nobility and wisdom. He was the one who discovered astrology and Chaldean knowledge, and he was motivated by his devotion to please god.

⁴ After this, by the commands of god, he went to Phoenicia and settled there, teaching the Phoenicians about the ways of the sun and moon and everything else to please their king. Later, he gathered the Armenians to fight alongside the Phoenicians. After they won and captured his cousin, Abraham helped to free the captives and took the children and women of the enemies as prisoners.

⁵ When the ambassadors came to him to ask for money to free the captives, he did not want to interfere with the unfortunate ones. Instead, he took food from the young men to give back to the captives. He was also welcomed by a city called Aryarix, which is translated as "the mountain of the Most High."

⁶ From Melchizedek, who was a priest of god and king, he received gifts. When there was a famine, Abraham went to Egypt with his entire household and settled there. He also allowed the king of the Egyptians to marry his wife, saying she was his sister.

⁷ He explained further that he could not be with her as a relative and that his people and household were destroyed. When he called for seers, they said that the woman was not barren. The king of the Egyptians then understood that she was Abraham's wife and returned her to her husband.

⁸ While Abraham was in Heliopolis, he taught the Egyptian priests many things, including astrology and other subjects. They claimed that the Babylonians discovered these things and traced the discovery back to Enoch, saying that he was the first to find astrology, not the Egyptians.

⁹ They say that the Babylonians were the first to have Bel, who is Kronos. From him came Bel and Canaan, and Canaan was the father of the Phoenicians. From him came Choum, whom the Greeks call Asbolon, the father of the Ethiopians, and the brother of Mesthaeim, the father of the Egyptians. The Greeks say that Atlas discovered astrology, and that Atlas is the same as Enoch. Enoch had a son named Methuselah, who knew everything through the angels of god, and in this way, we also come to know.

Book 9, Section 18

Artapanus says in the Jewish writings that the Jews are called Hermiouh, which is translated into Greek as Jews. They are also called Hebrews because of Abraham. He says that he came to Egypt with his whole family to the Egyptian king Pharao and taught him astrology. After staying there for twenty years, he returned to the regions of Syria. Many of those who came with him stayed in Egypt because of the prosperity of the land.

² In the unowned writings, we find that Abraham spoke of the giants, who lived in Babylon and were destroyed by the gods because of their wickedness. One of them, Bel, escaped death and settled in Babylon, where he built a tower to live in, which was named after him, Bel. Abraham, having been taught the science of astrology, first went to Phoenicia to teach the Phoenicians astrology, and later went to Egypt.

Book 9, Section 19

He who wrote the account according to the Jews, Molon, says that after the flood, the man who was left went away from Armenia with his sons, driven out by the locals. After crossing the land in between, he arrived at the mountainous and deserted region of Syria.

² After three generations, Abraham was born, and he is understood to be a beloved son of his father. He became wise and sought out the wilderness. He took two wives: one was local and related to him, and the other was an Egyptian servant. From the Egyptian wife, he had twelve sons, who went to Arabia and settled the land, becoming the first kings of the locals. Therefore, even to this day, there are twelve kings of the Arabs who share the same name as those.

³ From his wife, a son was born to him, who is called Gelotas in Greek. Abraham died in old age, but Gelotas had eleven sons with a local woman, and the twelfth was Joseph. From Joseph came the third, Moses.

⁴ Polyhistor says this and adds other details. Not long after, God commanded Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a whole burnt offering. Abraham took the boy to the mountain to prepare a fire and place Isaac on it. Just as he was about to sacrifice him, an angel stopped him and provided a ram for the offering instead. Abraham then took the boy off the fire and offered the ram.

Book 9, Section 20

Philo also talks about this in the first of his works about Jerusalem. He says that a great crowd heard how, according to the laws, Abraham was called to a glorious sacrifice, greater than any bonds. He was filled with proud thoughts and divine love. When he left behind the beautiful enclosure of terrible plants, he held a mighty fire that was worthy of praise, creating his own immortal fame, since from him came a descendant who received great honor. Shortly after, he mentions how, just as someone was about to draw a sword, he was stopped, and instead, he offered a ram with horns in his hands.

² These things indeed come from the previously mentioned writing of Polyhistor. Josephus also mentions in the first book of his Antiquities that it is said this man campaigned in Africa and took control of Libya. His sons, settling there, named the land after him, calling it Africa.

³ Alexander Polyhistor bears witness to me in this way: Cleodemus the prophet, who is also called Malchas, tells the history of the Jews, just as Moses, their lawgiver, recorded. He says that from Hethura, Abraham had many children. He also mentions their names, saying there were three: Apher, Asour, and Afran.

⁴ And from Asour came Assyria, and from the two, Afran and Apher, the city of Afran and the land called Africa. These men were said to have campaigned with Hercules in Libya, and Hercules, after marrying the daughter of Afran, fathered a son named Diodorus. From him came Sophon, from whom the barbarians are called Sophas. So let these things about Abraham be noted briefly.

Book 9, Section 21

Let us return again to Polyhistor. Demetrius says that Jacob, having lived for eighty-five years, fled to Harran in Mesopotamia. He was sent by his parents because of the secret hatred against his brother Esau, since their father seemed to bless Esau. This was also so that he might take a wife from there.

² Therefore, Jacob set out for Harran in Mesopotamia, leaving behind his father Isaac, who was one hundred thirty-seven years old, while Jacob himself was seventy-seven.

³ After spending seven years there, Jacob married two daughters, Leah and Rachel, when he was eighty-four years old. During those seven years, he had twelve children. In the eighth year, in the tenth month, he had Reuben. In the ninth year, in the eighth month, he had Simeon. In the tenth year, in the sixth month, he had Levi. In the eleventh year, in the fourth month, he had Judah. Rachel, who had no children, envied her sister and gave her maidservant Bilhah to Jacob. At that time, Bilhah bore Naphtali in the eleventh year, in the fifth month. In the twelfth year, in the second month, she had another son, whom Leah named Gad. In the same year and month, Leah also had another son, whom she named Asher.

⁴ And Leah, in exchange for the mandrake roots that Reuben brought to Rachel, became pregnant. At the same time, her maidservant Zilpah had a son in the twelfth year, in the third month. In that same year, in the twelfth month, Leah had another son, whom she named Issachar.

⁵ And again, in the thirteenth year, Leah had another son, whom she named Zebulun. In the same year, in the eighth month of the fourteenth year, she had a son named Dan. At that time, Rachel also became pregnant and gave birth to a daughter named Dinah. In the eighth month of the fourteenth year, she had a son named Joseph. So, during the seven years that he worked, he had twelve children.

⁶ But Jacob wanted to go to his father in Canaan. After being asked to stay six more years, he ended up staying in Haran with Laban for a total of twenty years.

⁷ While he was on his way to Canaan, an angel of God wrestled with him and touched the socket of Jacob's hip, causing it to go out of joint. Because of this, he did not eat the tendon that is on the hip joint. The angel told him that from now on he would no longer be called Jacob, but Israel.

⁸ And he came to the land of Canaan to another city, Shechem. He had children: Reuben was twelve years and two months old, Simeon was eleven years and four months old, Levi was ten years and six months old, Judah was eight years and eight months old, Naphtali was eight years and ten months old, Gad was eight years and ten months old, Asher was eight years old, Issachar was eight years old, Zebulun was seven years and two months old, Dinah was six years and four months old, and Joseph was six years and four months old.

⁹ And Israel lived near Hamor for ten years. Dinah, the daughter of Israel, was harmed by Shechem, the son of Hamor, and she was sixteen years and four months old. The sons of Israel were angry: Simeon was twenty-one years and four months old, and Levi was twenty-six years old. They killed both Hamor and his son Shechem, along with all the men, because of what had happened to Dinah. At that time, Jacob was one hundred seven years old.

¹⁰ When he came to Luz, which is Bethel, God said that he would no longer be called Jacob, but Israel. From there, he went to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem, and there Rachel gave birth to Benjamin. Rachel died while giving birth to Benjamin, and Jacob lived with her for twenty-three years.

¹¹ From there, Jacob went to Mamre, which is Hebron, to his father Isaac. At that time, Joseph was seventeen years old, and he was sold into Egypt, where he stayed in prison for thirteen years, making him thirty years old. Jacob was one hundred ten years old, and during that time, Isaac died one year earlier, at the age of one hundred eighty.

¹² When the king judged Joseph, the dreams began in Egypt and lasted for seven years. During this time, he married Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of Heliopolis, and they had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. Then a famine came that lasted for five years.

¹³ Joseph was successful for nine years without sending word to his father because he was a shepherd along with his brothers. The Egyptians greatly disliked shepherds. For this reason, he did not send to let his father know. When his relatives came, they told them that if they were called by the king and asked what they did, they should say they were herdsmen.

¹⁴ People wondered why Joseph gave Benjamin five times as much food as the others, since he could not eat that much meat. He did this because he had seven sons from Leah, his father's wife, and two from Rachel, his mother. For this reason, he gave Benjamin five portions and kept two for himself. This made a total of seven, the same number as the sons from Leah.

¹⁵ Likewise, he gave each of them double the clothing, but to Benjamin he gave five changes of clothes and three hundred pieces of gold. He also sent the same amount to his father, so that the house of his mother would be equal in wealth.

¹⁶ They lived in the land of Canaan, where Abraham was chosen from among the nations and moved to Canaan. Abraham was twenty-five years old, Isaac was sixty years old, and Jacob was one hundred thirty years old. In total, they lived in the land of Canaan for one hundred sixty years.

¹⁷ In the third year of the famine in Egypt, Jacob went to Egypt when he was one hundred thirty years old. Reuben was thirty years old, Simeon was twenty-six, Levi was twenty-three, Judah was twelve years and three months, Asher was ten years and eight months, Naphtali was nine years and six months, Gad was seven years and three months, Zebulun was six years old, Dinah was six years old, and Benjamin was twenty years old.

¹⁸ Joseph was said to be thirty years old in Egypt. From Adam to the time Joseph's relatives entered Egypt, there were four hundred thirty years. From the flood to Jacob's arrival in Egypt, there were two hundred fifty years. From the time Abraham was chosen from among the nations and moved from Haran to Canaan until those around Jacob came to Egypt, there were sixty years.

¹⁹ Jacob came from Haran to Laban when he was seventy years old and had Levi. Levi was in Egypt for seventeen years, so when he came from Canaan to Egypt, he was eighty-seven years old and had Klath. In the same year that Klath was born, Jacob died in Egypt after blessing the sons of Joseph, who were seventeen years old, leaving Joseph at thirty-six years old. Levi died when he was one hundred thirty-seven years old, and Klath had Amram when he was sixty years old. Amram was thirty-three years old when Joseph died in Egypt at one hundred ten years old. Klath died when he was one hundred sixty years old. Amram took a wife, the daughter of his uncle, Jochebed, and when he was thirty-three years old, he had Aaron and Moses. Moses was born when Amram was eighty-three years old, and Amram died at one hundred thirty-seven years old. These things are written from the account of Alexander Polyhistor. I will also add these things.

Book 9, Section 22

Theodotus says that the name "Sikima" comes from Sikimius the Hermit, for he founded the city. He describes its location in the area of the Jews like this: "It was a good place, rich in water, and there was no long road leading into the city from the countryside. Nor did any thick forest cause trouble. From it, two strong mountains appear nearby, full of trees and woods. In the middle, there is a narrow path, thin and winding. On the other side, the sacred city of Sikima appears, a holy city, built at the base of the mountains, and around it is a wall with a deep foundation, and a steep barrier runs beneath it."

² Later, he says that it was taken by the Hebrews while Hemmor was in power, for Hemmor was the father of Sychem. He says, "From here, stranger, Jacob came to the wide city of Sikima. And there, the leader was Hemmor along with his son Sychem, very strong men."

³ Then he speaks about Jacob and his journey to Mesopotamia, his marriages to two wives, the birth of his children, and the journey from Mesopotamia to Sikima. He says, "Jacob came to the land of Syria, where there is a wide river, the flowing Euphrates. He went there, leaving behind a strong bond with his brother, and he received a home from his relative, who was a cousin but ruled alone over Syria, a man of noble blood. He promised to marry his daughter and agreed to it. However, he was not able to complete the marriage fully, but he made a plan and sent Leah, who was older than him, to the man. Yet he did not forget her, but he noticed a difficult situation and accepted another child, and both were mixed with their relatives. From him, eleven sons were born, and a beautiful daughter named Dinah, who had a lovely appearance and a strong spirit."

⁴ From the Euphrates, he says that Jacob came to Sikima to meet Hemmor. Hemmor welcomed him and gave him part of the land. Jacob worked the land, while his eleven sons took care of the sheep, and he made plans for his daughter Dinah and his wives. Dinah, being a young girl, wanted to go to Sikima to see the city during a festival. When Sychem, the son of Hemmor, saw her, he fell in love with her and took her away to hurt her.

⁵ Then Sychem came back with his father to ask Jacob for Dinah's hand in marriage. But Jacob said he would not give her to him until all the men living in Sikima were circumcised. Hemmor said he would convince them. Jacob explained that they needed to be circumcised.

⁶ For this is not right for the Hebrews to bring in husbands from outside to their home. Instead, anyone who wishes to marry must be from the same family.

⁷ Then, when talking about circumcision, he mentioned that it was Abraham, the glorious one, who first brought it from his homeland. He was commanded from heaven to remove the flesh from every man in his household, and he did it. It was established without question, since god said it.

⁸ So, when he went directly into the city of Hemmor and urged those under him to be circumcised, one of Jacob's sons, named Simeon, decided to kill Hemmor and Sychem. He did not want to bear the insult to his sister quietly. After realizing this, he shared his plan with his brother Levi. Taking him along, they encouraged each other to carry out the plan, saying that god would give the descendants of Abraham ten nations.

⁹ Simeon said this to Levi: "For I have learned a story from god; he said that he would give ten nations to the children of Abraham." And god put this thought in their minds because the people in Shechem were wicked. He said, "God will harm the inhabitants of Shechem, for no one among them is good or bad. They did not deliver justice in the city, nor did they uphold the law. Terrible things are coming for those who have done evil deeds."

¹⁰ So, Levi and Simeon went into the city armed. First, they killed those who were in the streets, and then they also killed Hemmor and Sychem.

¹¹ It describes their killing like this: At that time, Simeon rushed at him and struck his head. He grabbed his throat with his left hand and left it bleeding, since another struggle was coming. Meanwhile, Levi took hold of Sychem's chin, pulling his hair hard. He drove a sword into his chest, and his soul left his body immediately. The other brothers, hearing about what they had done, joined in to help, sacked the city, and brought their sister back home along with the captives.

Book 9, Section 23

These things and what follows about Joseph are taken from the same writing of Polyhistor. "Artapanus says that Joseph was a descendant of Abraham and the son of Jacob. He was wise and clever compared to his brothers, and they plotted against him. While he was being sold, the neighbors, the Arabs, prayed to take him to Egypt. The kings of the Arabs are said to be descendants of Israel, sons of Abraham, and brothers of Isaac."

² When he arrived in Egypt and was appointed by the king, he became the governor of the entire land. Before this, the Egyptians were farming carelessly because the land was not divided, and the smaller farmers were being mistreated by the larger ones. He was the first to divide the land and mark it with boundaries, making a lot of land suitable for farming, and he set aside some of the fields for the priests.

³ He also found a way to measure land, and because of this, he was greatly loved by the Egyptians. He married Asenath, the daughter of a priest from Heliopolis, and they had children together. After this, his father and brothers came to him, bringing a great deal of wealth, and they settled in the city of Caisan, while the number of Syrians grew in Egypt.

⁴ He says that they also built the temple of the Esmioi at Athos and at Heliopolis. After this, both Joseph and the king of Egypt died. During the seven years that Joseph ruled Egypt, there was an abundance of grain, and he became the ruler of Egypt.

Book 9, Section 24

It is testified by the sacred writings and by Philo in his works about Jerusalem, saying this: "The highest creator built a blessed dwelling for all. Before Abraham and Isaac, the fruitful offspring of Jacob, Joseph, who was a dream interpreter, held the scepter on the throne in Egypt, having secretly navigated through the flood of time." And so on. These things are also about Joseph.

Book 9, Section 25

Listen to what is said about Job. Aristeas states in his work about the Jews that Esau married Basemath in Edom and that Job was born. This Job lived in the region of Ausitida, near the borders of Idumea and Arabia.

² He became a just man and had many animals. He owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred pairs of oxen, and five hundred female donkeys. He also had plenty of farmland.

³ This Job was previously called Jobab. God tested him and surrounded him with great misfortunes. First, robbers took away his donkeys and oxen. Then, fire fell from the sky and burned up the sheep along with the shepherds. Not long after, robbers took away the camels as well. Then, his children died when the house collapsed. On the same day, his body was covered with sores.

⁴ "While he was in this bad condition, Eliphaz the Temanite, king of the Manites, Baldad the Shuhite, a tyrant, Zophar the Naamathite, a king, and Elihu the Barachel the Buzite came to visit him. They urged him to stay strong in his faith and to face his troubles bravely. God admired his courage, freed him from his illness, and made him lord over many things." This is what Polyhistor says about these matters.

Book 9, Section 26

"And about Moses, the same author presents many things again. Eupolemus says that Moses was the first to become wise and to give letters to the Jews. He received these letters from the Phoenicians, and the Greeks received them from the Phoenicians as well. Moses was also the first to write laws for the Jews."

Book 9, Section 27

"Artapanus says in his work about the Jews that when Abraham died and his son Mempsasthenes died, the son of the king of the Egyptians, Palmanothes, took over the rule."

² "But he was poorly received by the Jews. First, he built the city of Kessa and set up a temple there, and then he constructed the temple in Heliopolis."

³ "He had a daughter named Merrin, whom he was engaged to a certain Kenefre, who ruled over the lands around Memphis. At that time, many were ruling in Egypt. This daughter was said to have given birth to a child by one of the Jews, and this child was named Moses. When he grew up, the Greeks called him Musaeus."

⁴ "Moses became the teacher of Orpheus. When he grew up, he shared many useful things with people. He discovered boats and tools for stone work, Egyptian weapons, and devices for irrigation and warfare, as well as philosophy. He also divided the city into laws and assigned each law to a god to be honored. He provided the sacred writings to the priests, and there were also cats, dogs, and ibises. He gave the priests a special place."

⁵ "He did all these things to make sure that Kenefre's rule would be secure. Before this, the crowds were unruly, sometimes being driven out and sometimes being made kings, often the same people, but sometimes different ones."

⁶ "Because of these things, Moses was loved by the crowds and honored by the priests with the title of Hermes, because of his interpretation of the sacred writings."

⁷ "Seeing the goodness of Moses, Kenefre became jealous of him and looked for a way to kill him for some good reason. One day, when the Ethiopians were marching against Egypt, Kenefre found a chance to send Moses against them as a general with an army. He also gathered a large number of farmers, thinking that he could easily get rid of Moses because the soldiers were weak against the enemies."

⁸ "When Moses arrived in the district called Hermopolis, with about ten thousand farmers, he set up camp there. He sent generals who were already in charge of the land and were well-known for their bravery in battles. He mentioned that the people of Heliopolis had been fighting this war for ten years."

⁹ "So, those around Moses, because of the size of the army, decided to build a city in that place and to establish the ibis there, since this bird destroys the creatures that harm people. They named it the city of Hermes."

¹⁰ "In this way, the Ethiopians, even though they were enemies, admired Moses so much that they even learned about the circumcision of the private parts from him. This was true not only for them but for all the priests as well."

¹¹ "When the war was over, they accepted Kenefren in words but plotted against him in actions. As he was passing by, they sent some of the crowds to the borders of Ethiopia for protection, while ordering others to tear down the temple in the city of Dios that was built of baked bricks and to construct another one from stone using the nearby mountain. They appointed Naherot as the overseer of the construction."

¹² "When he arrived in Memphis with Moses, he asked him if there was anything else that could be useful for people. Moses replied that there was a breed of cattle, as they help to plow the land. Then Kenefren, referring to a bull as Apis, ordered the crowds to build a temple for it. He also commanded them to bring the animals dedicated by Moses there to bury them, wanting to hide the ideas of Moses."

¹³ "After the Egyptians had exiled him, they made his friends swear not to tell Moses about the plot that was being formed against him and to support those who wanted to kill him."

¹⁴ "When no one obeyed, they insulted Kenefren, who was especially favored by him. The one who was insulted promised to get back at them when the time was right."

¹⁵ "At this time, when Merridis had died, Kenefren promised to take the body to both Moses and Chanephoth to bury it in the lands beyond Egypt, thinking that Moses would be killed by Chanephoth."

¹⁶ "While they were on their way, some of those who knew about the plot against Moses reported it. The one who was guarding him buried Merris and named the river and the city there Meröe. This Merris was honored by the locals just as much as Isis."

¹⁷ "Aaron, the brother of Moses, learned about the plot and advised his brother to escape to Arabia. After he was convinced, he crossed the Nile from Memphis and made his way to Arabia."

¹⁸ "Chanephoth learned about Moses' escape and set an ambush to kill him. When he saw Moses approaching, he drew his sword against him. But Moses, having anticipated this, grabbed his hand and, after taking the sword from him, killed Chanephoth."

¹⁹ "Moses went to Arabia and married the daughter of Raguel, the ruler of the area. Raguel wanted to lead an army against the Egyptians and hoped to bring Moses along, planning to secure power for his daughter and son-in-law. But Moses was hesitant, thinking about his own people. Raguel, however, insisted that he lead an army to raid Egypt."

²⁰ "At the same time, Chenephren, the first man to wear elephant tusks, got into trouble because he ordered the Jews to wear tunics and not any other clothing, so that they would be marked and punished by him."

²¹ "Moses prayed to God to end the people's suffering. While he was praying, suddenly fire appeared from the ground and burned, even though there was no wood or any other kind of fuel in the area. Moses, afraid of what had happened, fled. Then a divine voice told him to lead an army against Egypt and to bring the Jews back to their ancient homeland."

²² "He, gaining courage, decided to lead an army against the Egyptians. First, he went to his brother Aaron. When the king of the Egyptians learned of Moses' arrival, he called for him and asked why he had come. Moses replied that he was ordered by the ruler of the land to free the Jews."

²³ "When the king learned this, he had Moses thrown into prison. But at night, all the doors of the prison suddenly opened by themselves, and some of the guards died while others were asleep. The weapons also fell to the ground."

²⁴ "After Moses came out, he went to the palace. Finding the doors open, he entered and woke up the guards. The king, surprised by what had happened, ordered Moses to tell him the name of the god who had sent him, while mocking him."

²⁵ "When Moses leaned in to speak in his ear, the king suddenly fell silent. After Moses held him, he came back to life."

²⁶ "After writing down the name, they sealed it on a tablet. The priests, feeling troubled, were losing their lives because of what was written on it."

²⁷ "He told the king to make a sign for him. Then Moses threw down the staff he had and turned it into a snake. When everyone got scared, he grabbed its tail and turned it back into a staff."

²⁸ "After going a little further, he struck the Nile with the staff, and the river became very full, flooding all of Egypt. From that time on, it was known as his descent. He gathered the water to dry it up and destroyed the rivers, causing the people to suffer from thirst."

²⁹ "When these wonders happened, the king said that after a month he would free the people if he restored the river. Then Moses struck the water again with the staff to make the flow stop."

³⁰ "After this happened, the king called the priests from Memphis and said that he would destroy them and tear down the temples if they did not perform some wonders themselves. Then, with the help of some magicians and sorcerers, they created a dragon and changed the river."

³¹ "When the king was troubled by what had happened, he punished the Jews with all kinds of punishments and torture. But Moses, seeing this, performed other signs. He struck the ground with the staff, causing a bird-like creature to rise up and harm the Egyptians, affecting all their bodies. Since the doctors could not heal the sick, the Jews were able to find relief once more."

³² "Again, Moses raised a frog with the staff, and along with it, locusts and gnats. Because of this, the Egyptians lifted the staff in every temple, including to Isis, since the land belonged to her. They were being harmed by the creatures that had been raised with the staff."

³³ "While the king was still acting foolishly, Moses caused hail and earthquakes to happen at night. Those fleeing from the earthquake were killed by the hail, and those trying to escape the hail were destroyed by the earthquakes. At that time, all the houses and most of the temples collapsed."

³⁴ "Finally, after such disasters had come upon the king, he allowed the Jews to go. Those who had been used by the Egyptians received many valuables, a good amount of clothing, and a great deal of wealth. After crossing the rivers in Arabia, they traveled far enough to reach the Red Sea on the third day."

³⁵ "It is said that Moses, being experienced in the land, managed to lead the people through the dry land of the sea during low tide. It is also said that the king rushed after them with a great force, along with the sacred animals, because he wanted to bring back the Jews who had been used by the Egyptians."

³⁶ "Then, it is said that a divine voice came to Moses, telling him to strike the sea with his staff and to part it. When Moses heard this, he touched the water with the staff, and the water was divided, allowing the people to travel on dry ground."

³⁷ "It is said that while the Egyptians were chasing them, fire shone on them from the front, and the sea closed back over the path. All the Egyptians were destroyed by the fire and the flood, but the Jews, having escaped danger, spent forty years in the wilderness, with a substance from God that was like dew and looked similar to snow. It is also said that Moses became tall, with red hair, gray hair, and a long beard, and that he remained this way for eighty-nine years."

Book 9, Section 28

"About how Moses was hidden by his mother in the marsh and found and raised by the king's daughter, Ezekiel, the poet of tragedies, also tells. He begins the story with those who came with Jacob to Egypt with Joseph. He says that when Moses was brought in, he said, 'From when Jacob left the land of Canaan, he came down to Egypt with seventy people. He gave birth to a large nation that was suffering and oppressed, up until this time, being harmed by men and the power of rulers.

Seeing our people growing greatly, Pharaoh the king devised a plan against us. He forced some of us into brick-making and heavy labor to build cities for their own misfortune. Then he proclaimed that all male Hebrew children should be thrown into the river. At that time, my mother hid me for three months, as she said. When she could no longer hide me, she placed me in a basket and set me among the reeds by the riverbank. My sister Miriam watched nearby. Then the king's daughter came down to bathe and saw me. Immediately, she took me and recognized that I was a Hebrew. My sister ran to the princess, saying, 'Do you want me to find a Hebrew woman to nurse this child for you?' The princess hurriedly agreed, and my mother quickly came and took me into her arms. The king's daughter said, 'Take care of this child, and I will pay you for it.' I was named Moses because I was drawn out of the water.'

Ezekiel also adds more about these things in his tragedy, saying that Moses said, 'In my childhood, my mother brought me to the palace, telling all sorts of stories, and she spoke to me about my family and the gifts of God. As long as I was a child, I was promised royal care and education, as if from her own heart. But when my childhood was complete, I left the royal house, for my spirit urged me to the work of a king.

I first saw men fighting, one being Hebrew and the other Egyptian. Seeing no one around, I struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand, so that no one would see what I had done. The next day, I saw two men, who were actually relatives, fighting. I said, 'Why do you strike your brother?' And one said, 'Who made you a ruler or judge over us? Do you want to kill me like you killed the Egyptian yesterday?' Fearing, I said, 'How did this become known?' And all this was quickly reported to the king. Pharaoh sought to take my life, and I, hearing this, fled away, and now I wander in a foreign land.'

Then about the daughters of Reuel, he says, 'I saw seven maidens.' When he asked them who they were, Sepphora said, 'The whole land of Libya is ruled, stranger, by tribes of various kinds, black men from Ethiopia. But there is one ruler of the land, a tyrant and a single general. He rules this city and judges men, a priest who is the father of both me and these.'

Then, after discussing the watering of the flocks, he speaks of the marriage of Sepphora, bringing in both Choum and Sepphora, saying, 'You must speak, Sepphora, these things.' Choum said, 'My father gave me to this stranger as a wife.'"

Book 9, Section 29

"Demetrius tells about the killing of the Egyptian and the conflict with the one who reported it, just like the one who wrote the sacred book. He says that Moses fled to Midian and married Jethro's daughter, Sepphora. It is said that she comes from the line of Keturah, the family of Abraham, through Jezer, who was born to Abraham by Keturah. From Jezer came Dadam, from Dadam came Guel, and from Raguel came Jethro and Abab. And from Jethro came Sepphora, whom Moses married."

² "And the generations agree: Moses is said to be the seventh from Abraham, and Sepphora the sixth. When Isaac was already living, from whom Moses is descended, Abraham married Keturah when he was 175 years old and had Isaac as his second child with her. Isaac, being 100 years old, had children. So, 75 years later, Isaac was born, from whom Sepphora is said to be descended."

³ "Nothing prevents Moses and Sepphora from being born in the same time period. They lived in the city of Midian, which is said to be named after one of Abraham's children. It is said that Abraham sent his children to the east to settle there. For this reason, Aaron and Miriam also said that Moses married a woman from Ethiopia."

⁴ "Ezekiel also speaks about these things in the Exodus, mentioning the dream that Moses saw, which is different from that of his father-in-law. Moses himself says this out of mutual respect for his father-in-law."

⁵ "I saw a great throne on the peak of Sinai. It seemed to reach up to the sky, where a noble light was sitting, wearing a crown and holding a large scepter in his hand. He nodded to me with his right hand, and I stood before the throne. He handed me the scepter and told me to sit on the great throne. He gave me a royal crown, and he himself was set apart from the thrones. Then I saw the whole earth surrounding me, like the surface of the earth beneath the sky. A multitude of stars fell to my knees, and I counted them all, and it seemed to me like a camp of people. Then, feeling afraid, I woke up from my sleep."

⁶ "But his father-in-law interprets the dream like this: 'O stranger, this is what God has shown you: when these things happen to you, will you raise up a great throne? Will you yourself judge and lead people? You will see the whole inhabited earth, as well as what is beneath and above the sky, and you will see both what exists now and what will come later.'"

⁷ "About the burning bush and his mission to Pharaoh, he again mentions Moses speaking with God. Moses says, 'Why is this sign from the bush for me, so amazing and unbelievable to people? The bush is burning with a great fire, but the green part stays alive. Why is that? If I go closer, I will see something very great; for it does not inspire faith in humans.'"

⁸ "Then God speaks to him, 'Stop, O most honored one. Do not come closer, Moses, before you take off your sandals from your feet; for the land on which you stand is holy. The divine word shines forth from the bush to you. Be brave, O child, and listen to my words; for you cannot see my face as a mortal. But you can hear my words, for I have come for each one. I am the God of your ancestors, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remembering them and my gifts, I am here to save my people, the Hebrews, seeing their suffering and pain as my servants. But go and tell my words, first to all the Hebrews together, and then to the king, what I have commanded, so that you may lead my people out of the land.'"

⁹ "Then Moses replies with some hesitation, 'I am not a good speaker; my tongue is hard to understand and weak, so my words will not be suitable before the king.'"

¹⁰ "Then God answers him, 'Send your brother Aaron quickly, and he will tell the king all the things I have spoken to you. You will be with us, and he will take your place.'"

¹¹ "About the staff and the other signs, this is how the conversation went: God said, 'What do you have in your hands? Speak quickly.' Moses replied, 'A staff for herding animals and a tool for punishing people.' God said, 'Throw it to the ground and step back quickly. It will become a frightening serpent, and you will be amazed.' Moses said, 'Look, I have thrown it! Lord, be merciful to me; it is so frightening and huge. Have pity on me, for my body trembles at the sight.' God said, 'Do not be afraid; stretch out your hand to it. The staff will return to its original form.' Now put your hand into your cloak and take it out. Look, what has been commanded has become like snow. Now put it back into your cloak, and it will be as it was."

¹² "He continues, after saying a few things in between, 'This is what Ezekiel says in the Exodus, speaking about the signs and bringing in God: "With this staff, you will do all these terrible things. First, the river will turn to blood, and all the springs will become sources of filth. I will send a multitude of frogs and gnats upon the land. Then, ashes from the furnace will rise, and there will be painful sores among the people. The dog-fly will come and harm many Egyptians. After this, there will be a plague, and those with hard hearts will die. The sky will rain down hail with fire, and many people will be killed. The crops will be destroyed, and the bodies of animals will die. I will bring darkness for three whole days, and I will send locusts. All the extra food will be consumed, and the green of the crops will be gone. On top of all this, I will kill the firstborn of the people. I will stop the pride of wicked men. Pharaoh, the king, will not listen to anything I say, except that his firstborn will be dead. Then, afraid, he will send the people away quickly. To them, he will say to all the Hebrews together, 'This month will be the first of the year for you. In this month, I will lead the people to another land, to the land where the ancestors of the Hebrews came from.' And you will say to all the people, in the month I mention, during the Passover, you will sacrifice to God at night, touching the doors with blood, so that the terrible angel will pass by. But at night, you will roast the meat.' The king will hurry to send out all the people. When he is about to let them go, I will give favor to the people, and each woman will take from her neighbor gold, silver, and clothing, so that they will repay the people for what they have done. When you enter your own land, just as you fled from Egypt, you will eat unleavened bread for seven days, and you will serve God, sacrificing the firstborn animals, as many as the young women bear first.'"

¹³ "And again, about this same feast, he says that it should be explained more clearly: 'On the fourteenth day of this month, the Hebrews will take lambs and young goats according to their families. They must be without blemish. They must be kept until the fourteenth day, and in the evening, after sacrificing, you will roast everything with what is inside. You will eat it this way: with your belts fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. For in haste, the king will command everyone to be sent out of the land. When you sacrifice, take a bunch of hyssop in your hands and dip it in the blood, and touch the doorposts of the two houses, so that the terrible angel will pass by the Hebrews. You will keep this feast for your Lord as a feast of unleavened bread for seven days. No leavened bread will be eaten. For this is the day of the departure from the bad things, and God will give you this month as the beginning of the months.'"

¹⁴ "Again, he chooses to say, 'Indeed, Ezekiel in the drama titled Exodus, bringing in an angel, speaks about the situation of the Hebrews and the destruction of the Egyptians like this: As King Pharaoh set out with a crowd of many weapons, with horses and chariots, and with commanders and officers together, there was a terrifying crowd of men arranged. The foot soldiers were in the middle, and the cavalry were stationed on the left and right sides of the Egyptian army. I asked about the total number of the army; there were thousands, a hundred thousand men. When the army met the Hebrews, those who were near the shore were gathered by the Red Sea. Some were feeding their little children, along with their wives, tired from labor. There were many animals and supplies from their homes, and they themselves were all unarmed. Seeing us, they cried out with a loud voice, calling to their father God. There was a large crowd of men. We had joy in our hearts. Then we set up our camp, and there was a city called Beelzebub among the people. When the sun was setting, we stopped, wanting to fight in the morning, trusting in the people and their terrifying weapons. Then, it began to show great wonders. Suddenly, a huge cloud pillar stood before the land, in the middle of our camp and the Hebrews. Then their leader Moses, taking the staff of God, struck the Red Sea and divided the depths of the sea; and all of them rushed through the salty water on dry ground. We followed closely in their footsteps, shouting at night. Suddenly, the chariots did not turn back, and the captives were joined together. From heaven, a great light appeared to us like fire; it seemed that God was with them. When they were already beyond the sea, a great wave rushed near us, and someone cried out, 'Let us flee home before the hand of the Most High! For he is their helper, but for us miserable ones, he brings destruction.' And the path of the Red Sea was closed, and the army was destroyed.'"

¹⁵ "And again, after a little, he says, 'From there, they traveled for three days, as Demetrius says, and the holy book agrees. They did not have sweet water there, but bitter. God told them to throw a certain piece of wood into the spring, and the water became sweet. From there, they came to Elim and found twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. About these things and the bird that appeared, Ezekiel in the Exodus introduces someone speaking to Moses about the palm trees and the twelve springs like this:'"

¹⁶ "'Most powerful Moses, pay attention to what we have found. There is a place near this very spot that is pleasant. For there, as you might see, a light shone forth like a pillar of fire. Here, we found a shady meadow and moist pastures; a rich and deep area, with twelve springs flowing from a single rock. There are many clusters of palm trees, seventy in number, and lush green grass grows thickly around them.'

Then, going on about the bird that appeared, he continues, 'We saw another strange creature, wonderful, like none we had seen before. Its length was almost double that of an eagle, with colorful wings and bright colors. Its chest appeared purple, its legs were a reddish color, and its neck was adorned with golden feathers. Its head was similar to that of a domestic bird, and it looked around like a young girl; the young girl seemed like a grain of corn. It had the most beautiful voice of all. It appeared to be the king of all birds, as if to be understood. For all the birds, frightened, gathered behind it, while it walked proudly in front, like a bull, taking bold steps.'

And after a short time, he said, 'But how did the Israelites go out unarmed? They said that after three days of travel and making sacrifices, they turned back. So it seems that those who were not drowned used their weapons.'"

Book 9, Section 30

"Eu polemos says in a certain place about the prophecy of Elijah that Moses prophesied for 40 years; then Joshua, the son of Nun, for 30 years. He lived for 110 years and set up the holy tent in Shiloh."

² "After these things, Samuel became a prophet. Then, by the will of God, Samuel chose Saul to be king, and he ruled for several years before he died."

³ "Then David, his son, became powerful. He defeated the Syrians who lived near the Euphrates River, as well as the Commageneans and the Assyrians in Gilead, and the Phoenicians. He also waged war against the Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, Itureans, Nabataeans, and the Nabdaean people."

⁴ "Again, he waged war against Suron, the king of Tyre and Phoenicia, and forced them to pay tribute to the Jews. He also made an alliance with Wafrin, the king of Egypt."

⁵ "David wanted to build a temple for God and asked God to show him the place for the altar. There, an angel appeared to him, standing above the spot where the altar would be built in Jerusalem. The angel commanded him not to build the temple because he had shed human blood and had fought for many years."

⁶ "His name was Dyanathan. He was instructed to allow his son to take on the building of the temple. He himself prepared everything needed for the construction: gold, silver, bronze, stones, and cypress and cedar wood."

⁷ "When David heard this, he ordered ships to be built in the city of Ailana in Arabia. He also sent miners to the island of Orphe, which is located in the Red Sea, to gather gold and bring it back to Judah."

⁸ "After David had reigned for seven years, he handed over the rule to his son Solomon, who was twelve years old, in front of Eli the high priest and the twelve leaders of the tribes. He gave him the gold, silver, bronze, stones, and cypress and cedar wood. David then died, and Solomon became king. He wrote a signed letter to the king of Egypt, Wafrē."

Book 9, Section 31

"King Solomon sends greetings to Wafrē, king of Egypt, my dear friend. I want you to know that I have received the kingdom from my father David through the will of the great God, and I have been commanded to build a temple for God, who created the heaven and the earth. At the same time, I am sending you a request for the people you will send to help me until everything is completed as needed, as it has been commanded."

Book 9, Section 32

"King Wafrē sends greetings to the great king Solomon. As soon as I read your letter, I was very happy, and I, along with all my people, celebrated the day you received the kingdom from a good and trusted man, chosen by such a God. Regarding what you wrote about the people from my land, I have sent you eight thousand men, and I have also included the details about them. From the Sebrithite law, I sent thousands; from the Mendisians and Sebennytus, two thousand; and from Busiris, Leontopolis, and Athribis, one thousand each. Please take care of their needs and everything else so that they are well organized and can return to their homes as needed."

Book 9, Section 33

"King Solomon sends greetings to Huram, king of Tyre and Sidon, my dear friend. I want you to know that I have received the kingdom from my father David through the will of the great God, and I have been commanded to build a temple for God, who created the heaven and the earth. At the same time, I am sending you a request for the people you will send to help us until the needs of God are fulfilled, as it has been commanded to me. I have also written to the Galileans, Samaritans, Moabites, Ammonites, and Gileadites to provide them with what they need from the land each month: thousands of measures of grain, with one measure being ten artabas. I have also requested thousands of measures of wine, with one measure of wine being ten measures. The oil and other supplies will be provided to them from Judah, and priests will be sent from Arabia for sacrifices."

Book 9, Section 34

"Huram sends greetings to the great king Solomon. Blessed is the God who created the heaven and the earth, who chose a good man from a good man. As soon as I read your letter, I was very happy, and I praised God for you receiving the kingdom."

² "Regarding what you wrote to me about the people from our land, I have sent you eighty thousand Tyrians and Phoenicians. I have also sent you a master builder, a man from Tyre, from the mother of Judah, from the tribe of David. For anything you may ask him about all things under heaven, he will guide you and carry it out."

³ "Regarding the things needed and the children being sent to you, it would be good for you to write to the local governors, so that what is needed can be provided."

⁴ "Then Solomon, with his father's friends on the mountain of Lebanon along with the Sidonians and Tyrians, brought the timber that his father had prepared by sea to Joppa. From there, he traveled on foot to Jerusalem. He began to build the temple of God when he was thirteen years old. He had the nations mentioned earlier work on the project, and he provided twelve thousand men from the Jews for the sixteen thousand needed, one tribe each month. He also laid the foundation of the temple of God, which was sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide, while the width of the building and the foundations was ten cubits. This was as Nathan, the prophet of God, had commanded him."

⁵ "He built the house using alternating stone and cedar wood, with bronze tools that weighed talents to shape the stones. After completing the structure, he covered the outside with cedar and cypress wood, so that the stone would not be visible. Inside, he covered the temple with gold bricks that were five handbreadths thick and added silver nails that weighed talents to hold it together. The craftsmanship was masterful, and there were four of these nails."

⁶ "Thus, he covered everything in gold from the floor to the ceiling, creating the ceiling from golden panels. He made the room with bronze tiles, melting the bronze and pouring it. He also made two bronze pillars and covered them with pure gold, with the thickness being the width of a finger."

⁷ "The pillars in the temple were the same size, each being ten cubits wide. They stood in the house, one on the right and one on the left. He also made golden lampstands, each weighing ten talents, following the design that Moses had used in the tabernacle of the testimony."

⁸ "He placed the lampstands on either side of the sanctuary, some on the right and some on the left. He also made a golden lamp, so that seven lamps would burn on each lampstand. He built the doors of the temple and decorated them with gold and silver. He covered them with cedar and cypress panels."

⁹ "He also made a colonnade on the north side of the temple and set up bronze pillars for it. He constructed a bronze basin, twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide, with a height of five cubits. He made a rim around it that extended one cubit above the base, so that the priests could wash their hands and feet while standing on it. He also made twelve bronze bases for the basin, and they were tall. He placed them on the back side under the basin, to the right of the altar."

¹⁰ "He also made a bronze base two cubits high, where the king would stand when he prayed, so that he could be seen by the people of Judah. He built the altar, which was ten cubits long and ten cubits wide, and its height was twelve cubits."

¹¹ "He also made two bronze bells that hung from structures higher than the temple, twenty cubits tall, and they shaded the entire sanctuary. He attached nets to each bell, with four hundred bronze clappers. He made all the nets to create noise with the clappers and to scare away the birds, so they would not settle on the sanctuary or nest in the doorways and colonnades, making the holy place unclean."

¹² "He surrounded Jerusalem with walls, towers, and a ditch. He also built a palace for himself."

¹³ "The palace was first called the holy place of Solomon. Later, when the city was damaged, it was named Jerusalem. The Greeks famously referred to it as Jerusalem."

¹⁴ "After completing the temple and surrounding the city with walls, he went to Shiloh and offered a thousand bulls as a whole burnt offering to God. He took the tent, the altar, and the items that Moses had made, and brought them to Jerusalem to place them in the house."

¹⁵ "And he placed the ark, the golden altar, the lampstand, the table, and the other items there, just as the prophet had commanded him."

¹⁶ "And he offered to God a sacrifice of many animals: two thousand sheep and three thousand five hundred bulls. The total amount of gold used for the two pillars and the temple was ten thousand talents, while the silver for the nails and the other work was one thousand two hundred thirty-two talents. The bronze used for the columns, the basin, and the porch amounted to ten thousand eight hundred fifty talents."

¹⁷ "And he sent away Solomon, the Egyptians, and the Phoenicians, giving each ten gold shekels, since a talent was worth one shekel. To the king of Egypt, Wafre, he sent many measures of oil, a thousand baths of palm oil, a hundred jars of honey, and he also sent perfumes."

¹⁸ "And he sent the golden column to Suron in Tyre, the one that is located in the temple of Zeus in Tyre."

¹⁹ "Theophilus says that Solomon sent the leftover gold to the king of Tyre. He made a statue of the king's daughter, a full-body image, and he placed a covering over the golden column."

²⁰ "Europolemus says that Solomon made a thousand golden shields, each worth five hundred gold pieces. He lived for fifty-two years, ruling in peace for forty of those years."

Book 9, Section 35

"Timokhares says that in the writings about Antioch, Jerusalem has a perimeter of five hundred stadia and is hard to capture, surrounded by cliffs on all sides. The whole city is flooded with water, so even the gardens are watered by the flowing waters from the city. However, the area between the city and forty stadia away is dry, and from the five hundred stadia, there is again a low area."

Book 9, Section 36

"The writer of the geography of Syria says that Jerusalem is located on a high and rough site. Some parts of the wall are built from smooth stone, while most are made from gravel. The perimeter of the city is twenty-seven stadia, and there is also a spring in the area with plenty of flowing water."

Book 9, Section 37

"Philo says that there is a spring in Jerusalem, which dries up in the winter and fills up in the summer. He describes it like this: 'Flowing above is the most amazing sight, with songs of great beauty filling the deep stream that flows out.'"

² "Again, he adds about the filling: 'For the high-flowing stream, during the rainy and snowy season, is abundant, flowing over the towers of the mountains. It reveals the dry ground covered with dust and shows the distant wonders of the people.'"

³ "Then he continues about the spring of the high priest and its outflow like this: 'Deeply do the water-bearing pipes pour out through the ground,' along with whatever else follows. This is what comes from Alexander the Polyhistor."

Book 9, Section 38

"About the waters in Jerusalem, Aristaios also writes in his book On the Interpretation of the Jewish Law, sharing these details."

² "But the house faces east, while its back looks west. The entire ground is paved with stones, and it has vines in the areas where the waters flow, due to the mixture of blood from the sacrifices; for many thousands of animals are brought during the festival days."

³ "There is a hidden source of water, as if a spring inside is flowing abundantly. There are also wonderful and indescribable reservoirs beneath the ground, within a circle of five stadia around the foundation of the temple. From these, countless pipes connect to each area, carrying the waters. All of this is covered with lead underground and on the walls, and on top of this, a large amount of dust has been poured, all of which has been actively formed."

Book 9, Section 39

"Given these things, and remembering the prophecy of Jeremiah the Multitude of Stories, it would be very unreasonable for us to stay silent about this. Let this also be mentioned."

² "Then came Jehoiakim; regarding this, the prophet Jeremiah prophesied. He was sent by god to confront the Jews who were sacrificing to the golden idol named Baal."

³ "He revealed to them their future misfortune. While Jehoiakim was still alive, he would be burned. He also said that these wooden items would be turned into food by the Babylonians, and they would dig the canals of the Tigris and Euphrates that had been taken captive."

⁴ "When the king of the Babylonians, Nebuchadnezzar, heard what had been foretold by Jeremiah, he called for Astyages, the king of the Medes, to join him in his campaign."

⁵ "After gathering the Babylonians and Medes, he assembled eighteen thousand foot soldiers, twelve thousand cavalry, and a thousand chariots. First, he destroyed Samaria, Galilee, Scythopolis, and the Jews living in Gilead. Then he captured Jerusalem and took the Jewish king Jehoiakim prisoner. He collected the gold, silver, and bronze from the temple to send to Babylon, except for the holy items and the tablets inside it. These he seized from Jeremiah."

Book 9, Section 40

"It is also important to include what happened to the Jews during their captivity by Nebuchadnezzar. After joining forces with the rebel, Nebuchadnezzar defeated him and took control of the land, making it part of his kingdom once again."

² "At this time, Nebopolassar, his father, became ill in the city of Babylon. After ruling for many years, he changed his way of life. Soon after, Nebuchadnezzar learned of his father's death. He took care of affairs in Egypt and the surrounding areas, and gathered the captured Jews, Phoenicians, and Syrians from the nations in Egypt. Then he went to Babylon with some of his friends."

³ "And later, it is said, 'After Nebuchadnezzar began to build the mentioned wall, he fell ill and changed his way of life, having ruled for 23 years. Then his son Evil-Merodach became king.'"

⁴ "This man, taking charge of affairs unlawfully and shamelessly, was plotted against by his brother Neriglissar, who was married to his sister. He was killed after ruling for 2 years."

⁵ "After this man was killed, Neriglissar, who had plotted against him, took over the rule and reigned for 4 years. His son, Awel-Marduk, became king as a child for 9 months. However, he was plotted against and, because he showed many bad qualities, he was beaten to death by his friends."

⁶ "After he was killed, those who had plotted against him came together and gave the kingdom to a man named Nabonidus, who was from Babylon and belonged to the same group."

⁷ "During his reign, the walls of the Babylonian city were constructed with baked bricks and asphalt. In the 17th year of his rule, Cyrus came from Persia with a large army and, after conquering the rest of the kingdom, he marched toward Babylon."

⁸ "But Nabonidus, noticing Cyrus's attack, went out to meet him with his army and prepared for battle. After being defeated in the fight, he fled with a small group and took refuge in the city of Borsippa."

⁹ "When Cyrus captured Babylon, he ordered the outer city walls to be destroyed because the city seemed very strong and difficult to take. He then focused on Borsippa, planning to lay siege to Nabonidus."

¹⁰ "But since Nabonidus did not withstand the siege and surrendered himself, Cyrus acted kindly and gave him a place to live in Carmania, sending him away from Babylon. Thus, Nabonidus spent the rest of his life in that land."

¹¹ "These things match the truth found in our books. It is written that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple in the eighteenth year of his reign, and it remained hidden for fifty years. Then, in the second year of Cyrus's reign, after the foundations were laid, it was completed in the tenth year of Darius's reign." This is what Josephus says.

Book 9, Section 41

"I also found in the writings of Abydenus about the Assyrians concerning Nebuchadnezzar the following: 'Megasthenes says that Nebuchadnezzar became stronger than Hercules and campaigned in both Libya and Iberia. After conquering these lands, he settled some of the people to the right of the Pontus.'"

² "Later, it is said that he went up to the royal palace of the Chaldeans. When he spoke to the god, he said, 'I am Nebuchadnezzar, O Babylonians. I announce to you a future disaster, which both Bel, my ancestor, and the queen Belitis will try to turn away from you, but they are powerless against fate.'"

³ "A Persian horse will come, needing your gods as allies; it will bring slavery. The Medes will be responsible for this, boasting of their Assyrian pride. Oh, if only it could be sent away before it enslaves the citizens, either into a whirlpool or a sea that pulls them down; or if it could be led away through the desert, where there are neither cities nor paths for men, but wild beasts roam and birds fly, and only in rocks and ravines can they be caught. May I reach this goal before being struck down."

⁴ "The one who had prophesied suddenly disappeared; his son, Amilmarodocus, became king. But the caretaker killed him, leaving behind a child named Labassuaraskon. After this child died a violent death, they named Nabannidochus as king, but he had no connection to them. Then Cyrus, after taking Babylon, was given the rule of Carmania."

⁵ "And about the founding of Babylon by Nabuchodonosor, he writes this: 'It is said that everything began from water, called the sea. And Bel stopped them, giving each a place and surrounding Babylon with walls; but in time, it would disappear.'"

⁶ "Then again, Nabuchodonosor built walls that lasted until the time of the Macedonians, and they were made of bronze. He also adds other details."

⁷ "Nabuchodonosor, after taking over the rule, built Babylon with a triple wall in fifteen days. He also redirected the river Armachales, which is a branch of the Euphrates, and the river Acrakanon. Above the city of Sippar, he dug a ditch that was forty parasangs around and twenty orgyiae deep. He set up gates that, when opened, watered the plain; they are called the 'water-keepers.'"

⁸ "He also built a harbor by the Red Sea and founded the city of Teridona to defend against the invasions of the Arabs. He created royal gardens with trees, calling them 'hanging gardens.'"

⁹ "And let these things come from the written account that has been made clear, because it is said in the prophecy of Daniel that while Nabuchodonosor was walking in the palace of his kingdom in Babylon, he spoke proudly, saying, 'Is this not Babylon the great, which I have built as a royal house by the strength of my power, for the honor of my glory?' While he was still speaking, the destruction that was to come upon him happened."

Book Ten

"Therefore, these things are enough for us about these matters. But let us also consider everything from the Antiquities of the Jews by Josephus, where he quotes the words of many writers exactly as they are."

² "However, the writings of the Syrians, Chaldeans, and Phoenicians are enough to prove ancient history, along with many Greek writers. Also, Theophilus, Theodotus, Mnaseas, Aristophanes, Hermogenes, Eumelus, Comon, Zopyrion, and many others (for I have not come across all their books) have remembered to mention us."

³ "Most of the men mentioned have made mistakes about the truth of the original events because they did not have access to our sacred books. However, they all agree on ancient history, which is what I intend to discuss now. Demetrius of Phalerum, Philo the Elder, and Eupolemus, on the other hand, did not stray far from the truth. They are worth considering, for they did not follow our writings with complete accuracy."

⁴ "These things are also found in Josephus. Anyone interested in the words about the ancient history of the Jews would find many agreements with the testimonies presented. There is also a large group of witnesses, both old and new writers, who support the same view. We leave their voices, considering the balance of their arguments, for those who love to learn to seek and explore, while we ourselves will move on to the remaining promise."

Book 10, Section 1

What words have we chosen to compare Hebrew philosophy with Greek philosophy? With what reasoning have we accepted the sacred books from these men? We should not ignore the Greeks, but rather remember them by name and be amazed by their lives, as they have provided a great account of both the royal capital and their other history. Let us examine this, for not only have these writings earned remembrance, but some among them have become followers of teachings and learning that aim to improve the soul.

² As for the other subjects, one of the remarkable Greeks gathered the knowledge of the barbarians, including geometry, arithmetic, music, astronomy, medicine, and even the basic elements of grammar, along with countless other useful skills and practices. I will present these now.

³ Just as the beliefs about many gods, the mysteries, the rituals, and also the histories and mythical stories about the gods, along with the allegorical interpretations of myths and the remaining superstitious beliefs, were taken from the barbarians, the argument has shown this. Whenever all the Greeks, having traveled through much land, not without effort, gathered the teachings from the barbarians, we established our own theology.

⁴ But regarding the beliefs about the piety of one god above all, and the teachings that are most sought after for the benefit of the soul, which would indeed be the most closely connected of the philosophical arguments, they would not come from anywhere else but from the Hebrews alone, and this will not be proven to be far-fetched.

⁵ If this is not the case, someone might say that they were influenced by natural ideas, and this would be true for us if the teachings were not only handed down by the Hebrews from ancient times through prophetic theologians, but also by others, even if not to everyone. Still, we certainly seek after those teachings that have great fame in Greece and have been examined through the studies of philosophers.

⁶ You would find that they are few in number, as they say that all beautiful things are difficult. However, they are honored above all by the philosophers among the Greeks, because their great reputation overshadows those who are similar.

⁷ It is not surprising if we say that the teachings among the Hebrews could have been influenced by them, since not only do the other subjects come from the Egyptians and Chaldeans, but even now they still compete with each other, taking away each other's honor in their writings.

⁸ Indeed, each of them has borrowed words, thoughts, and the entire structure of speech from those nearby, as if they were honoring their own efforts. Do not think that this is my own idea; for you will hear from those very wise ones that they accuse each other of stealing in their writings.

⁹ Now, since we have started this, it is necessary first of all to examine the way of what is being said. Our Clement, then, in the sixth book of the Stromata, has presented the discussion about this in detail. So, first take this and read these kinds of statements.

Book 10, Section 2

Having presented the meaning of Greek thought, which has been clearly revealed to us through writings, we have shown how they accept the theft of truth, unless it is too harsh to say so. Let us bring forth witnesses of this theft by presenting the Greeks themselves.

² For those who take from each other so openly are sure that they are thieves, yet they still secretly share the truth from us with their own kind. For if they do not even keep what is their own, they would still freely take from what belongs to us.

³ And I will remain silent about the teachings of philosophy, since they themselves agree that their beliefs are recorded, so that they are not seen as ungrateful. The most important teachings were taken from Socrates. Using the testimonies of a few respected men among the Greeks, I will examine the nature of their theft, drawing on examples from different times, and I will turn to what comes next.

⁴ Having said these things in the introduction, he now presents the arguments that follow, using various kinds of evidence. He also shows that the first poets borrowed from their peers by comparing the voices of each.

⁵ Then he goes on to say this: "Let us not overlook philosophy, history, or rhetoric in the same way, and it makes sense to present a few examples of these."

⁶ Then he continues with Orpheus, Heraclitus, Plato, Pythagoras, Herodotus, Theopompus, Thucydides, Demosthenes, Aeschines, Lysias, Isocrates, and many others. It is not necessary for me to list their voices, since their writings are available, in which he repeats these ideas after the arguments of those mentioned.

⁷ Therefore, the ideas of Greek borrowing are enough to serve as a clear example for those who can see. However, it is not just the thoughts and words that have been taken and mixed together, as will be shown. They have also claimed others' works as if they were their own, just like Eugammons of Cyrene took the entire book 'On the Thesprotians' from Musaeus.

⁸ Again, after presenting many proofs for his argument, he concludes with these words: "Life will slip away from me if I try to examine each case, arguing against the selfish borrowing of Greek ideas, and how they claim the discovery of the best teachings that they have taken from us."

⁹ Now, they are not only taking teachings from the barbarians, but they are also imitating what comes from us. Through divine power from above, they act strangely in their return to us, while they are preoccupied with Greek mythology.

¹⁰ So, we will ask them whether the things they tell are true or false. They would not say they are false; for they would not willingly vote against themselves for the greatest foolishness, which is to write lies. But they would have to admit that they are true.

¹¹ And how can what is shown through Moses and the other prophets seem unbelievable to them? For the all-powerful God cares for everyone, some with commands, others with threats, and there are those whom he guides toward salvation with great signs and gentle promises.

¹² But the Greeks, once suffering from a long drought that ruined Greece and caused a lack of crops, said that those who were left came as supplicants to Delphi and asked the Pythia how they could be freed from their terrible situation. She gave them one answer for relief from their misfortune, if they would pray to Aiacus.

¹³ Therefore, Aiacus, convinced by them, went up to the Greek mountain. Stretching out his clean hands toward heaven and calling upon the common father, the god, he prayed for him to have pity on Greece, which was suffering greatly.

¹⁴ While he was praying, a sudden thunderclap sounded, and the air around was filled with it. Then heavy and continuous rains fell, filling the entire land. Because of this, abundant and rich harvests were produced, thanks to the prayers of Aiacus.

¹⁵ "And Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain on the day of harvest. Do you see that the one who sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous through the powers that be is one God?" And the following things.

¹⁶ "With these many arguments, Clement clearly showed that the Greeks had become thieves. If this is not trustworthy for you, since he also preferred the philosophy of the barbarians over that of the Greeks, let him be, even though he does not use familiar words but speaks to the Greeks in their own language. What would you say if you learned similar things from your noble philosophers? Indeed, accept the testimonies of these as well." From Porphyry, based on the teachings of the lover of learning.

Book 10, Section 3

"The Platonic gatherings have invited us, Longinus, to Athens, along with many others, including Nicagoras the sophist, Maior, Apollonius the grammarian, Demetrius the geometer, Prosenes the Peripatetic, and Callietes the Stoic."

² "While I was lying down as the seventh at the dinner, I heard some discussion about Ephorus among the others. Let us hear, he said, what the commotion is about Ephorus. The ones discussing were Caustrius and Maximus; one was presenting Ephorus and Theopompus, while the other called Caustrius a thief."

³ "And what is special about Ephorus, he said, compared to Daimachus, Callisthenes, and Anaximenes, when he has rewritten all three thousand lines in his own words?"

⁴ "To this, the grammarian Apollonius replied, 'You do not know that even Theopompus, whom you prefer, has left behind this same flaw. In the eleventh work about Philip, translated from Isocrates, the Areopagite, he has changed those names, saying that neither good nor evil happens to people by itself, along with what follows.'"

⁵ "And yet he is arrogant about Isocrates and claims to have been defeated by himself in the contest about Mausolus, the teacher. He has woven a web of matters, changing what belongs to others, so that he might also be caught as a liar in this way."

⁶ "For in Tripolis, about Pythagoras the philosopher, it is said that once, while thirsty in Metapontum, he was stirred by some falsehood, drank, and predicted that there would be an earthquake on the third day. He also added some other things to this."

⁷ "Therefore, Theopompus took away all the things that Andron told about Pythagoras. If he were speaking about Pythagoras, perhaps others would have also heard about him and said: having said these things himself, he has clearly committed theft of the name. For he has changed the names while using the same ideas; he has made it seem as if these things were spoken by Pherecydes the Syrian."

⁸ "Not only does he hide the theft with this name, but he also changes the locations. For Theopompus claims that the prediction about the earthquake in Metapontum, which was spoken by Andron, is said to have been made in Syria. He also says that the story about the ship did not come from Megara in Sicily, but was said to have been seen from Samos. Additionally, he has moved the capture of Sybaris to Messene."

⁹ "To show that he speaks unnecessarily, he added the name of a stranger, claiming that he is called Perilaus. Nicagoras says that, while encountering many works of Xenophon, he has found that much of Xenophon has been altered, and what is troubling is that these changes are for the worse."

¹⁰ "At least the details about the meeting between Pharnabazus and Agesilaus, as told by Apollophanes of Cyzicus, and the conversations they had with each other, which Xenophon wrote about very charmingly and fittingly in the fourth book, have been moved by Theopompus into the eleventh book of the Greeks, where he has made them dull, lifeless, and ineffective."

¹¹ "For he seems slow and hesitant, trying to add strength to his words and to show off because of the theft, as if he is delaying and putting things off. He ruins the lively and active nature of Xenophon."

¹² "When Nicagoras said this, Apollonius replied, 'And why should we be surprised if Theopompus and Ephorus were affected by the passion for theft, being such slow men? Even Menander was filled with this kind of sickness, whom Aristophanes gently criticized for loving him too much in his comparisons and in what he stole without reason. The Latin writer, in six books titled About Menander's Non-Personal Works, revealed the extent of his thefts.'"

¹³ "Just as the Alexandrian Phlostratus wrote a work about the theft of Sophocles, Caecilius, as if he had discovered something great, claims that he translated the entire play of Antiphanes, the Oionian, into Menander's Deisidaimon."

¹⁴ "But when it seemed to the thieves—though I don't know how—he says to you that they brought him into the center, I myself reveal that Hyperides, the handsome one, has stolen many things from Demosthenes, both in the speech against Diogdas and in the one about the gifts of Eubulus."

¹⁵ "And it is clear that one has taken from the other. While they were contemporaries, he says, 'It would be possible for us to trace the thief, Apollonius, through the times.' But I suspect that Hyperides is the one who was taken from. Since it is unclear which one it is, I admire Demosthenes if he improved what he received from Hyperides. But I blame Hyperides if he twisted what he received from Demosthenes for the worse."

¹⁶ "And after a short while, he says, 'What can I tell you about how the barbarian laws are gathered from Hellanicus, Prodotus, and Damastus? Or how Herodotus, in the second book, has brought over many things word for word from Hecataeus of Miletus, making slight changes, about the bird of the phoenix, the river horse, and the hunting of crocodiles?'"

¹⁷ "Or how the things said about tortures are mentioned by Isaeus in the speech about the lot of Cylon, by Isocrates in the work on the Table, and by Demosthenes in the speech against Onetor, almost in the same words? Or how Deinarchus, in the first speech against Cleomedon, has used many names from Demosthenes in the speech against Conon?"

¹⁸ "Or from Hesiod: 'For no man takes anything better from a good woman, but from a bad one, he does not take anything worse.' Simonides has taken this idea in the eleventh, saying: 'No man takes anything better from a good woman, nor anything worse from a bad one.' Euripides, in Melanippe the Captive, says: 'Nothing worse comes from a bad woman, and nothing better comes from a good one; they are different by nature.'"

¹⁹ "When Euripides says, 'Women are the most miserable plant,' Theodectes in Alcmaeon says, 'A clear saying among mortals is that nothing is more miserable than a woman.' He not only takes the idea from this, but also uses the same words. He wants it to sound more like a proverb, as if it is said by many, rather than appearing to come from the one who originally said it."

²⁰ "But Antimachus takes from Homer and makes corrections. For when Homer says, 'Idaeus, who was the best of the men on earth,' Antimachus says, 'Idaeus, who was the best of the men on earth.' Lycophron praises this change, saying that it strengthens the line."

²¹ "For when it is said, 'the lord Diomedes spoke in reply,' I remain silent, since Cratinus made fun of it for being too wordy in 'the lord Diomedes speaking in reply.' Antimachus did not hesitate to change it, even though it was so poorly used."

²² "But 'he ruled over the people, and the father was gentle' comes from Homer and is mentioned again somewhere else. When it says, 'they strengthened the phalanx from both sides,' Antimachus changed it and made it half a line: 'they strengthened the phalanx of the people.'"

²³ "But I will not be a thief myself, accusing others of theft; I will reveal those who have dealt with these matters. Lysimachus has two works about the theft of Ephorus, and Alcaeus, the poet of mocking iambs and epigrams, has overlooked 'the thefts of Ephorus' while criticizing them. There is also a letter from Pollion to Soteridas about the theft of Ctesias, and the same author has a book about the theft of the traitor. In the book titled 'Trackers,' many things are said about Theopompus. There is also a work by Aretaeus about joint ventures, from which many such things can be learned."

²⁴ "And after other things, 'And Prosenes said, you have caught the other thieves; but this hero Plato, whose festival we celebrate today, uses many things from before him. I am ashamed to use the name of theft in relation to him; you have not yet caught him.'"

²⁵ "What are you saying?" said Calliates. "I am not just speaking," he replies, "but I also provide trust in the argument. The books of those before Plato are rare, since perhaps more people have accused the philosopher of theft. But I happened to be reading Protagoras' work about being, and I find him using such expressions against those who introduce the one being. I have made an effort to remember the things said in those words." After saying this, he presents more evidence.

²⁶ But what kind of method do the Greek writers have, since they did not hold back from criticism? I think what has been said is enough from countless examples. Furthermore, to prepare for the benefits that flow from the Hebrew words into the Greek language, it seems good and necessary to me to fully demonstrate the praised education and philosophy of the Greeks, their first teachings, and the serious knowledge of logic that they have received from the barbarians. This way, no one may blame us anymore, saying that we have preferred the piety and philosophy of the serious ones among the barbarians.

Book 10, Section 4

That we have preferred the theology of the Hebrews over the second parts of Greek philosophy without good reason, you would understand if you learned that even among the Greeks, those who grasped philosophy most correctly and thought of something greater and more significant than the general beliefs about the gods did not discover any true doctrines that were established by the Hebrews.

² For some, having been led into a deep pit of empty talk by various false beliefs, have turned away. But others, using more thoughtful reasoning, have grasped the truth. In this way, they have shared in the teachings of the Hebrews.

³ It is likely that those who have become very learned, having examined more carefully the customs and teachings of the nations, and who are not ignorant of the philosophy of the revealed truths, are not only younger in time than all, but also include not just the Hebrews, the Phoenicians, and the Egyptians, but even the ancient Greeks themselves.

⁴ Some things come from Phoenicia, like Cadmus, the son of Agenor, and others come from Egypt about the gods, or from other places, such as mysteries and rituals, the setting up of statues, and hymns, songs, and chants. Either Thracian Orpheus or some other foreigner became the founders of these false beliefs. For none of these would even agree that the ancient Greeks knew about them.

⁵ First of all, they mention Orpheus, then Linus, and after that Musaeus, saying that they appeared around the time of the Trojan War or shortly before it. But according to these accounts, nothing of the confusing theology of the Phoenicians and Egyptians was practiced among the Greeks.

⁶ And indeed, among the other nations, in all the regions and cities, the same things and similar ones were carefully preserved in sacred places and mysteries. Certainly, the well-known teachings about the gods held great power everywhere. Beautiful temples, decorated with various statues and offerings, were built all around. Moreover, statues made from all kinds of materials were skillfully crafted in the forms of all mortal creatures.

⁷ And indeed, there was a great abundance of oracles everywhere. A certain revered and powerful god was especially honored among the Greeks, namely the Pythian, Clarian, and Dodonian gods. Then there were also Amphiaraus and Amphilochus, along with countless other seers who were more numerous than poets and rhapsodes.

⁸ In later times, philosophy came to the Greeks, finding nothing that belonged to their ancestors. It took the serious and ancient teachings from their forefathers, along with the marvelous things praised by all, which were divine and beneficial. However, it focused on works that were excessive and unhelpful.

⁹ Therefore, these things were set aside once again, as they could not help in finding what was necessary and true. The foreign and barbaric ideas, like a naked person suffering from a lack of familiar words and knowledge, wandered around seeking, gathering, and collecting useful things from everywhere, trying to find whatever they could from each of the nations.

¹⁰ For the Greeks did not only learn about the true teachings of theology, but also the most useful things from other arts and sciences. The Greeks themselves agree, especially after Orpheus, Linus, and Musaeus, who were indeed the oldest and first theologians among them, starting the great confusion of many gods. They admired the seven wise men among them, who were also known as the wise. Around this time, Cyrus, the king of the Persians, was thriving.

¹¹ This was the time when the last of the prophets among the Hebrews were prophesying, more than six hundred years after the Trojan War, and not less than one thousand five hundred years after the time of Moses. This will become clear to you a little later as you look through the records of the years.

¹² At this time, seven wise men are remembered for their achievements in moral guidance, but nothing of their loud sayings is mentioned anymore. Later on, as time passed, the philosophers among the Greeks are noted for their accomplishments.

¹³ Among them, Pythagoras is the first known from Pherecydes, who discovered the name "philosophy." Some say he was from Samos, while others claim he was from Tyrrhenia. Some even say he was Syrian or Tyrian, so it is agreed that the first of the philosophers was a foreigner, not a Greek, as sung by the voices of all the Greeks.

¹⁴ They also write that Pherecydes was a Syrian, from whom they say Pythagoras learned. It is said that Pythagoras did not only study with him, but also spent time with the Magi of Persia and learned from the prophets of Egypt, during the time when some Hebrews were moving to Egypt and others to Babylon.

¹⁵ But indeed, he who is said to have learned wise things from each group traveled to Babylon, Egypt, and all of Persia, studying with the Magi and the priests. It is said that he also learned from the Brahmins, who are Indian philosophers. From some of them, he learned astrology, from others geometry, and from others arithmetic and music, gathering knowledge from different sources. However, he had nothing from the wise Greeks, living in a lack of wisdom and confusion.

¹⁶ Therefore, he himself became the reason for the knowledge that the Greeks gained from outside sources.

¹⁷ Thus, this is Pythagoras. The first philosophy that came from his teachings is called Italic philosophy, named for the study in Italy. After this, Ionian philosophy emerged, named after Thales, one of the seven wise men. Then came Eleatic philosophy, named after Xenophanes of Colophon.

¹⁸ But Thales, as some historians say, was a Phoenician, while others believe he was from Miletus. He is also said to have had connections with the Egyptian prophets.

¹⁹ Solon, one of the seven wise men, is said to have been a lawmaker for the Athenians. Plato also claims that he connected with the Egyptians when the Hebrews were living in Egypt again. In the Timaeus, he describes Solon being educated by a foreigner, where the Egyptian says to him, "O Solon, you Greeks are always children, and there is not one old man among the Greeks, nor is there a wise lesson among you in your time."

²⁰ And Plato, after studying with the Pythagoreans in Italy, is said not to have been satisfied with just their teachings. He is also said to have gone to Egypt and spent a lot of time learning from their philosophy. He often shares many of his own ideas with the foreigners, and I think he does this well, acknowledging that some of the best ideas in philosophy come from them.

²¹ You can hear many things from him in various places, especially in the Epinomis, where he mentions both the Syrians and the Egyptians, saying, "The first cause of this was a foreigner who saw it. Indeed, an ancient land raised the first people who thought of this because of the beauty of the summer season, which both Egypt and Syria have in abundance. From there, it has spread everywhere, even here, after being tested for a long time and in countless ways."

²² And moving on from there, he adds, "Let us accept this as true: whatever the Greeks receive from the foreigners, they improve it in the end."

²³ These are the words of Plato. Democritus is also said to have created ethical teachings based on the Babylonians even earlier. Somewhere, boasting about himself, he says, "I have traveled the greatest lands of men concerning myself, exploring the longest histories. I have seen the finest skies and lands, and I have listened to many wise men. No one has changed my writings with proof, neither the Egyptians, whom they call the Arpedonapti, among whom I lived for eighty years in a foreign land."

²⁴ For this person also traveled to Babylon, Persia, and Egypt, studying with the Egyptians and the priests.

²⁵ What if I were to mention Heraclitus and the other Greeks, who show that the Greek city-state has been poor and lacking in all knowledge for a long time?

²⁶ Indeed, it was decorated with the sacred things of the gods, including statues and offerings, prophecies and oracles, and the great ignorance of the deceiving spirits. However, it completely lacked true wisdom and useful knowledge.

²⁷ They did not find anything useful in good words, and even the remarkable Pythian offered them no help in philosophy, nor did any other god assist them in any necessary practice. Instead, as they wandered here and there, running around their whole lives, they were said to be supported by foreign wings according to the myth, so that they had to piece together all of philosophy from begging.

²⁸ They learned different subjects from different people: they got geometry from the Egyptians, astrology from the Chaldeans, and other things from others. However, they found nothing good from the Hebrews.

²⁹ This was the knowledge of the god of all things and the understanding of the local gods, which the speech will reveal shortly.

³⁰ At this point, it is noted that those who faced this were not only missing the true theology of the ancient Greeks, but also the useful subjects of philosophy. They lacked not just these, but also the common and political practices.

³¹ I believe this sign should be included as proof of the purpose at hand, especially if it is necessary to explain why we should not unreasonably accept the theology of the Hebrews and the philosophy that they themselves say is inferior to the Greek.

³² If they had indeed seen everything prepared by the barbarians long before and gained nothing at all from their own gods in philosophy, but instead justly blamed their gods, with some even preferring atheism over the worship of the gods, then why should we be blamed? Shouldn't we rather accept and praise the fact that, having loved what is better and found the only truth, we turned away from falsehood? We are neither led into atheism like the wise Greeks, nor do we mix with the marvelous philosophers who deceive with their polytheism while knowing the nature of the god above all, nor do we confuse truth with falsehood.

³³ But first, do not go over these things; instead, explain to me how the Greeks have completely taken everything from the barbarians, not just the philosophical teachings but also the common and useful discoveries.

Book 10, Section 5

First of all, Cadmus introduced the common letters, which are indeed the first elements of grammar, to the Greeks. He was of Phoenician descent, and for this reason, some of the ancient letters have been called Phoenician.

² Some say that the Syrians were the first to invent letters. The Syrians, along with the Hebrews, lived next to Phoenicia. The old Phoenicia later became known as Judea, and in our time, it is called Palestine. The sounds of the Greek letters seem to be most closely related to these people.

³ Each of their letters has a specific meaningful name, which cannot be found among the Greeks. Therefore, it is widely accepted that these letters are not originally Greek.

⁴ There are a total of twenty-two letters among the Hebrews. The first is Aleph, which, when translated into Greek, could be called "learning." The second is Beth, which means "house." The third is Gimel, which means "fullness." The fourth is Daleth, which means "door." The fifth is He, which means "this." Together, they create a certain idea: "learning of the house, fullness of the door, this."

⁵ Then, after these, there is a sixth letter, called Vav, which means "in it." Next is Zayin, which means "living." After that is He, which means "the living," in which the whole lives; in it, the living lives.

⁶ After these, there is the ninth letter, called Teth, which means "good." Next is Yodh, which is translated as "beginning." Together, these two mean "good beginning." Following these is Kaph, which means "yet." Then comes Lamed, which means "learning." Together, they mean "yet learning."

⁷ After these, there is the thirteenth letter, called Mem, which means "from them." Next is Nun, which means "eternal." Then comes Samekh, which is translated as "help," in which the eternal help comes from them.

⁸ Following these is the letter Ayin, which means "spring" or "eye." Next is Pe, which means "mouth." Then comes Tsadi, which means "righteousness." From these, we understand that there is a spring or an eye, and a mouth of righteousness.

⁹ After these is the letter Qoph, which means "calling." Next is Resh, which means "head." Then comes Shin, which means "teeth." Additionally, the twenty-second letter is called "which shows signs." We can understand this as a calling of the head and signs of the teeth.

¹⁰ And among the Hebrews, this is the translation and explanation of the letters, which provides understanding related to the study and promise of the letters. However, you would not find the same among the Greeks. As I mentioned, it is necessary to agree that these do not belong to the Greeks, but are instead created from a foreign language.

¹¹ And from this, we examine the naming of each letter. For what does the letter Aleph have to do with Alpha? Or what about Beth and Beta? Or Gamma and Gimel? Or Daleth and Delta? Or He and E? Or Zayin and Zeta? Or Teth and Theta? And as many similar ones as these.

¹² So it is clear that these sounds do not belong to the Greeks; rather, they belong to the Hebrews, among whom each one shows some meaning. From these, it first spread to others and then to the Greeks. Thus, let this be said about the first letters. And touching on the same topic, listen to what Clement says.

Book 10, Section 6

They say that Apis brought Egyptian medicine, and after that, Asclepius improved the practice. And Atlas the Libyan was the first to build a ship and sail the sea.

² The Egyptians were the first to introduce astrology to people, and the Chaldeans did the same. The Carians claim that they invented the knowledge of predictions through the stars. The Phrygians were the first to observe the flights of birds.

³ The Tusci, neighbors of Italy, perfected divination. The Isaurians and Arabs developed the art of interpreting omens, just as the Telmessians practiced divination through dreams.

⁴ The Tyrrhenians invented the trumpet, and the Phrygians invented the flute; for the Phrygians were associated with Olympus and Marsyas. The Egyptians were the first to show how to light lamps, and they divided the year into twelve months. They also forbade women from participating in sacred places and made laws that women should not enter the temples during their monthly periods.

⁵ The inventors of geometry are those who came from there. Kelmis and Damnamenes, from the Idaians, were the first to find iron in Cyprus. Another Idaians, Delas, discovered the mixture of bronze, as Hesiod, a Scythian, says.

⁶ Yes, the Thracians were the first to find the instrument called the harp, which is a curved sword, and they were the first to use shields on horses. Similarly, the Illyrians discovered the shield known as the pelta. They also say that the Tuscans invented sculpture; this man, Hitanos, was the first to make a shield.

⁷ Cadmus, the Phoenician, discovered stone cutting and invented gold mining around Mount Pangaion. Another nation, the Cappadocians, were the first to find the instrument called the lyre, which is similar to the two-stringed instrument of the Assyrians.

⁸ The Carthaginians were the first to build a trireme, and it was created by a native of the land. Medea, the Colchian daughter of Aeëtes, was the first to invent hair dye.

⁹ But the Noropes, a Paeonian people (now called Noric), were also the first to work with bronze and refine iron. Amykos, the king of the Bebrycians, discovered strong straps.

¹⁰ Regarding music, Olympus the Mysian created the Lydian harmony. The Troglodytes, as they are called, discovered the sambuke, a musical instrument.

¹¹ They say that the Phrygian invented the side flute. Hyagnis, who was also Phrygian, created both the three-stringed instrument and the diatonic harmony. Olympus the Phrygian invented rhythms, just as Marsyas, who was from the same region, created Phrygian harmony, mixed Phrygian, and mixed Lydian. Thamyris, the Thracian, invented the Doric style.

¹² We first learned that the Persians invented the cart, the couch, and the footstool, and that the Sidonians built the three-banked ship. The Sicilians, who live near Italy, were the first to discover the lyre, which is not much different from the guitar, and they invented the castanets.

¹³ They say that during the reign of Semiramis, the queen of the Assyrians, silk garments were invented. Hellanicus also says that Atossa, who ruled the Persians, was the first to create written letters.

¹⁴ So, Skammos from Mytilene, Theophrastus from Eresus, Kydippos from Mantinea, as well as Antiphanes, Aristodemus, and Aristotle, along with Philostefanos and Straton the Peripatetic, wrote about these topics in their works on inventions. I have included a few of their thoughts on the useful and beneficial nature of inventions among the barbarians, which the Greeks benefit from.

¹⁵ Clement mentions these things in the Stromateis. I believe it is good to add what comes from the writings of Josephus the Hebrew, who wrote in two books about the history of the Jews, discussing how the Greeks became new and how they benefited from the barbarians. These writings also seem to support a clear and certain understanding of the topics mentioned. So, pay attention to what he writes next.

Book 10, Section 7

First of all, I am amazed that those who believe they should only focus on the ancient works of the Greeks and seek the truth from them do not trust us or other people.

² For I see things quite differently, if one should not follow empty opinions but instead seek what is just from them. Everything among the Greeks is new, as if one could say it has just happened yesterday or recently. I mean the founding of cities, the inventions of arts, and the records of laws. The most recent of all is their attention to writing histories.

³ However, the Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Phoenicians—let us now include ourselves among them—certainly agree that they have the oldest and most enduring tradition of memory.

⁴ For they all live in places that are least affected by the decay of their surroundings, and they have made great efforts to ensure that nothing done among them is forgotten. Instead, it is always recorded in public records by the wisest among them.

⁵ But the region around Greece has been affected by countless losses, erasing the memory of past events. Constantly creating new lives, each person believed they were starting fresh from themselves.

⁶ Later, they barely understood the nature of writing. Wanting to claim the oldest use of it, they proudly sought to learn from the Phoenicians and Cadmus.

⁷ Indeed, from that time, no one could show a surviving record, neither in temples nor in public offerings. Even about those who campaigned at Troy many years later, there was much confusion and questioning about whether they used writing. It is more accurate to say that they did not know how to use the letters that exist today.

⁸ Overall, among the Greeks, no written work of Homer is found that is older. His work seems to have come after the events of Troy. They say that he did not leave his poetry in writing, but that it was remembered and later compiled from the letters. Because of this, there are many disagreements within it.

⁹ Those who tried to write histories among them—specifically, those about Cadmus the Milesian and the Argive Acusilaus, and any others who are said to have existed after them—appeared shortly before the Persian invasion of Greece.

¹⁰ But also, those who first studied the heavens and the divine among the Greeks, like Pherecydes the Syrian, Pythagoras, and Thales, all agree that they were students of the Egyptians and Chaldeans and wrote very little. These writings seem to the Greeks to be the oldest of all, and they hardly believe that they were written by those people.

¹¹ How is it not unreasonable for the Greeks to be proud as if they alone know the ancient truths about them accurately? Or who among those same writers would easily learn that they did not write with certainty about even one thing, but instead guessed about matters based on their own opinions?

¹² Indeed, they criticize each other through their books and do not hesitate to say the opposite about the same subjects. But I would be curious to teach those who know more than I do about how much Hellenicus has reported to Acusilaus regarding genealogies, how Acusilaus corrects Hesiod, or how Ephorus shows that Hellenicus mostly lies, while Timaios and those who came after him, along with everyone else, agree about Herodotus.

¹³ But neither did Timaios believe that those discussing Antiochus and Philistus, or Callias, agreed on Sicilian matters, nor did those who wrote about the Athenians agree on Athenian stories, or those who wrote about Argos agree with each other on Argolic matters.

¹⁴ And what can be said about the matters concerning the cities, and the shorter ones, where the most respected have spoken about the Persian campaign and what happened during it? Many accuse Thucydides of lying, even though he believes he is writing the most accurate history.

¹⁵ The reasons for such disagreement might be many and varied for those who wish to explore them, but I will highlight that the two reasons I will explain hold the greatest weight.

¹⁶ And I will first mention what seems to me to be the most important. The fact that, from the beginning, the Greeks did not take the effort to create public records about what each group did especially led to both confusion and the ability to lie for those who later wanted to write about the past.

¹⁷ For not only did the other Greeks neglect the records, but even the Athenians themselves, who claim to be native and take pride in their education, show no evidence of such records. They say that the oldest public writings are the laws about murder written by Draco, which were created shortly before the tyranny of Peisistratus.

¹⁸ For what can one say about the Arcadians who boast of their ancientness? These people hardly even learned to read and write afterward.

¹⁹ Since there was no public record meant to teach those who wanted to learn and to challenge those who lied, there was a lot of disagreement among the writers.

²⁰ But a second reason should be added to this. Those who rushed to write did not care about the truth — even though this is always an easy task for them — but instead focused on the power of their words. In whatever way they thought others would praise them, they adjusted their approach: some turned to storytelling, some praised the cities or the kings for favor, while others chose to criticize the actions or the writings, believing that they would gain approval this way.

²¹ Overall, they act in a way that is completely opposite to history. True history has proof when everyone speaks and writes the same things about the same events. However, those who do not write the same things as others believe they appear to be the most truthful of all.

²² Josephus said a great deal. The testimony of Diodorus could serve as a confirmation of what has been said, which I will present from the first of the collected Library, as it appears in the text.

Book 10, Section 8

After we have clarified these things, we should mention how many of those who were honored among the Greeks contributed to understanding and education in ancient Egypt, as they took part in the laws and education here.

² The priests of the Egyptians tell from the records in the sacred books that they compare themselves to Orpheus, Musaeus, Melampus, and Daedalus, as well as to Homer the poet, Lycurgus the Spartan, Solon the Athenian, and Plato the philosopher. They also include Pythagoras the Samian, the mathematician Eudoxus, and further Democritus the Abderite and Oinopides the Chian.

³ They show signs of all these, some as images and others as places or similar names. They also provide evidence from each person's respected education, claiming that everything admired by the Greeks has come from Egypt.

⁴ For Orpheus, most of the secret rituals and the rites about his own journey, as well as the myths of those in Hades, are said to have come from the Egyptians. The ritual of Osiris is the same as that of Dionysus, and the ritual of Isis is very similar to that of Demeter, differing only in the names. They also present the punishments for the wicked in Hades and the rewards for the pious, along with many forms of idol worship that have been created, imitating the burial practices in Egypt.

⁵ For the guide of souls, Hermes, according to the ancient customs of the Egyptians, is said to take the body of Apis and deliver it to a certain place near the statue of Cerberus. Orpheus showed this to the Greeks, saying that Homer described Hermes as the one who calls the souls of heroic men, and he held a staff in his hands.

⁶ Then again, he continues by saying that they claim Melampus brought from Egypt the rituals believed to be performed for Dionysus among the Greeks, as well as the myths about Cronus, those about the Titanomachy, and the entire history concerning the sufferings of the gods.

⁷ They say that Daedalus copied the design of the labyrinth, which still exists today. Some claim it was built by Minos, while others say it was built by King Mars, many years before Minos's reign. They also say that the style of the ancient statues in Egypt is the same as those created by Daedalus among the Greeks.

⁸ Daedalus is said to have designed the most beautiful gateway in Memphis for Hephaestus, and it was admired for a wooden statue made by his own hands in the temple mentioned earlier. Because of his skill, he gained great fame and received many equal honors. Even now, there is still a temple on one of the islands near Memphis that is dedicated to Daedalus and is honored by the locals.

⁹ Besides the presence of Homer, they mention other signs, especially the potion that Helen gave to Menelaus and Telemachus, which caused them to forget the troubles they had experienced.

¹⁰ For the drug that brings forgetfulness, which the poet says Helen received from the Egyptians from Polydamna, the wife of Thon, is explained in detail.

¹¹ Even now, they say that women in this area use the previously mentioned power, and that in the city of Diospolis, there are still potions for anger and sorrow that have been found since ancient times. They claim that Thebes and Diospolis have the same things, and that Aphrodite is called "Golden" by the locals based on an old tradition. There is also a plain called "Golden Aphrodite" near the city known as Momemphis.

¹² The myths about Zeus and the goddess Prā are told regarding their union and his journey to Ethiopia to bring her back. Once a year, the Egyptians say that the temple of Zeus is carried across the river into Libya, and after a few days, it returns, as if the god were present from Ethiopia. The union of these gods is celebrated in the festivals of the temples, where both are brought to a mountain decorated with all kinds of flowers by the priests.

¹³ Lycurgus, Plato, and Solon took many laws from Egypt and included them in their own legal systems. Pythagoras learned about the sacred teachings, the principles of geometry, and the matters concerning numbers. He also learned from the Egyptians about the transformation of the soul in all living beings.

¹⁴ They also say that Democritus spent five years with them and learned a lot about astrology. Similarly, Oinopides spent time with the priests and astrologers, learning many things, especially about the solar cycle. He noted that it has a tilted path, while the other stars move in the opposite direction.

¹⁵ In a similar way, Eudoxus studied astrology with them and gained many valuable insights that earned him great respect among the Greeks.

¹⁶ Of all the ancient sculptors, the ones most often mentioned as having spent time with them are Telecles and Theodorus, the sons of Rhoikos, who created the statue of Apollo Pythios for the people of Samos.

¹⁷ Thus much also comes from Diodorus. But let this account be considered complete here. We should not be accused of foolishness anymore if we have truly sought genuine piety, like the wise Greeks and the philosophers among them, even if they are called barbarians, such as the Hebrew barbarians.

¹⁸ During the times when Moses and the prophets after him thrived, it would be helpful to explore this, as it is one of the most important parts of our current discussion. This is to consider what the wise men might say about their ancient origins. If the Hebrew prophets and theologians agree with those among the Greeks, you would no longer doubt who is likely to have borrowed from whom—whether the older from the younger, the Hebrews from the Greeks, or the barbarians from the philosophers, whom they might not even understand in their own language. Or, which seems more likely, the younger from the older, and that the Greeks, who have engaged with many different cultures, would not be unaware of the Hebrew language, which has transformed from its original form into Greek.

Book 10, Section 9

Many others have carefully written about the ancient origins of Moses and the prophets who followed him. From these writings, I will now present a few brief points.

² I will use a different method here than those mentioned earlier. If someone wants to calculate the number of years from the time of Augustus, the Roman emperor, to the birth of our Savior, which marked the beginning of the gospel teaching of Christ in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, and then go back to the earlier years, up to the time of Darius, the king of the Persians, and the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem that took place after the Jewish nation returned from Babylon, they would find that there are 58 years from Tiberius to the second year of Darius.

³ The second year of Darius falls in the first year of the 82nd Olympiad, while the fifteenth year of Tiberius coincides with the 27th year of the Roman Empire.

⁴ Therefore, there are 13 Olympiads between Darius the Persian and Tiberius the Roman emperor, which add up to a total of 58 years, counting each Olympiad as four years.

⁵ Since in the second year of Darius, it was the 70th year of the desolation of the temple in Jerusalem, as history shows, if we count back from the second year of Darius to the first Olympiad, we would find a total of 70 years, which equals 17 Olympiads. Therefore, from the last year of the desolation of the mentioned temple to the year of Uzziah, the king of the Jews, during which Isaiah and Hosea prophesied, as well as all those who lived at the same time, the first Olympiad according to the Greeks would coincide with the time of the prophet Isaiah and his contemporaries.

⁶ Again, from the first Olympiad to the years before the fall of Ilium, there are a total of 58 years, as the records of the Greeks indicate.

⁷ According to the Hebrews, from the 50th year of Uzziah, the king of the Jews, to the third year of Labdacus, who was a judge among the Hebrews, there are a total of 58 years. Therefore, the fall of Ilium would have occurred during the time of Labdacus, seven years before Samson began to rule the Hebrews, who is said to have become strong in body, much like Heracles among the Greeks.

⁸ From here, if you move forward and add up a total of 58 years, you would find that according to the Hebrews, it is Moses, and according to the Greeks, it is Cecrops, the native.

⁹ But after Cecrops, the times that are admired among the Greeks are recorded. For after Cecrops comes the flood during Deucalion's time, the burning of Phaethon, the birth of Erichthonius, the abduction of Persephone, the mysteries of Demeter, the founding of Eleusis, the farming of Triptolemus, the abduction of Europa by Zeus, the birth of Apollo, the arrival of Cadmus in Thebes, and even later than these are Dionysus, Minos, Perseus, Asclepius, the Dioscuri, and Heracles.

¹⁰ Of all these, Moses is the oldest, as he is said to have reached adulthood during the time of Cecrops. From Moses, if you go back to the first year of Abraham's life, you will find 75 years. So, counting from the year of Cecrops' reign to this earlier time, you will reach Ninus the Assyrian, who is said to be the first to rule all of Asia except for the Indians. From him, the city is named Ninus, which the Hebrews call Nineveh, during which time Zoroaster the magician ruled in Bactria. Ninus' wife and successor to the kingdom was Semiramis; thus, this is how Abraham fits into the timeline.

¹¹ These things are clearly arranged in the Chronicles that have been written for us. Now, regarding the evidence of Moses' ancientness, I will use the testimony of the most hostile and aggressive sources against both the Hebrews and us. I refer to the philosopher among us, who, filled with hatred toward our community, not only attacks us but also the Hebrews, Moses himself, and the prophets after him with the same slanders. For through the agreement of our enemies, I believe we can trust the promise.

¹² Therefore, Porphyrius writes in the fourth book of our collection the following words: "He tells the most truthful things about the Jews, noting that both their places and their names agree closely. Sanchuniathon of Berytus, having taken the records from Hierombalus, the priest of the god Jevo, who presented the history to Abibalus, the king of the Berytians, accepted it from him and those who examined the truth. The times of these events fall before the Trojan War and are almost close to the time of Moses, as the successions of the kings of Phoenicia indicate. Sanchuniathon, who in the Phoenician dialect truthfully gathered and wrote all the ancient history from the city records and the inscriptions in the temples, lived during the time of Semiramis, the queen of the Assyrians."

¹³ This is what Porphyrius says. Therefore, we must think about the earlier points in this way. If Sanchuniathon lived during the time of Semiramis, who is believed to have lived long before the Trojan War, then Sanchuniathon could also be older than the Trojan War.

¹⁴ But he is said to have taken the records from others who were older than he was. These sources, being even older than he, are said to be nearly from the time of Moses, not having existed during Moses' time, but being close to it. Therefore, Moses would be older than Sanchuniathon by as much as this one is younger than his own elders, who are agreed to be close to Moses.

¹⁵ But it is hard to say how many years Moses was likely older than those mentioned. For this reason, I think I will set this matter aside. However, if I say that Sanchuniathon lived after Moses, and not before, I will support this point.

¹⁶ If Sanchuniathon is known to have lived during Semiramis, the queen of the Assyrians, then let it be that Moses is not earlier, but rather from the same time, so he could also be from the time of Semiramis.

¹⁷ But our account shows that Abraham came before this, while the philosopher places Moses much earlier. Semiramis is said to have been born 800 years before the Trojan War. Therefore, according to the philosopher, Moses would be earlier than the Trojan War by that many years.

¹⁸ The first king of the Argives was Inachus, at a time when the Athenians did not yet have a city or a name. The first Argive is said to have ruled about five generations after Semiramis, which is 900 years after her and Moses, during which no significant events are recorded by the Greeks. According to this timeline, the Judges are believed to be from the Hebrews.

¹⁹ Then, after another 300 years, when more than 800 years had passed since Semiramis, the first king of the Athenians was Cecrops, who was considered a native by them. Triopas was the leader of Argos, and he was the seventh king after the first Argive, Inachus.

²⁰ Between these events, the flood associated with Ogyges is mentioned, and the first god named Apis was worshiped in Egypt. Io, the daughter of Inachus, was honored by the Egyptians under the name Isis. Prometheus and Atlas were also acknowledged.

²¹ From Cecrops to the fall of Ilium, there are just under 800 years, during which many amazing stories are told among the Greeks. These include the flood during Deucalion's time and the fire caused by Phaethon, along with many destructions of the earth in different places.

²² Cecrops is said to be the first to call the god Zeus by that name, which had not been used by people before. He was also the first to build an altar for the Athenians and the first to set up a statue of Athena, since there were none of these from ancient times.

²³ After him, all the gods among the Greeks are traced back in their lineage. Among the Hebrews, those from the line of David ruled, and the prophets who came after Moses were also important. Thus, everything is gathered from Moses to the fall of Ilium, which is more than 800 years according to the testimony of the philosopher.

²⁴ Much of what we know about the Trojan War comes from later sources than what Homer and Hesiod wrote and those they mentioned. Just yesterday and the day before, around the 50th Olympiad, the philosophers associated with Pythagoras and Democritus were named, nearly 700 years after the events of the Trojan War.

²⁵ Therefore, Moses and the Hebrew prophets who came after him are placed 1,500 years earlier than the philosophers among the Greeks, according to the agreement of the man mentioned.

²⁶ We have briefly mentioned these things. Now it is time to consider the evidence from those who came before us on the same topic. Indeed, there have been learned men among us, equal to anyone in education, who have also discussed divine matters. They have clearly explained the current topic based on what the Hebrews have presented, using rich and varied evidence from archaeology.

²⁷ Some have calculated the dates based on certain agreed-upon histories, while others have supported their claims with older writings. Some used Greek sources, while others included those from the Phoenicians, Chaldeans, and Egyptians. Together, they gathered both Greek and foreign accounts, as well as those from the Hebrews, and compared them with all histories. They examined events that occurred around the same times.

²⁸ Then each person, using their own methods, presented a proof that was consistent and agreed upon. For this reason, I thought it best to let their voices be part of the current discussion, so that the authors of these accounts would not be deprived of their contributions. With many witnesses, not just one, the gathering of truth would surely receive confirmation.

Book 10, Section 10

Up until the Olympiads, nothing precise is recorded for the Greeks, as everything is mixed together and not agreed upon among themselves before that time. However, many things are accurately known, not from much effort, but because the Greeks made their records every four years.

² Therefore, I will focus on the most famous and legendary histories up to the first Olympiad. After that, I will connect the accounts by time, if there are any notable ones, combining the Greek and Hebrew histories. I will recount the history of the Hebrews while relating it to the Greek accounts in this way: taking one event from the Hebrews that happened at the same time as an event recorded by the Greeks, and from there, I will add or remove details, noting who the Greek or Persian was, or anyone else who interacted with the Hebrews, so that I might achieve my goal.

³ Therefore, the most notable exile of the Hebrews was when they were captured by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, which lasted for many years, as Jeremiah had prophesied. This is mentioned by Berossus the Babylonian.

⁴ After the years of exile, Cyrus became king of the Persians, during which the new Olympiad began. This can be found in the libraries of Diodorus and in the histories of Thallus and Castor, as well as in those of Polybius and Phlegon, and in other works that discussed the Olympiads. For time has confirmed all these accounts.

⁵ In the first year of Cyrus's reign, which was also the first year of the 70th Olympiad, Zerubbabel and Jesus, the son of Josedek, led the first partial return of the people after the 70 years had been fulfilled, as recorded in Ezra among the Hebrews.

⁶ Thus, the histories agree on the end of Cyrus's reign and the exile, and the events of the Olympiads will be found to match our accounts. Following these, we will connect the other histories in the same manner.

⁷ Before these events, according to the timeline of Attica, starting from Ogyges, who was believed to be a native, the great and first flood occurred in Attica while Phoroneus was king of the Argives, as Acusilaus records. Up until the first Olympiad, the Greeks counted the years as 1,020, which agrees with what has been said before and will be shown later.

⁸ For these matters, the historians of the Athenians, including Hellanicus and Philochorus, who wrote about Attica, as well as Castor and Thallos from Syria, and Diodorus, who wrote the Libraries, and Alexander the Polyhistor, are the ones who mentioned our history and all of Attica most accurately. If there is any significant history within those 1,020 years, it will be selected based on its usefulness.

⁹ And after a short while, he adds, "We say then that Ogyges, who is named after the first flood, was saved from the destruction of many, and that this happened during the exodus of the people from Egypt with Moses, in this way."

¹⁰ Up to the first Olympiad mentioned from Ogyges, the years will be shown. From the first Olympiad to the 15th year, which is the first year of Cyrus's reign and marks the end of the captivity, there are 15 years. So, from Ogyges to Cyrus, there are also 15 years. If someone calculates from the end of the captivity, there are 15 years, and by counting, the same period is found from the first year of Israel's exit from Egypt through Moses, just as there are 15 years from the 50th Olympiad to Ogyges, who founded Eleusis. Therefore, it is clearer to understand the timeline of Attica.

¹¹ And after other things, "And so many years before Ogyges," during that time, Moses came out of Egypt. We show that it is not unbelievable that these events happened then.

¹² From the time of Moses's exit to Cyrus, who reigned after the captivity, there are 15 years. There are 40 years remaining for Moses; with Joshua leading after him, there are 25 years of the elders following Joshua, and the years mentioned in the book of Judges are included. The years of the priests Eli and Samuel add up to 20. The years of the subsequent kings of the Hebrews total 450. The captivity lasted 70 years, the last of which was the first year of Cyrus's reign, as we have mentioned before.

¹³ From Moses to the first Olympiad are 800 years, if indeed it is the 55th year of the 50th Olympiad. The Greek records also support this timeline.

¹⁴ After Ogyges, due to the great destruction from the flood, the land now known as Attica remained without a king until Cecryphus for 150 years. For after Ogyges, Philozerus says that Actaeon and the names that were created did not even exist.

¹⁵ And again, from Ogyges to Cyrus, the years from Moses to that same time are 800. Some Greeks also say that Moses lived during those same years. Polemon, in the first of the Greek histories, mentions that at the time of Apis, the Egyptian army left Egypt. Those who lived in the land called Palestine, which is not far from Arabia, were clearly those who came after Moses.

¹⁶ Apion, the most curious of the grammarians, in his book about the Jews and in the fourth of his histories, says that under Inachus, the king of Argos, while Amos was ruling as king of the Egyptians, the Jews separated, with Moses leading them.

¹⁷ Herodotus also mentions this separation, and Amos in the second. In a certain way, he counts the Jews among those who are circumcised, and he refers to the Assyrians in Palestine, perhaps because of Abraham.

¹⁸ Ptolemy of Mendes covers all these histories of the Egyptians, so that there is not even a significant difference in the timeline.

¹⁹ It should be noted that anything considered special to the Greeks because of its ancient origins can be found with Moses: floods and fires, Prometheus, Io, Europa, the Spartoi, the abduction of Persephone, mysteries, laws, the deeds of Dionysus, Perseus, the labors of Heracles, the Argonauts, the Centaurs, the Minotaur, the events about Ilium, the descent of the Heraclids, the colonization of the Ionians, and the Olympiads.

²⁰ It seemed right to me to explain the time of the mentioned kingdom of Attica while preparing to compare the Greek histories with the Hebrew ones. For anyone who wants to take the beginning from me will be able to count the numbers just as I do.

²¹ Therefore, from the time of Moses and Ogyges until the first Olympiad, there are one thousand and twenty years. In the first year, we have Passover and the Exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt, while in Attica, the flood happens during the time of Ogyges, according to the account.

²² For the Egyptians, who were punished by the wrath of God with hail and storms, it is likely that some parts of the land also suffered. It seems reasonable that the Athenians shared the same land as the Egyptians, suggesting that they were colonies of theirs, as others have said, including Theopompus in Trikaranos.

²³ But the time in between is left out, during which nothing remarkable is recorded about the Greeks. After ninety-four years, there was Prometheus, as some say, who claimed to create humans. Being wise, he transformed them from their extreme ignorance into knowledge. This is what the African says. Now let us move on to another topic.

Book 10, Section 11

Now I think it is fitting to present our philosophy as older than the practices of the Greeks. Our boundaries will be Moses and Homer. Each of them is the oldest, with the poet being the oldest of poets and historians, and the other being the founder of all wisdom among outsiders. Let us now consider them for comparison.

² For we will find that not only is the education of the Greeks inferior to ours, but also that the discovery of letters is greater. I will not take witnesses from my own country, but I will rather use the Greeks as support. The unknown is not accepted by you; however, if it can be proven, it is remarkable whenever I present your arguments against you without suspicion using your own tools.

³ For regarding the nature and time of Homer's poetry, the oldest scholars have investigated: Theagenes of Rhegium during the time of Cambyses, Stesimbrotus of Thasos, Antimachus of Colophon, Herodotus of Halicarnassus, and Dionysius of Olynthus. After them came Ephorus of Cyme, Philochorus of Athens, and Megaclides and Chamaileon, who were followers of the Peripatetic school. Then there were the grammarians: Zenodotus, Aristophanes, Callimachus, Crates, Eratosthenes, Aristarchus, and Apollodorus.

⁴ Some say that Crates flourished before the Heraclids, within eighty years after the Trojan War. Others say that Eratosthenes lived a hundred years after the fall of Ilium. Those who discuss Aristarchus place him during the Ionian colonization, which is one hundred and forty years after the Iliad. Philochorus states that he lived after the Ionian colonization, in the year 570, during the archonship of Archippus in Athens, which is one hundred and eighty years after the Iliad. Those who mention Apollodorus say he lived a hundred years after the Ionian colonization, which would be two hundred and forty years after the Iliad. Some claimed he was born before the Olympic Games, meaning four hundred years after the fall of Ilium. Others placed him later, saying that Homer lived around the same time as Archilochus. Archilochus flourished during the twenty-third Olympic Games, five hundred years after the Iliad.

⁵ And about the times of the poet mentioned earlier, I mean Homer, let's say that those who talk about him have disagreements. Those who can examine the details accurately can do so on their own. Anyone can state falsehoods and opinions about the words. Where the recording of times is unclear, it is not possible for the truths of history to be accurate.

⁶ And briefly, let's say that Homer is not only later than the fall of Ilium, but he should also be considered to have lived during the time of the war itself and even to have fought alongside those with Agamemnon. If anyone wishes, they can say that he existed before the discovery of the elements. For the mentioned Moses will seem to be much older than many years after the fall of Ilium, but he is even older than the founding of Ilium and the times of Troy and Dardanus.

⁷ And for proof, I will use witnesses from the Chaldeans, the Phoenicians, and the Egyptians. What more should I say? It is necessary for the one who promises to persuade to keep the accounts about the matters short for the listeners.

⁸ A man from Babylon named Berossus, a priest of Bel among them, wrote the history of the Chaldeans in three books for Antiochus, who came after Seleucus, during the time of Alexander. He also tells of the deeds of the kings, mentioning one named Nebuchadnezzar, who campaigned against the Phoenicians and the Jews, which we know has been proclaimed through our prophets. This happened much earlier than the time of Moses and seventy years before the rule of the Persians.

⁹ Berossus is a very capable man. A proof of this is Iobas, who, while writing about the Assyrians, says that he learned history from Berossus. He has two books about the Assyrians.

¹⁰ After the Chaldeans, the history of the Phoenicians goes like this: there were three men among them—Theodotus, Hypsikrates, and Mochus. Laitos translated their books into Greek, and he also wrote in detail about the lives of the philosophers.

¹¹ In the histories of those mentioned, it is shown that some kings of Europe were captured, including the arrival of Menelaus in Phoenicia. There is also the story about Hiram, who gave his daughter in marriage to Solomon, the king of the Jews, and provided all kinds of wood for the building of the temple.

¹² And Menander of Pergamon also made a record about the same events. The time of Hiram is already close to the time of the Iliad; however, Solomon, according to Hiram, is much later than the age of Moses.

¹³ There are accurate records of the times of the Egyptians. The interpreter of their writings is Ptolemy, not the king, but a priest of Mendes. He explains the actions of the kings, saying that according to Amos, the king of Egypt, the journey of the Jews from Egypt to the lands they desired was led by Moses.

¹⁴ It says this: Amos became king after Inachus. After him, Apion the grammarian, a highly respected man, in the fourth of the Egyptian writings (there are five in total) mentions many other things, but he also states that Amos dug up Avaris, becoming Inachus according to the Argives, as recorded in the Chronicles by Ptolemy of Mendes.

¹⁵ But the time from Inachus to the fall of Ilium covers twenty generations. This is how he proves it.

¹⁶ These are the kings of the Argives: Inachus, Phoroneus, Apis, Argus, Crius, Forbas, Triopas, Crotopus, Sthenelus, Danaus, Lynceus, Abas, Proetus, Acrisius, Perseus, Eurystheus, Atreus, Thyestes, and Agamemnon, who captured Ilium in the eighteenth year of his reign.

¹⁷ It is important for the wise to understand clearly that, according to Greek tradition, there was no historical record among them. For Cadmus, who brought the letters, arrived in Boeotia after many generations.

¹⁸ After Inachus, under Phoroneus, a description of wild life and nomads barely emerged, and people changed. Therefore, if the flood occurred during the time of Inachus, it is four hundred years older than the years of Ilium.

¹⁹ This is shown to be true from the succession of the kings of Attica, as well as from the Macedonian, Ptolemaic, and Antiochene lines. Therefore, if after Inachus the most significant events were recorded and are known among the Greeks, it is clear that this also occurred after Moses.

²⁰ According to Phoroneus, after Inachus, the Athenians mention Ogyges, during whose time the first flood occurred. According to Forbantes, there is Actaeus, from whom the land of Actaea in Attica gets its name. According to Triopas, there are Prometheus, Epimetheus, Atlas, the two-natured Cecrops, and Io.

²¹ According to Crotopus, there is the burning caused by Phaethon and the flood during Deucalion's time. According to Sthenelaus, there is the kingdom of the Amphictyons, the arrival of Danaus in the Peloponnese, the founding of Dardania by Dardanus, and the transfer from Phoenicia in Europe to Crete.

²² According to Lynceus, there is the abduction of the Maiden and the establishment of the sanctuary in Eleusis, the agriculture of Triptolemus, the arrival of Cadmus in Thebes, and the kingdom of Minos.

²³ According to Proetus, there is the war of Eumolpus against the Athenians. According to Acrisius, there is the crossing of Pelops from Phrygia, the arrival of Ion in Athens, the second Cecrops, and the deeds of Perseus. According to the reign of Agamemnon, Troy was captured.

²⁴ "Therefore, Moses is clearly the oldest of the heroes, cities, and spirits mentioned earlier. It is important to trust the elder based on age more than those who have drawn from the source, not relying on their understanding of those teachings."

²⁵ For many of the sophists who follow them, driven by curiosity, have tried to twist what they learned from Moses and those who think like him. First, they want to be seen as saying something original, and second, they try to hide their misunderstandings with false rhetoric, as if they could misrepresent the truth of mythology.

²⁶ Regarding our government and the history based on our laws, as well as everything that the learned among the Greeks have said, it will be revealed who has been mentioned and how many there are in relation to those who speak about God.

²⁷ But now, it must be made clear with complete accuracy that Moses is not only older than Homer, but also older than the writers who came before him: Linus, Philammon, Thamyris, Amphion, Orpheus, Musaeus, Demodocus, Phemios, the Sibyl, Epimenides of Crete, who traveled to Sparta, Aristaeus of Proconnesus, the one who wrote about the Arimaspians, Asbolus the Centaur, Isatidus, Drymon, Euculus of Cyprus, Horus of Samos, and Pronapides of Athens.

²⁸ Linus is the teacher of Heracles, and Heracles is shown to be older than one of the Trojans. This is clear from his son Telephus, who fought at Troy.

²⁹ Orpheus was born around the same time as Heracles. Additionally, it is said that the works about him were organized by Onomacritus of Athens, who lived during the rule of the Peisistratids, around the fiftieth Olympiad.

³⁰ Musaeus was a student of Orpheus. Amphion, who lived two generations before the Trojans, keeps us from learning more about the scholars. Demodocus and Phemios were born during the Trojan War; one stayed with the suitors, while the other was with the Phaeacians. Thamyris and Philammon are not much older than them.

³¹ Regarding each topic, including their times and records, I believe we have written with great accuracy. Now, let us also finish what is still needed up to the present. I will also provide evidence about the wise men who are thought to be such.

³² Minos, who is thought to be the greatest in wisdom and lawgiving, was born during the reign of Lynceus, who ruled after Danaus, in the eleventh generation after Inachus. Lycurgus, born long after the fall of Ilium, established laws for the Spartans a hundred years before the Olympic Games.

³³ Draco is said to have lived around the thirtieth and ninth Olympic years; Solon around the fifty-ninth; and Pythagoras in the second year of the sixtieth. We have shown that the Olympic years occurred four hundred years after the fall of Ilium.

³⁴ And now, with these things clearly shown, we will briefly discuss the age of the seven wise men. The oldest of those mentioned, Thales, was born around the fiftieth Olympic year, and what follows after him has been told to us briefly.

³⁵ "These things, men of Greece, I, Tatian, who philosophizes among the barbarians, have written. I was born in the land of the Assyrians, educated first in your ways, and then in those that I now promise to share. Knowing what god is and what his creation is, I present myself to you ready for the examination of beliefs, while I remain committed to the divine way of life." Thus spoke Tatian. Now let us also turn to Clement.

Book 10, Section 12

It has been said about these things accurately by Tatian in his work "To the Greeks," and it has also been mentioned by Cassian in the first of the Explanations. However, the summary requires us to also discuss what has been said about the place.

² Apion the grammarian, who was called Pleistonikos, wrote in his history of the Egyptians. Although he was hostile toward the Jews because he was of Egyptian descent, he wrote a book about the Jews. He mentioned Amosis, the king of the Egyptians, and the events related to him, and he cites Ptolemy the Mendesian as a witness.

³ And his words are as follows: "Amosis destroyed Aouaris, becoming the third Argive Inachos, as Ptolemy the Mendesian wrote in his Chronicles."

⁴ This Ptolemy was a priest, and he wrote about the actions of the Egyptian kings in three complete books. He says that Amosis was the king of Egypt when Moses led the Jews out of Egypt, from which it is clear that Moses thrived according to Inachos.

⁵ Earlier than the Greek records, meaning the Argive ones from Inachos, Dionysius of Halicarnassus teaches in his Chronicles.

⁶ Of these, the Attic records are younger by forty generations, coming from Cecrops, who was indeed both dual-born and native, as Tatian says exactly. The Arcadian records are nine generations from Pelasgus; he is also said to be native.

⁷ Of these, the Phthian records are younger by two generations from Deucalion. In the time of the Trojan War, there are twenty generations or more counted from Inachos, and the years, so to speak, are also numerous.

⁸ But if Ctesias says that the Assyrians are older than the Greeks by many years, this will be evident in the second and four-hundredth year of Assyrian rule. In the second and thirtieth year of Belus's rule, the movement of Moses against Amosis the Egyptian and against Inachos the Argive from Egypt takes place.

⁹ In Greece, according to Phoroneus, after Inachos, there was the flood that occurred in Ogygia and the kingdom in Sicyon. The first king was Aegialeus, followed by Europos, then the Telchines, and finally the kingdom of Crete in Crete.

¹⁰ Acusilaus says that Phoroneus was the first of men. Because of this, the poet of the Phoronis also calls him the father of mortal men.

¹¹ From here, Plato, following Acusilaus in the Timaeus, writes, "Once, wanting to lead them into discussions about ancient matters, he tries to talk about the very oldest things in the city, concerning Phoroneus, who was said to be the first, Niobe, and what happened after the flood."

¹² According to Phorbas, Actaeus is the one from whom Attica is named. According to Triopas, there are Prometheus, Atlas, Epimetheus, the two-natured Cecrops, and Io. According to Crotopus, there was the burning caused by Phaethon and the flood during Deucalion's time. According to Sthenelaus, there are both the kingdom of the Amphictyons and the arrival of Danaus in the Peloponnese, as well as the founding of Dardania by Dardanus, who Homer first says was born from cloud-gathering Zeus.

¹³ The journey from Crete to Phoenicia. According to Lynkeus, there is the abduction of the girl, the establishment of the sanctuary in Eleusis, the agriculture of Triptolemus, the arrival of Cadmus in Thebes, and the kingdom of Minos. According to Proetus, there is the war of Eumolpus against the Athenians. According to Acrisius, there is the crossing of Pelops from Phrygia and the arrival of Ion in Athens, the second Cecrops, and the deeds of Perseus and Dionysus, as well as Orpheus and Musaeus.

¹⁴ In the eighteenth year of Agamemnon's reign, Ilium was captured during the first year of Demophon, who was the king in Athens, on the second day of the month Thargelion, which was the tenth day, as Dionysius the Argive says.

¹⁵ Agis and Derkyllus on the eighth day of the third month of Panemus, during the waning moon. Hellanicus says it was the twelfth of Thargelion, and some of those who wrote about Attica say it was the eighth of the waning moon, during the last year of Menestheus, when the moon was full. "It was night," says the one who wrote the Little Iliad, "but the bright moon was rising."

¹⁶ Others on the same day of Skirrophorion. Theseus, being a follower of Heracles, is one generation older than the Trojans; at least, he is older than Telephus, who was the son of Heracles. Homer mentions him when he was fighting against Ilium.

¹⁷ Therefore, Moses shows that the deification of Dionysus took 34 years. If indeed the deification of Perseus is said to have happened in the thirty-second year, as Apollodorus mentions in his Chronicles.

¹⁸ From Dionysus to Heracles and the heroes around Jason, those who sailed in the Argo, it is noted that there are 37 years. Asclepius and the Dioscuri also sailed with them, as the Rhodian Apollonius testifies in the Argonautica.

¹⁹ From the reign of Heracles in Argos to the deification of Heracles himself and Asclepius, it is noted that there are 35 years, according to the chronographer Apollodorus. From there to the deification of Castor and Pollux, it is 29 years. It is also around this time that the capture of Ilium occurs.

²⁰ If we should trust Hesiod the poet, let us listen to him: "And Maia, the daughter of Atlas, bore glorious Hermes to Zeus, the herald of the immortals, having climbed into the sacred bed. And Semele, the daughter of Cadmus, bore the shining son, having mingled in love, Dionysus, full of joy."

²¹ Cadmus, the father of Semele, comes to Thebes from Lynceus and becomes the inventor of Greek letters. Triopas, who is in the seventh generation from Inachus, lives at the same time as him.

²² Some say that Io wandered through all the land. The Ister claims that she is the daughter of Prometheus in his account about the Egyptian colony. According to Triopas, Prometheus is in the seventh generation after Moses; so even before the creation of humans according to the Greeks, there was Moses.

²³ Leon, who wrote about the gods of Egypt, says that the Greeks call Isis Demeter, who, according to Lynceus, comes in the eleventh generation after Moses.

²⁴ Apis, the king of Argos, lives in Memphis, as Aristippus says in the first of the Arcadians. Aristæus, the Argive, claims that he is called Sarapis, and that this is the one whom the Egyptians worship.

²⁵ Nymphodorus, the Amphipolitan, in the third book of the Laws of Asia, says that Apis, the bull, after he died and was embalmed, was placed in a tomb in the temple of the honored spirit. From there, he was called Sorapis and later Sarapis. Apis is the third generation from Inachus.

²⁶ Yes, indeed, Leto is with Tityus, for Leto pulled the glorious one of Zeus to her side.

²⁷ Tityus was a contemporary of Tantalus. It is fitting, then, that the Boeotian Pindar writes, "In time, Apollo was born." It is not surprising, since he is also found serving with Admetus and Heracles "for a year."

²⁸ Zethus and Amphion, the founders of music, were born around the time of Cadmus. If someone tells us that Phemonoe was the first to prophesy to Acrisius, let it be known that 27 years later, those associated with Orpheus, Musaeus, and Linus, the teacher of Heracles, came after Phemonoe.

²⁹ Homer and Hesiod are much younger than the Iliad. After them, the lawgivers among the Greeks are even younger, including Lycurgus, Solon, and the seven sages, as well as those associated with the Syrian Phercydes and the great Pythagoras, who appeared around the time of the Olympiads, as we have shown.

³⁰ And among the gods, most of whom are recognized by the Greeks, not only those called wise and poets, Moses is shown to us as the oldest.

³¹ These ideas also come from Clement. But since this work was studied before our time and also by the Hebrew children, it would be good to consider their views. Instead, I will use the words of Flavius Josephus.

Book 10, Section 13

I will first begin with the writings from the Egyptians. Now, it is not possible to present their works. However, Manetho, an Egyptian man who embraced Greek education, clearly wrote the native history in Greek, translating from the sacred texts, as he himself states. He also corrects many of Herodotus's claims about the Egyptians due to misunderstandings. This Manetho writes these things about us in the second book of the Egyptians. I will share his words, just as he himself presented them as evidence.

² ... the name of Timaios. About this, I do not know how the god inspired him. Strangely, people from the eastern regions, having gained confidence, marched into the land and easily took it by force. And he concludes shortly afterward.

³ The entire nation was called Hyksos; this means "shepherd kings." In the sacred language, "Hyks" means "king," and "Ossos" means "shepherd." In everyday speech, it also means "shepherds," and that is how it becomes "Hyksos."

⁴ But some say that they are Arabs. In another text, the name Hyksos does not refer to kings; instead, it suggests that they are captive shepherds. The term Hyksos in Egyptian clearly indicates captives.

⁵ This seems more convincing to me and is supported by ancient history. He says that these kings, who are called shepherds, and those who came from them, ruled over Egypt for years up to the time of the 'f.'

⁶ After this, he says that the kings from Thebes and the rest of Egypt revolted against the shepherds, leading to a great and long-lasting war. Under the king named Misphragmuthosis, the shepherds were defeated. They were driven out from the rest of Egypt and were confined to a place with many fields; this place is called Auaris.

⁷ Manetho says that he surrounded the shepherds with a large and strong wall, so they could keep all their possessions safe and protect their land.

⁸ The son of Misphragmuthosis, Thmuthosis, tried to capture them by laying siege with an army of forty-eight thousand men surrounding the walls. But when he gave up the siege, he made agreements so they could leave Egypt safely wherever they wished.

⁹ They, along with their families and possessions, numbered no fewer than twenty-four thousand and traveled from the desert of Egypt through Syria.

¹⁰ Fearing the power of the Assyrians, who were then ruling Asia, they built a city called Judea, which was large enough for so many thousands of people, and named it Jerusalem.

¹¹ After this, he lists the succession of the kings of Egypt, noting the time of their reign. Manetho says, "It is clear from the years mentioned that the so-called shepherds, our ancestors, settled in this land after being freed from Egypt three hundred ninety-three years before Danaus arrived in Argos; indeed, the Argives consider him the most ancient."

¹² Thus, Manetho has testified to us about the most important events from the writings of the Egyptians: first, the arrival from elsewhere into Egypt, and then the ancient departure from there, which was very close in time to the years of the Iliad, about a thousand years earlier.

¹³ But the history from Egypt is told here in detail by Josephus; and from the Phoenicians, using the writings of those who wrote about them, he states that the temple in Jerusalem was built by King Solomon one hundred forty-three and a half years before the Tyrians founded Carthage. Then he moves on to present evidence about the ancient history of the Hebrews from the history concerning the Chaldeans.

Book One Hundred

But why should we gather many proofs, from the truthful rather than the hateful, when those already mentioned are enough? They offer a variety of evidence concerning the subject at hand. It is important for us to show that Moses and the prophets came before the Greeks.

² Since Moses is shown to have lived long before the Trojan War, let us also consider all those who came after him. Moses is indeed from the Hebrews, like Heber and Abraham, from whom the name is also derived. Among the other beloved and ancient figures, he appeared last in time, as is clear from the history about him.

³ After Moses, Jesus became the leader of the Jewish people, as some say, for fifty years. Then, as the scripture states, foreigners ruled for eight years. After that, Othniel led for fifty years. Following him was Eglon, the king of Moab, for eighteen years. After Eglon, Ehud led for five years. Then, once again, foreigners ruled for twenty years. After that, Deborah and Barak led for twenty years. The Midianites ruled for seven years. Then Gideon led for forty years. Abimelech ruled for three years. Tola led for twenty-three years. Jair led for twenty-two years. The Ammonites ruled for eighteen years. Jephthah led for six years. Ibzan ruled for seven years. Elon led for ten years. Abdon ruled for eight years. Foreigners ruled for eight years. Samson led for twenty years. Then Eli the priest, as the Hebrew account says, served for forty years, during which the fall of Ilium occurred. After Eli, the priest, Samuel led the people.

⁴ After him, Saul was the first to rule over them for forty years. Then David ruled for forty years. After that, Solomon ruled for forty years. He was also the first to build the temple in Jerusalem. After Solomon, Rehoboam ruled for seventeen years. Abijah ruled for three years. Asa ruled for forty-one years. Jehoshaphat ruled for twenty-five years. Joram ruled for eight years. Ahaziah ruled for one year. Athaliah ruled for six years.

⁵ Joash ruled for seven years. Amaziah ruled for twenty-nine years. Uzziah ruled for fifty-two years, during which the prophets Hosea, Amos, Isaiah, and Jonah prophesied. After Uzziah, Jotham ruled for sixteen years. After him, Ahaz ruled for sixteen years. During this time, the first Olympic Games were held, which were won by Coroebus from Elis.

⁶ Hezekiah succeeded Ahaz and ruled for twenty-nine years, during which Romulus founded and ruled Rome. After Hezekiah, Manasseh ruled for fifty-five years. Then Amon ruled for two years. After him, Josiah ruled for thirty-one years, during which the prophets Jeremiah, Baruch, Huldah, and others prophesied.

⁷ Then Jehoahaz ruled for three months. After him, Jehoiakim ruled for eleven years. Following him, the last of all, Zedekiah ruled for twelve years. During his time, Jerusalem was besieged by the Babylonians, and the temple was burned. All the people of Judah were taken to Babylon, where Daniel and Ezekiel prophesied.

⁸ After a number of years, Cyrus became king of the Persians. He ended the captivity of the Jews, allowing those who wanted to return to their own land and rebuild the temple. Then Joshua, son of Jehozadak, and Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, came up. They laid the foundations, while the last of all, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, prophesied. After them, no more prophets arose among the people.

⁹ During the time of Cyrus, Solon the Athenian was recognized, and the seven wise men were known among the Greeks. Among them, no one older is remembered as a philosopher.

¹⁰ Of these seven, Thales the Milesian was the first among the Greeks to talk about the changes of the sun, eclipses, the phases of the moon, and the equinoxes. He became a very notable figure among the Greeks.

¹¹ After him, Anaximander became known, the son of Praxiades, and he was also from Miletus. He was the first to create a device for understanding the changes of the sun, the seasons, the hours, and the equinoxes.

¹² After Anaximander, Anaximenes the Milesian became known, the son of Eurystratus. From him came Anaxagoras the Clazomenian, who was the first to explain the nature of the principles. He did not only talk about the essence of all things, like those before him, but also about the cause that moves them. He said, "The beginning is all things mixed together; but mind, entering in, brought them from disorder into order."

¹³ From Anaxagoras came three famous men: Pericles, Archelaus, and Euripides. Pericles became the first among the Athenians, both in wealth and in family. Euripides, who turned to poetry, was called a stage philosopher by some. Archelaus taught the school of Anaxagoras in Lampsacus, and after moving to Athens, he taught there and had many well-known Athenians as students, including Socrates.

¹⁴ At the same time as Anaxagoras, natural philosophers flourished, including Xenophanes and Pythagoras. Pythagoras was taught by his wife, Theano, and his sons, Telauges and Mnesarchus.

¹⁵ Telauges became a student of Empedocles, through whom Heraclitus the obscure was recognized. It is said that Parmenides taught Xenophanes, Melissus taught Parmenides, and Zeno the Eleatic taught Melissus. They say that he was caught because he plotted against the tyrant of that time. The tyrant twisted him so that he could not write about the men who were with him. He did not pretend to suffer the tyrant's punishments, but after biting his tongue, he attacked the tyrant and thus endured the tortures until he died.

¹⁶ From him, Leucippus became a student, and Democritus came from Leucippus. During this time, Protagoras and Socrates rose to prominence. There are also other natural philosophers found before Socrates, but they all seem to trace their beginnings back to Thales, leading down to Cyrus, the king of the Persians. Cyrus is known to have come after the great captivity of the Jewish people in Babylon, when the prophets among the Hebrews had already disappeared, and their holy city was under siege. Therefore, it is agreed that the philosophy of the Greeks, especially that of Plato, is much younger than that of Moses and the prophets who followed him. Plato, who was the first to become a student of Socrates and later associated with the Pythagoreans, surpassed all those before him in both argument and understanding, as well as in the teachings of philosophy.

¹⁷ Plato was born around the end of the Persian Empire, a little before Alexander the Macedonian, and not long before the reign of the revered Augustus.

¹⁸ If indeed Plato and those who came after him are shown to have studied what the Hebrews taught, it is time to consider the period when he was born and to compare the age of the Hebrew theologians and prophets with that of all the Greek philosophers.

¹⁹ But when these things are proven, it will be time for the Greek wise men to admire the teachings that have come from the Hebrews. This way, we can no longer justly be blamed by the accusers, if indeed we also believe it is right to honor the words of the Hebrews, just as their philosophers cherished similar ideas.

Introduction

Introduction about the subject. The one who is discussing the topic of the Gospel Preparation is not using my own words, but is sharing testimonies from others. These show that the Greeks have not produced any true wisdom, except for their skill in words and eloquence, while everything else has been crafted by the barbarians. They should not be unaware of the words of the Hebrews, and they should also recognize that they have not kept their hands clean from stealing in their own writings. For they are not the thieves, as I mentioned, but rather those who have presented themselves.

² Indeed, they are also very young in both thought and age, lacking much of the ancient knowledge of the Hebrews, as we have learned from the passage of time.

³ Therefore, the one before this is eager to fulfill the promised obligation, as if it were a debt, and to express agreement with the teachings of the Hebrews in some matters, even if not in all, alongside the ideas of the philosophers among the Greeks. He has set aside what is unnecessary and calls upon the greatest of all, believing that only Plato should be used as the standard for this issue, since he alone seems to surpass all others and will be enough for what is being sought.

⁴ But if it is necessary, for the sake of clarity in the man's thoughts, I will use the testimonies of those who have admired his philosophy, explaining their words in the context of what is being discussed.

⁵ Let it be understood that not everything should be said about the man, even if most things have been spoken truthfully about him. We will present this at the right time, not out of slander against him, but for the sake of our own defense, through which we acknowledge that the philosophy of the barbarians has been influenced by the Greek.

Book 11, Section 1

If we divide the whole philosophy of Plato into three parts—natural, ethical, and logical—and then further divide the natural into the study of the senses and the understanding of the immaterial, we would also find this threefold type of teaching among the Hebrews. This shows that similar ideas were discussed by them even before Plato.

² First, it is worth listening to what Plato has to say, and then we should also examine the Hebrews. I will present what pleases Plato from those who support his ideas. Among them, the clear thinker from Attica explains what he believes, standing in contrast to those who interpret Plato's ideas through Aristotle.

Book 11, Section 2

Therefore, when the complete philosophy is divided into three parts—the ethical, the natural, and the logical—the first part helps us create each good and beautiful thing and improve all homes to their best. It also organizes the whole community with a different form of government and the most precise laws. The second part leads to knowledge about the divine, including the first things, the causes, and other things that come from these, which Plato has called the history of nature.

² To distinguish and explore both of these, we take up the third part. Indeed, Plato was the first and most significant to bring together all the parts of philosophy into one, which were previously scattered and broken apart, like the pieces of a song of Pentheus. As someone said, he presented philosophy as a complete body and living creature, clearly expressed in every way.

³ For neither Thales, Anaximenes, Anaxagoras, nor those who came after them are recognized for their thoughts about the nature of being, as they focused only on that single topic. Indeed, neither Pittacus, Periander, Solon, Lycurgus, nor those similar to them are aware of their own philosophy as they established it in government. However, Zeno and all the Eleatic school are well known for their teachings, especially for their careful study of the art of reasoning.

⁴ To these, Plato came along, a man naturally complete and very capable, as if truly sent from the gods, so that philosophy through him might be fully revealed. He left nothing out and clarified each part, ensuring that nothing necessary was missing and nothing unnecessary was included.

⁵ Since we have said that all share in the Platonic view, both in discussing and debating ethics, let us examine each one in detail.

⁶ These things are said by the Athenian. The Peripatetic Aristotle also supports these ideas in the seventh writing of his work on philosophy, saying this in relation to the statement.

Book 11, Section 3

Plato truly and completely engaged in philosophy, even if some others did at times. Some, like Thales, focused on natural philosophy, while others kept everything about Pythagoras hidden. Xenophanes and those who followed him stirred up many arguments among the philosophers, but they did not offer any real help.

² Not least among them was Socrates, who truly became a fire upon fire, just as Plato himself said. Being very clever and skilled at questioning everything, he brought forth both ethical and political ideas, and he was the first to try to define the forms. He stirred up discussion about everything and sought answers about all things until his end.

³ Others, focusing on certain aspects, spent time on these topics: some on medicine, others on mathematical sciences, and some on poetry and music. However, many admired the power of words, with some calling themselves rhetoricians and others referring to themselves as dialecticians.

⁴ Those who followed Socrates became very different and even opposed in their opinions. Some praised cynicism, indifference, and apathy, while others praised pleasure. Some boasted that they knew everything, while others claimed to know nothing at all.

⁵ Some were in the middle and appeared before everyone, talking with many people, while others, on the other hand, stayed distant and unapproachable.

⁶ Plato, realizing that there is one type of knowledge about divine and human things, was the first to divide it. He said that one part is about the nature of the universe, another part is about human matters, and a third part is about language.

⁷ He believed that we cannot understand human things unless we first see the divine. Just as doctors, when treating parts of the body, pay attention to the whole body first, we should also understand the nature of the whole before looking at what is here. Humans are a part of what exists, and there are two kinds of good: one is ours, and the other is that of the whole, with the good of the whole being more important. For this reason, one exists because of the other.

⁸ Aristoxenus the musician says that this story is about the Indians. While in Athens, Socrates happened to meet one of those men and asked him what he was doing. When the man said he was searching for knowledge about human life, the Indian laughed and said that no one can understand human things if they are ignorant of the divine.

⁹ If this is true, then no one could claim otherwise. Therefore, Plato divided philosophy about the whole into three parts: one about the universe, another about politics, and a third about logic.

¹⁰ Since this philosophy according to Plato exists, it is worth looking at the Hebrews, who had a similar way of thinking long before Plato. You would find among them this same three-part division of ethics, logic, and natural philosophy, demonstrating this approach.

Book 11, Section 4

The ethical teachings were studied first and foremost by them through actions, much earlier than through words. If you examine the men, you would learn that the ultimate goal of a blessed life is piety, which they achieved through the improvement of their character and friendship with the divine. This is not about bodily pleasure, as Epicurus would say, nor about the three kinds of good, as Aristotle described, which include both bodily goods and those outside the body, equal to the goods of the soul.

² Indeed, they did not ignore the final ignorance and lack of knowledge, which some have called a more serious condition. Nor did they overlook the virtue of the soul; for how much of this exists among humans, and what could it achieve on its own without the divine in leading a life free from suffering? Because of this, they connected everything to hope in the divine, as if it were a strong bond, declaring that only the one who loves the divine is truly blessed.

³ Indeed, the god who is the steward of all good things, being the source of life and virtue, is the only provider of everything related to the body and beyond. Only he can lead to a blessed life for the one who has a self-sufficient friendship with him through true piety.

⁴ From this, the all-wise Moses was the first of all humans to write down the life of the God-fearing Hebrews who came before him, combining both their political and practical ways in a historical account. Beginning with general principles, he established his teachings, asserting that God is the cause of all things, and he wrote about the creation of the world and of humans.

⁵ Then, moving from the general to the specific in his speech, and by recalling the memories of the ancient men, he inspired the students with a passion for their virtue and piety. He himself, having been revealed as the master of the pious laws set before him, clearly showed the way of loving God through the care for morals. Thus, this speech has already made this clear in what has been said before.

⁶ It would take a long time to discuss the prophets after Moses, who encouraged virtue and warned against all kinds of evil in their teachings. But what if I were to include the moral teachings of the wisest Solomon, in which he shared his own thoughts, naming the collection Proverbs, and including brief sayings that resemble wise advice in one work?

⁷ The Hebrew children learned this moral way even before the Greeks learned their first letters. They educated themselves and generously shared their knowledge with those who came to them.

Book 11, Section 5

The logical way of the Hebrews did not, like the Greeks, rely on clever tricks and reasoning meant to deceive. Instead, they sought the truth, which the divine light revealed to their souls, and the wise men among them discovered and were enlightened by it.

² While they listened, they educated those learning their own subjects with sacred teachings, serious stories, and well-structured songs and chants. They also shared problems and riddles, along with wise and allegorical ideas presented with beautiful clarity. They passed these on to them from a very young age.

³ Yes, and some of the first lessons were secondary for them (for they cherished calling the explainers of their writings by this name). These were the ones who, through riddles, revealed hidden truths. Even if not everyone understood, at least those eager to listen could grasp them through interpretation and clarity.

⁴ Here, the wisest Solomon began the book of Proverbs, teaching that the purpose of this writing was to show that every person should know wisdom and education, and understand thoughtful words. He said they should accept the twists of language, grasp true justice, and guide their judgments, so that, he says, the innocent may avoid trickery, and the young may gain insight and understanding. For by hearing these lessons, the wise will become even wiser, and those who understand will gain leadership; they will comprehend parables and dark sayings, the words of the wise, and riddles.

⁵ The promises of the revealed written work were like this: the parts of the statements made, along with their explanations and the logical discussion, were closely tied to the wisdom and speech of people, found throughout all the prophetic writings among them. Whoever loves this will understand, taking these books in hand during their studies.

⁶ But if someone were to become skilled in this language through practice, they would see that among the barbarians, there are very logical men who do not fall short of wisdom or eloquence in their own language.

⁷ They would also create metrical poems, like the great song of Moses and the 151st Psalm of David, arranged in the so-called heroic meter by the Greeks. It is said that these are hexameters, made up of sixteen syllables. The other verses among them are said to be composed in three-meter and four-meter lines according to their own language.

⁸ The words they use have a logical meaning, but their ideas cannot be compared to those of humans. For the words of God and of truth itself have been spoken through them, containing laws and prophecies, teachings of piety, and doctrines about the knowledge of what exists.

⁹ You would find evidence of logical accuracy among the men based on the correctness of the arrangement of names, which Plato would clearly testify to according to the belief of the Hebrews. Being in agreement with the philosophy of men, it would be easy to understand from these.

Book 11, Section 6

Long before Moses, the name of philosophy reached the Greeks through many discussions about the arrangement of names in all his writings. Sometimes it was arranged most naturally among all those he had, and at other times it was dedicated to God in the judgment of the names of pious men. Names were placed according to nature, not convention, and Plato, following this, agrees with the same ideas, just as he mentions the barbarians. After saying this, he suggests that this way of understanding is preserved, perhaps hinting at the Hebrews, since it is not easy to find such a theory among other barbarians.

² And so he says in Cratylus, "This is not a name that some people create and call beautiful, merely using a part of their own voice. Instead, certain correctness of names has come to exist for both Greeks and barbarians in the same way for all."

³ And continuing, he says, "In this way, you will value both the lawgiver here and the one among the barbarians, as long as the form of the name provides what is fitting for each in any syllables. There is nothing worse about the lawgiver here than about any other lawgiver elsewhere."

⁴ Then, he continues by saying that the expert in the correctness of names is both a dialectician and a lawgiver. He states, "The work of a carpenter is to make a rudder under the supervision of a helmsman, if the rudder is to be good. It seems so."

⁵ Now, as it seems, the name of a lawgiver must have a dialectician as its master if it is to be set well. This is true. Therefore, oh Hermogenes, the placement of the name is not likely to be unimportant, as you think, nor is it for unworthy men or those who just happen to succeed. Cratylus speaks the truth when he says that names are naturally related to things, and not all names are created by a maker, but only the one who looks to the nature of each name and can give its form to both the letters and the syllables.

⁶ After saying so much, he again brings up the memory of many barbarians. Then, he agrees that many of the names come from the Greeks rather than the barbarians, explaining this to them with his words.

⁷ I mean that many Greek names, especially those used by the barbarians, have been taken from the barbarians. So what then? If someone were to look for these according to the Greek language as it seems, but not according to the source from which the name comes, you know that they would be confused. That makes sense.

⁸ This is what Plato says. Indeed, Moses, who is a wise lawgiver and also a dialectician, speaks as follows: "And God made from the earth all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky, and he brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name."

⁹ For by saying, "that was its name," what else does he show but that names are given according to nature? For what is called just now, he says, has also been part of nature before, and it exists and has always existed for each of those named as this name, which the person being referred to has assigned with greater authority.

¹⁰ And the name Adam itself, which is a Hebrew name, could be called the name of the earth-born man by Moses, because among the Hebrews, Adam means "man," and the first earth-born is truly referred to as Adam by Moses.

¹¹ But the name can also have another meaning, relating to the color red and representing the nature of the body. However, the earthy, earthly, and earth-born man, or the physical and fleshly person, is indicated by the name Adam.

¹² And the Hebrews also call man by another name, Enosh, which they say refers to the rational one among us, different in nature from the earthy Adam. Enosh also has its own meaning, interpreted in the Greek language as "forgetful."

¹³ Thus, the rational part within us exists because of its connection to the mortal and irrational. The pure, immaterial, divine, and rational part not only remembers what has happened before but also knows what will happen in the future, as it is surrounded by the highest virtue of contemplation. In contrast, the part wrapped in flesh, surrounded by bones and nerves, with a large and heavy body, is seen by the Hebrews as full of forgetfulness and ignorance. Therefore, they have called it Enosh, which means "the forgetful one."

¹⁴ Indeed, a certain prophet says, "What is man that you remember him? Or the son of man that you visit him?" In this, the Hebrew word for the first calling of man includes Enosh, as if to say more clearly, "What is this forgetful one, that you remember him, even though he is indeed forgetful?"

¹⁵ But when it says, "or the son of man that you visit him," it also refers to "the son of Adam," showing that both Adam and Enosh are the same. The physical part comes through Adam, while the rational part is represented by Enosh.

¹⁶ And the Hebrew words divide the etymology in this way. But Plato says that man is called by the Greek word related to "to nurture," stating, "When man sees, this is what he has seen, and he nurtures and thinks about what he has seen, as if he is nurturing what he has seen."

¹⁷ Again, the Hebrews call man "ish." They derive this name from the word for fire, connecting it to warmth and representing the fiery nature of man.

¹⁸ But the woman, since it is said that she is taken from man, shares the name with him. For among them, the woman is called "isha," just as man is called "ish." Plato says that man is named from the upper flow. He adds, "But the woman seems to me to want to be a source."

¹⁹ Again, Moses rightly calls the heaven "firmament" in the Hebrew language, based on the first being, which is the incorporeal and intellectual essence of this world, a solid and sensible body. Plato says that the name for heaven is rightly given because it makes one look upward.

²⁰ Again, the Hebrews say that the highest name of God is unutterable and beyond understanding, claiming it cannot be grasped by the imagination. This very name, by which we call God, they refer to as "Elohim," based on "el," it seems. They interpret this as strength and power, so that the name of God among them is based on the power and strength surrounding him, through which he is thought to be all-powerful and able to do all things, as if he holds everything together. Plato says that God and the gods are named from "theos," which means to run, referring to the shining ones in heaven.

²¹ Such things, as examples, are explained about the names from the Hebrews and from Plato regarding the correctness of names. Plato also says that the names among humans are chosen with some thought, and he tries to explain this. I do not know how he calls Hector from having and holding, since he is the king of the Trojans, and Agamemnon from staying too long, as he is thought to remain easily and strongly among the Trojans. He calls Orestes because of his mountainous and wild nature. Atreus is named for having a certain reckless character. Pelops is named not from far away, but from seeing only what is near and close. He says that Tantalus means someone who suffers greatly because of the misfortunes surrounding him.

²² You would find many such things mentioned by Plato, established by nature, but he does not attempt to teach the names to those who come first.

²³ But you would not say that the things from Moses are forced, nor are they created by some clever reasoning. Learning that among the Hebrews, Cain means "jealousy," it is taken among the Greeks, and he is thought to deserve this name because he was jealous of his brother Abel.

²⁴ And Abel is interpreted as "mourning," because he himself is the cause of such a feeling for his parents, who, because of some divine plan, have given these names to their children.

²⁵ What if I bring up Abraham? This man was a meteorologist and an expert in the study of the stars and the sciences of the heavens when he was called Abram, having changed from Chaldean wisdom. In the Greek language, it means "father of the high places."

²⁶ But God has called him by a different name, guiding him toward the hidden things and those beyond what is seen, using a metaphor. "You will no longer be called Abram," he said, "but your name will be Abraham, because I have made you the father of many nations."

²⁷ This could lead to a long discussion about what kind of thoughts this holds. However, it is enough to mention Plato as a witness to this idea, saying that some names have been given by a divine power. And so he says to them these words…

²⁸ For it is especially important to study the meaning of names here; perhaps some of them were given by a divine power or by people.

²⁹ This same idea is confirmed by many, and the sacred writings among the Hebrews support it. First of all, Moses taught that Abraham, his son Isaac, and also Israel were named by a divine power. Isaac, in fact, is understood as a symbol of joyful delight, which God has promised to give as a special gift to those who love him.

³⁰ But the son of this man, Israel, had previously been named Jacob. Instead of Jacob, God gave him the name Israel, changing him from a man of action to a man of contemplation.

³¹ For Jacob is understood as one who struggles for virtue, while Israel means one who sees God, referring to the wise and contemplative mind in a person.

³² What need do I have now to explain the correctness of the names of their own people through the many wise writings of the all-wise Moses or the sacred texts among the Hebrews, when those in the area require more time?

³³ Indeed, the Greeks would not be able to explain the origins of the basic elements of grammar, nor would Plato himself be able to clarify the speech or reasoning of the vowels or consonants.

³⁴ But the children of the Hebrews would explain the meaning of Alpha, which they call Aleph, and this means learning. As for Beta, which they call Beth, they name it this way to refer to a house. This shows that learning is connected to the household. It could be said more clearly that it is a teaching and learning about managing a home.

³⁵ The third letter among them is called Gimel, and they use this name to refer to fullness. Then, since they call the tablets Delth, they refer to the fourth letter in this way, meaning that written learning is the fullness of the tablets when considered together with the two letters.

³⁶ If someone were to explore the other elements of grammar, they would find each one named among them with some reason and logic. They say that the seven vowels hold a certain secret meaning in their combination. The children of the Hebrews represent this with four elements, placing it at the highest power of God. They claim it is something unspoken and secret, passed down to the child from the father.

³⁷ Among the wise of the Greeks, I do not know where this knowledge comes from, but someone learned it and hinted at it in verses: "Seven vowels praise the great, immortal God, the tireless father of all." And I am the immortal shell that harmonized the lyrical melodies of the heavenly sphere.

³⁸ You would also find the other elements among the Hebrews, each one having its own meaning. This has already been shown to us whenever we demonstrated that everything among the barbarians could benefit the Greeks.

³⁹ One could learn a lot about the Hebrew language, which is rich in meaning and known for its correctness among men. The name of the whole nation comes from 'Eber,' which means 'the one who crosses over.' This is because both 'crossing' and 'to cross over' are called 'Herer' in Hebrew.

⁴⁰ The word teaches us to cross over and move from here to the divine, not to stay or stand on the surface of what is seen, but to journey from these things to the hidden and unseen aspects of the creator and maker of all. In this way, they called the first ones who were dedicated only to the great leader and cause of all, those who offered pure and true devotion, Hebrews, referring to them as 'those who cross over' and 'those who have passed over' in their understanding.

⁴¹ And why should I need to keep gathering everything about the correctness and precision of Hebrew names when the topic deserves its own study? However, as a brief point, I believe that what has been said provides proof of the logical teachings among the Hebrews. According to Plato, it was not common men or those who just happened to be there, but rather a wise and dialectical lawgiver who discovered a nature of names that fit the things, like Moses for us and the words of the Hebrews. So, what comes after the logical is to examine the physical, just as the children of the Hebrews once did?

Book 11, Section 7

And the third part of the philosophy according to the Hebrews, which was natural philosophy, was divided by them into the contemplation of the intelligible and incorporeal and into the study of the physiology of the sensible. The perfect prophets, in every way, understood this and, when the time called for it, mixed their words not with mere guesses or the efforts of mortal thought. They did not rely on serious teachers, but instead shared their knowledge through a greater power and the inspiration of a divine spirit.

² From this, many things were revealed to them about the future, many things were explained about the nature of the entire universe, and again, many things were discussed regarding the nature of living beings. Most importantly, many things about plants were included in each of their prophecies.

³ Moses, knowing well the powers of stones, did not use them carelessly in the priest's garments for their sacred purpose. Similarly, Solomon, or anyone else, is shown in the writings about these matters to have excelled in natural philosophy, as the divine scripture reveals.

⁴ And Solomon spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered five thousand. He spoke about trees, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on the wall. He also spoke about animals, birds, and fish. All the people came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and he received gifts from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.

⁵ Then, starting from here, he who had placed perfect wisdom before him said, "For he himself gave me true knowledge of all that exists, to understand the structure of the world, the activity of the elements, the beginning, middle, and end of time, the changes and transformations of seasons, the cycles of years, the positions of stars, the natures of animals, the emotions of beasts, the power of spirits, the thoughts of humans, the differences among plants, and the powers of roots. I have come to know all that is hidden and unseen. For the master of all taught me wisdom."

⁶ Again, the same Solomon says in Ecclesiastes about the fleeting nature of life, "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." What does a person gain from all their hard work under the sun? He adds, "What has happened? It is what will happen; and what has been done? It is what will be done. There is nothing new under the sun."

⁷ For he was also concerned with these things and similar topics about the physical nature of life. You would also find other wise Hebrews who are knowledgeable. As I mentioned before, he spoke about plants, countless animals, both land and water, and also the nature of birds.

⁸ Yes, and he also spoke about the stars in the sky, mentioning the Bear and the Pleiades, Orion and the Great Bear, which the Greeks like to call the Bear Keeper and Boötes. There is a certain memory that does not come from the writings of those who explain these things.

⁹ But he also spoke about the structure of the universe, the changes and transformations of everything, the essence of the soul, and the nature of all rational beings, both visible and hidden. He discussed the overall providence and, before these topics, the first cause of all things, the second theology, and other ideas that can only be understood by the mind. These subjects have been covered very well and accurately. This way, those who investigate the nature of these things among the Greeks after him will not make mistakes, as the elders say that the younger ones have followed.

¹⁰ These topics are indeed about the physiology of the universe. They divided the discussion on these subjects. They believed that the part about the senses should not be fully explained to the general public, nor should the causes of the nature of beings be taught to everyone, except for what was necessary to know. They understood that everything is not left to chance, nor does it happen randomly or by mere luck. Instead, it is guided by the reasoning of a divine driver and governed by an unknown power of wisdom.

¹¹ But regarding the intelligible things, what they are and their order, power, and differences have been explained and established in the sacred books. This knowledge has been shared with everyone, as far as is necessary for the pious to understand, to guide them toward a life of reverence and moderation.

¹² But indeed, the deep and hidden discussion about this was reserved for those who are able to be initiated into such matters. It was mentioned briefly and in a way that seems clear, suggesting that it would be beneficial to explore these topics and understand them. Plato is also presented here as someone who has wisely grasped these ideas.

Book 11, Section 8

Indeed, it is clear that Plato, the remarkable thinker, followed the wise Moses and the Hebrew prophets in the teaching and contemplation of intelligible and immaterial things. Whether he learned about them through hearing or developed his own understanding of the nature of things is uncertain. This is especially true since the Egyptians had established similar studies while the Hebrews, having left their own land, were settling in Egypt during Persian rule. Alternatively, he may have been granted knowledge by God. "For God," he says, "revealed himself to them. For his invisible qualities are understood through the creation of the world, his eternal power and divinity, so that they are without excuse." You could learn this by examining what has been said.

Book 11, Section 9

In the revelations of Moses, there is a prophecy from God saying, "I am the one who is. Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'The one who is has sent me to you.'" It is also stated that God alone is truly being, and he is especially and rightly worthy of this calling.

² Again, Solomon speaks about the generation and decay of sensible and physical things, saying, "What has happened? It is what will happen. And what has been made? It is what will be made. There is nothing new under the sun that will say, 'Look, this is new,' for it has already happened in the ages that came before us."

³ Based on these ideas, we also divide everything into two: the intelligible and the sensible. The intelligible is formless and rational by nature, defined as incorruptible and immortal. The sensible, on the other hand, exists in a state of change and decay, having transformation and alteration in its essence. All things are summed up in one principle, which means that the ungenerated and what truly exists is the cause of all things, both formless and formed.

⁴ Plato, not only in thought but also in the very words and phrases of the Hebrew scriptures, explains the doctrine in a broader way, clarifying: "What is always being, but has no generation? And what is always becoming, but never truly being? The former can be understood with reason as always existing in the same way, while the latter is perceived without reason as something that is becoming and perishing, but is never truly being."

⁵ Surely the wonderful one has clearly stated, "I am the being," as it is said by Moses, transforming it through the question, "What is always being, but has no generation?" He explains this even more clearly by saying that nothing else is being except what is seen by the eyes of the flesh, but is understood by the mind. When he asks, "What is being?" he answers himself, saying, "It is that which can be understood with reason as existing."

⁶ And they say in the writings of Solomon, "What has come to be? It is what is becoming. And what has been made? It is what will be made." By translating these nearly identical phrases, it becomes clear to say, "What is perceived without reason is something that is becoming and perishing, but is never truly being."

⁷ For all these things are parts of time: what was, what is, and what will be. When we say these, we mistakenly refer to the eternal being. We say that it was, it is, and it will be. But only what is truly belongs to the true account. What was and what will be should be spoken of concerning the generation that exists in time, for they are movements. What always remains the same does not become older or younger over time, nor does it ever come into being, nor has it ever come to be now, nor will it ever be at any time. All that has been added to those things that are perceived is just time, imitating eternity and moving in a cycle. Besides these, there are also such things: what has come to be is what has come to be, what is becoming is what is becoming, and what will be is what will be.

⁸ And so that no one thinks I am misinterpreting the words of the philosopher, I will use these reminders to show the meaning of these statements. Many have focused on the theories of these matters, but for me, it is enough to present the words of the famous man Numenius the Pythagorean, which he discusses in the second part of his work On the Good.

Book 11, Section 10

Therefore, as much power as we can bring close to being, let us say that being was never, nor will it ever come into being, but it always exists in a specific time, only in the present moment.

² If anyone wants to call this present time an age, I agree; but we should think of the past as something that has already escaped and has completely moved away from being. The future, on the other hand, does not exist yet, but it promises that it will be able to come into being.

³ It is not reasonable to think of being as either not existing, no longer existing, or not yet existing. For when this is said, something very impossible happens in the argument: that something can both exist and not exist at the same time.

⁴ If this is the case, then something else cannot exist without the being itself not existing according to that very being. For being is eternal and stable, always the same; it has neither come into being nor been destroyed, nor has it grown or shrunk. It has never become more or less, and indeed, nothing else will be moved in a specific place either.

⁵ For it is not right for being to be moved, neither backward nor forward; neither up nor down. It will never move to the right or to the left, nor will it ever move around its own center. Rather, it will stand still, be fixed, and remain always the same, having the same nature and being just as it is.

⁶ And from here, I will choose other things: "So many things are before me. But I will no longer be shaped, nor will I pretend to be unaware of the name of the formless. For it seems now that it is better to say it than not to say it. And indeed, I say that this name is what has been sought for a long time."

⁷ But let no one laugh if I say that the name of the formless is being and existence. The reason for being is that it has not come into being, nor will it be destroyed, nor will it accept any kind of movement or change, whether greater or lesser. It must be simple and unchanging, and in the same idea, it will neither willingly depart from its own nature nor be forced by another.

⁸ And Plato also said in the Cratylus that names are similar to the things they describe. Therefore, let it be accepted that being is formless.

⁹ Then, having gone down, he adds, "I said that being is formless, and this is what is understandable. Therefore, what I have said, as much as I can remember, was like this. I want to comfort the one seeking the explanation by saying this: if these ideas do not match the teachings of Plato, then one should consider some great man, someone powerful, like Pythagoras."

¹⁰ Plato indeed says, let me remember how he puts it: "What is being that always exists but does not have becoming? And what is that which becomes but is never being? The first can be understood through reason, while the second is perceived through the senses and is not reasonable, becoming and perishing, but never truly being."

¹¹ For he asked, "What is being?" saying that it is definitely ungenerated. He stated that being does not have becoming, for it would change. But what is changing is not eternal.

¹² Then he continues, "If indeed being is completely eternal, unchanging, and in no way separate from itself, but remains the same and exists in the same way, then this would surely be what can be understood through reason."

¹³ But if the body flows and is carried away by a sudden change, it escapes and does not exist. Therefore, it is not unreasonable to think that this is indefinite; it can only be understood as an opinion. And as Plato says, it is becoming and perishing, but truly it never is being.

¹⁴ These things, then, Numenius explains more clearly, along with Plato and much earlier than Moses. It makes sense that this saying is often brought up, because it asks, "What is Plato?" or "What is Moses saying in Attic style?"

¹⁵ But if the present mind were not more than this, then Plutarch would easily connect with the voices of the philosophers presented and with those of the Hebrews found in other theologies. Through these, it is sometimes introduced, saying the god who speaks, "For I am the Lord your God, and I do not change."

¹⁶ Then, looking at this, the prophet says, "For indeed, all visible things will change and be transformed, but you are the same, and your years will not come to an end." Consider whether it is not as in the beginning; regarding what Moses said, "I am the one who is," and "I am the Lord your God, and I do not change," and "but you are the same." Plutarch would seem to explain this idea in his work On Being at Delphi, expressing these thoughts in words.

Book 11, Section 11

Therefore, I do not think that a letter signifies a number, an order, a connection, or anything else of the incomplete parts. Instead, it is a complete calling and addressing of God, while also shaping the speaker into an understanding of the power of God.

² For God, greeting each of us who come here, calls out, "Know yourself," which is nothing less than "Rejoice." In turn, we respond to God by saying that you are the one who is true, real, and the only one worthy of the calling of "the one who is."

³ For us, there is truly nothing that shares in being. Instead, every mortal nature, caught in decay and becoming, offers only a shadow and a faint, uncertain appearance of itself.

⁴ If someone tries to grasp the mind, it is like a strong current of water that, when pressed, destroys what it holds by flowing together into one. In the same way, the word, chasing after the excessive activity of things that are changeable and affected, is released. One part goes into what is becoming, and the other into what is being destroyed, with nothing left to hold on to, nor anything that can truly exist.

⁵ For, according to Heraclitus, one cannot step into the same river twice, nor can one touch the same mortal essence in the same way. Instead, with the sharpness and speed of change, it scatters and then gathers again. Even more, it neither returns nor stays, but at the same time, it exists and disappears, both approaching and departing.

⁶ From this, becoming does not reach being, since it never stops or stands still in its generation. Instead, it is always changing from a seed into an embryo, then into a baby, then into a child, a young man, an adult, and an old man, destroying the earlier stages of life with those that follow.

⁷ But we, in a silly way, fear death, even though so many have already died and are dying. For it is not only, as Heraclitus said, that death is like fire and becoming is like air, but it is even clearer when it comes to us: the one who is in their prime is destroyed as they grow old, the young person is lost as they become an adult, and the child as they grow into a young person. Yesterday has died into today, and today will die into tomorrow. Yet not even one remains, nor is there one, but we become many, around some kind of phantom and a common mold of matter that is always changing and slipping away.

⁸ For how can we, while remaining ourselves, find joy in others now and in others before, love and hate opposites, and both admire and blame? We use different words with different feelings, having no same form, no same shape, and no same thoughts anymore?

⁹ For it is not likely to suffer different things without change, nor would the same person remain the same while changing. If the same person does not exist, then they do not exist; instead, by changing, they become different from one another. Perception is based on ignorance of what truly is, making appearances seem real.

¹⁰ What then truly exists? It is the eternal, ungenerated, and imperishable, which time does not change. For something that is movable and seems to be moving is like matter that is always flowing and does not stay still, just like a vessel of decay and generation, which is time. Therefore, what is said to be later, earlier, and what will be, as well as what has happened, reveals the truth about what does not truly exist.

¹¹ For it is foolish and inappropriate to say that something that has not yet happened, or something that has already stopped existing, still exists. When we especially stretch our understanding of time to talk about what is present, what is past, and what is now, this again causes our reasoning to break down and fail.

¹² For it is pushed into the future and the past, like a ray of light that wants to be seen, standing apart by necessity. But if the same thing happens to what measures or to what is being measured, it neither stays the same nor truly exists; instead, it is becoming and perishing based on its relationship with time.

¹³ Therefore, it is not possible to say that something that exists was or will be; for these are certain inclinations, changes, and shifts of what does not naturally stay in existence.

¹⁴ But there is a god, if one must say so, and he exists at no time, but in the timeless, unchanging, and unmovable state, where there is nothing before, nothing after, nothing future, and nothing past, neither older nor younger. Being one in the now, he has filled the always. And only what truly is, exists; it has not come into being, is not becoming, does not have a beginning, and does not have an end.

¹⁵ Therefore, you must greet and address those who are to be respected, or by Zeus, as some of the ancients did, saying, "You are." For the divine is not many, like each of us, but a mixture of countless differences arising from various experiences. But there must be one being, just as there is one "is." And otherness, the difference of being, leads to the generation of what is not.

Book 11, Section 12

The teachings of Moses and all the prophets among the Hebrews are said to be unspeakable, and the symbol of the unspeakable is revealed through their unutterable signs. In agreement with them, Plato also says in the great Letter, "Listen."

² For it is not spoken like other teachings, but arises suddenly from a great gathering around the matter itself and the act of living together, like light suddenly appearing from a fire, which nourishes the soul. Another prophet of the Hebrews, anticipating this example of light, expressed it by saying, "Your face, Lord, has been marked upon us with light." And another again says, "In your light, we shall see light."

Book 11, Section 13

Moses, speaking about the God of all, said, "Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one." Again, Plato, agreeing with this, teaches that there is one God, just as there is one heaven, saying this in the Timaeus.

² Is it correct to say that we have called it one heaven, or would it be more correct to say many and endless? This question is important because, if it is created according to the example, it will be so. For the thing that contains all the intelligible living beings cannot ever be two.

³ It is clear that he knows there is one God, even if the Greeks are usually accustomed to using the names of many. In the letter to Dionysius, where he gives examples of the letters written to him with care and those that were rejected, he said that among those with no important meaning, he would mention the names of the gods, but among those carefully arranged for him, he would mention the name of God. And so he states this literally.

⁴ About the symbol concerning the letters, both those that I write with care and those that I do not, I think you should remember this, but also pay close attention to the meaning. Many who command to write are not easily dismissed. Therefore, God is in charge of the serious letter, but the gods are in charge of the...

⁵ Clearly, he also admits that he has learned the ancient teaching about God. In the Laws, he says that God, just like the ancient word, has the beginning, the end, and the middle of all things, and he moves straight according to nature. Justice always follows him, serving as the avenger of those who break the divine law. The one who follows this path will be blessed, being humble and well-ordered. But the one who is led away by pride, or lifted up by wealth, honors, or even by the beauty of the body, along with youth and foolishness, burns his soul with arrogance. He does not need a ruler or any leader, yet being capable of leading others, he leaves himself deserted by God. Once abandoned, he gathers others like him, causing chaos everywhere. Many thought he was someone important, but after a short time, promising a punishment that cannot be blamed by justice, he made himself, his home, and his city completely unsettled.

⁶ These ideas come from Plato. But you should also add to the phrase, "God has the beginning, the end, and the middle of all things," the saying from the Hebrew prophecy, "I am God first, and I am after that." And to the phrase, "he moves straight according to nature," you should add, "he saw the face of straightness."

⁷ And to the phrase, "Justice always follows him, serving as the avenger of those who break the divine law," compare it with, "The Lord is righteous and loves justice." Also compare it with, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord." And with, "For the Lord is an avenger and repays those who act with pride." To the phrase, "the one who follows this path will be blessed, being humble," you should add, "you shall walk behind the Lord your God."

⁸ And to the phrase, "the one who is led away by pride is left deserted by God," you should add, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." And, "the joy of the wicked is a great fall." These ideas are just a small part about God above all. But the thoughts about the second cause are as they are understood.

Book 11, Section 14

Let us agree on the way concerning the first cause of all things. But also consider the ideas about the second cause, which the Hebrew writings teach that the word of God and God come from God, just as we have been taught to speak about God ourselves.

² Therefore, Moses clearly speaks of two Lords when he says, "And the Lord rained fire and brimstone from the Lord upon the city of the wicked." There, he usually made a comparison of the two similar characters found among the Hebrews. This is the unspoken theology among them concerning the four elements.

³ David, another prophet and king of the Hebrews, also agrees, saying, "The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand.'" He refers to the highest God through the first Lord and to the second through the second title. For who else could it be right to understand that the right hand of the noble divinity is given to, except for the one about whom the word speaks?

⁴ This same prophet clearly explains in another place that the Father, the creator of all, is the one being spoken of when he says, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made."

⁵ And he also introduces the same savior for those in need of healing, saying, "He sent his word and healed them."

⁶ And his servant and successor Solomon, in another saying, presents the same idea, speaking of wisdom instead of a word, as follows, which will be explained from this source.

⁷ "I, wisdom, have made my dwelling in counsel, and I have called for knowledge and understanding." Then the Lord continues, "He created me as the beginning of his ways for his works; before the ages, he established me, in the beginning before he made the earth, before the mountains were set; before all the hills, I was brought forth. When he prepared the heavens, I was there with him."

⁸ Of the same one, it is said that God established the earth in wisdom, and he prepared the heavens with understanding. Furthermore, it is said that he knows both the hidden and the revealed; for the creator of all taught me wisdom.

⁹ Then he says, "What is wisdom and how did it come to be? I will declare and not hide from you the mysteries, but I will trace it back to the beginning of creation."

¹⁰ "And next, it explains that this is a rational spirit, holy, only-begotten, varied, subtle, mobile, clear, unblemished, all-powerful, all-seeing, and it fills all rational, pure, and subtle spirits. For wisdom is the most active of all movements. It extends and moves through everything because of its purity. For it is a vapor of the power of God and a genuine outflow of the glory of the Almighty. Therefore, nothing polluted comes near it. For it is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of God's energy, and an image of his goodness. It stretches strongly from one end to the other and governs all things well." This is what the scripture says. Philo the Hebrew, interpreting the meaning of the doctrine, presents this more clearly.

Book 11, Section 15

For it is fitting for those who are joined in fellowship to strive for knowledge of what is real; but if they cannot, at least to see its image, which is the most sacred word.

² In the same writing, it also says that even if no one is yet called a worthy son of God, let him strive to be adorned according to his original word, the oldest of angels, as if he were an archangel with many names.

³ For both the beginning and the name of God, the word, the man made in his image, and the one who sees Israel are all called. Therefore, I was led a little earlier to praise the virtues of those who say that we are all sons of one man.

⁴ For even if we are not yet considered worthy children of God, we are indeed the image of his eternal word, for the oldest is the sacred word of God.

⁵ And again, he chooses to say, "I heard from some of the companions of Moses a saying like this: 'Behold, a man whose name is Rising.'" This is a very new calling if you think of the one made of body and soul. But if you consider the bodiless one carrying the divine idea, you will agree that the name Rising was rightly given to him.

⁶ For this one, the father of all has raised up the oldest son, whom he called the first ancestor in another place. And the one who was born, imitating the ways of the father, sees the beautiful forms of his examples and patterns.

⁷ Let these things be set here from the Hebrew Philo, taken from a writing titled "On the Lesser Loving the Greater." I have also presented the teachings of the ancient Hebrews' piety in the Evangelical Preparation, and the matters about the second cause have been discussed enough, for which I now send this to the learned. Therefore, among the Hebrews, there is also this way of speaking about the second of all causes, and the time has come for Plato in the Epinomis to say these things.

Book 11, Section 16

And let us give honors not to the year, nor to the month, nor to any part of time, nor to any moment in which the same course continues, completing the universe, which the most divine reason has ordered. The fortunate one first admired it and then was filled with a desire to learn all that is possible for mortal nature.

² And in the letter to Hermes, the teaching of Erastus and Coriscus is presented very carefully, saying this: "It is necessary for all three of you to read this letter, especially together; but if that is not possible, then two by two as much as you can. You should use this agreement and law, which is just, swearing earnestly and not carelessly, along with the serious education of the sister of seriousness. You should swear by the god of all, the leader of both the beings and those to come, the lord who is the leader and father of the cause. If we philosophize correctly, we will all clearly understand him as the power of fortunate humans."

³ Do you think that Plato, in saying these things, followed the teachings of the Hebrews? Or from where did he come to mention another god who is greater than the cause of all created things, who is indeed the father of the great leader? And from where did he come up with the name of the lord for the father of the creator, with no one before him having heard this among the Greeks, nor even having these ideas in mind?

⁴ But if we also need witnesses from others for a clear presentation of both the philosopher's thought and the structure of the speech, listen to what Plotinus wrote in those works about the three fundamental realities.

Book 11, Section 17

If anyone marvels at this visible world, looking at its size, beauty, and order of the eternal movement, and at the gods within it—both those who are seen and those who are hidden, as well as the spirits and all living things and plants—let them rise to its archetype and the truest form. There, let them see all things that can be understood, and from them let them gain a pure mind and a profound wisdom in their own understanding and life.

² Then he continues, saying, "Who then is the one who has generated this? The simple one, and the one before such a thing, the cause of both its existence and its greatness, the one who creates the number. For the number is not first. Before the two is the one; the second is the two, and it has come from the one."

³ And again, he goes on to say, "How then, and what should one think about that which remains? A shining light from it, while it remains; like the bright light around the sun, always generated from it, while it stays the same."

⁴ And all beings, as long as they remain, from their own essence, necessarily give a dependent existence to what is outside of them from their current power, being an image like that of the archetypes from which they have come.

⁵ Fire holds the heat that is with it, while snow only keeps the cold inside. Most of all, whatever is fragrant shows this; for as long as it exists, something comes forth from it about itself, allowing it to enjoy what is nearby.

⁶ And everything that is already perfect creates; for the perfect always generates what is perfect and everlasting; and it produces less of itself.

⁷ What then should we say about the most perfect? Nothing comes from it, nor the greatest things alongside it. But the greatest alongside it is mind, and second to it. For the mind sees that one and needs only that one, while that one needs nothing from it. And what comes from a greater mind is also a mind; and the greatest of all is mind, since the other things exist alongside it.

⁸ Next, he says, "For everything that has generated desires and loves this, especially when the generator and the generated are alone. But when the best is the generator, it must necessarily be together with it, as it is separated only by its otherness. We say that the mind is the image of that one. For it is necessary to speak more clearly."

⁹ And again, he adds, "And for this reason, Plato's third things; he says that everything is about the king of all as the first; and second about the second things, and third about the third. He also says that the cause is a father, calling the mind the cause; for the mind is the creator of it."

¹⁰ He says that the soul creates in that bowl. And since the mind is the cause, he calls the good and the beyond the father of the mind and the essence beyond. In many places, he speaks of being and the mind as the idea. So, Plato knows that the mind comes from the good, and the soul comes from the mind; and these words are not new, nor are they recent, but were said long ago without being fully explained. The current words have become interpreters of those earlier ideas, having relied on these old beliefs found in the writings of Plato.

¹¹ This is what Plotinus says; but Numenius, representing Plato, in his work on the good, also speaks about the second cause and explains it.

Book 11, Section 18

Before one can understand the first and second aspects of God, one must first discuss each in order and with some clarity. Then, when it seems to be going well, one should try to speak properly; otherwise, it should not be attempted, or it is said that the treasure becomes like ashes before the first things come into being.

² Let us not endure this; but by calling upon God and becoming our own guide through reason, let us reveal a treasure of thoughts, and let us begin this way. It is good to pray, but we must also discuss.

³ The first God is simple, existing in Himself, because He is completely united with Himself and can never be divided. However, the second and third gods are one; they are connected to matter, which exists as two. They unite with it but are also separated by it, possessing a nature that desires and flows.

⁴ Therefore, when he is not directed toward the intelligible, for he would be directed toward himself, because he sees matter, he becomes indifferent to himself by being focused on it.

⁵ And he touches the sensible and encompasses it, and he also raises it up to his own nature, having a longing for matter.

⁶ And he says with another that it is not necessary for the first to create, and it should be understood that the first god is considered the father of the creator god.

⁷ If we are seeking to understand the creator, saying that the earlier existence must be, this would have a different way of being, and this approach would be fitting for the argument. But if the discussion is not about the creator and we are looking into the first, I reject what has been said, and let those things remain unspoken. Instead, I will continue to explore the argument from another perspective.

⁸ Before we discuss the destruction, let us agree among ourselves to acknowledge an undeniable truth: that the first god is inactive in all works and is a king, while the creator god guides through the heavens.

⁹ Because of this, our journey is directed below the mind, along all the paths arranged for those who participate.

¹⁰ When one sees and turns toward us, each of the god's beings comes to live and thrive at that moment, while the god cares for them with his arrows. But when he turns his gaze away, these beings are extinguished, while the mind continues to live, sustained by a joyful life.

¹¹ These words are from Numenius. But you should also share with them the words from the prophecy of David, sung long ago by the Hebrews: "How great are your works, lord! You have made everything with wisdom. The earth is filled with your creation. All look to you to give them their food at the right time. When you give to them, they gather; when you open your hand, everything is filled with goodness. When you turn your face away, they are troubled. You take away their spirit, and they die and return to their dust. You send forth your spirit, and they are created; you renew the face of the earth."

¹² For how could these things be different from what the philosopher says, as if he were saying, "When one sees and turns toward us, each of the god's beings comes to live and thrive at that moment, while the god cares for them with his arrows; but when he turns his gaze away, these beings are extinguished"?

¹³ Again, when the word of salvation appeared among us, saying, "I am the vine, my father is the gardener; you are the branches," Numenius, pay attention to what he says about the second cause.

¹⁴ Just as a word is directed from the gardener to the one planting, the same is especially true of the first god to the creator. For he, being the seed of every soul, sows into all things that will change. The lawgiver plants, distributes, and transplants to each of us what has been prepared from there.

¹⁵ And further, about how the second cause comes from the first, he says this: "Whatever is given and shared with the receiver, having come from what was given, is a healing, a resource, a coin, a mark. These things are mortal and human, but the divine things are those that were given from there and have come from here, and have not left this place. Having come from there, they benefit one person and do not harm another, and they remind him of what he knew."

¹⁶ This good resource is knowledge, which the receiver benefits from, but the giver does not lose anything. Just as you might see a lamp that has been lit from another lamp, having light, which does not take away from the first lamp, but rather, the material in it has been lit from that fire.

¹⁷ Such is the resource of knowledge, which, when given and received, stays with the giver but is also shared with the receiver.

¹⁸ But the cause of this, stranger, is not human at all; rather, the state and essence that hold knowledge are the same from both the giver, who is divine, and from the receiver, who is both me and you.

¹⁹ Therefore, Plato said that wisdom came to humans from Prometheus with some very bright fire. "And again, going further, he says...

²⁰ There are two kinds of lives: one belonging to the first god and the other to the second god. Clearly, the first god is unmoving, while the second god is moving. So, the first is about the things that can be understood, and the second is about both the things that can be understood and the things that can be sensed.

²¹ Don't be surprised if I said this, because you will hear something even more amazing. Instead of the movement that belongs to the second, I say that the movement of the first is a natural stillness, from which the order of the universe, the eternal dwelling, and salvation flow into everything.

²² On this, he also adds in the sixth: "Since Plato knew among humans that the creator is only known, but the first mind, which is called being itself, is completely unknown to them, for this reason, he spoke this way, just as someone might say."

²³ O people, the mind you consider to be first is not the first; there is another mind before it, older and more divine.

²⁴ And after this, he adds something else: "The helmsman, indeed, in the middle of the sea, is lifted above the rudders, guiding the ship while seated, and his eyes and mind are directed straight to the heavens. His path goes up through the sky while he sails down along the sea. In the same way, the creator holds the matter, neither allowing it to break apart nor drift away, having united it in harmony. He himself is established above it, like a temple over the sea of matter. He directs the harmony, aligning it with the ideas, and instead of looking at the sky, he turns his eyes to the higher god, receiving the critical part from contemplation and the impulsive part from desire."

²⁵ And the savior among us says, "The son can do nothing by himself unless he sees the father doing something." But indeed, the same is said by Numenius. As for what is not proper, he explained nothing about what seems to be Plato's views, and there is no need to add anything to his words.

²⁶ But Plato is not the first to use these ideas; the wise men of the Hebrews have come before him, as shown by what has been revealed. It is clear that Amelius, a follower of Plato and also a philosopher, has emerged among the younger philosophers. Although he called the Hebrew theologian a barbarian, he did not think himself worthy to remember the name of the evangelist John. Nevertheless, he still bears witness to his words, and he writes these very things in relation to the statement.

Book 11, Section 19

And this was the word through which all things always come into being, as Heraclitus would agree. By Zeus, the barbarian believes it is established in the order and worth of the beginning to be both god and to be with god; through whom all things have simply come into being. In him, what has come into being is alive, and it has become life and being. It falls into bodies, and being clothed in flesh, it appears as a man, while also showing the greatness of nature at that time. Without care, it is again analyzed and becomes god, just as it was before it descended into the body, flesh, and man.

² These things are no longer hidden; they would be clearly translated from the barbarian theology with a bare head. And who was the barbarian to him if not our savior's evangelist John, a Hebrew from Hebrews?

³ Who, starting from his own writing, speaks of theology in this way: "In the beginning was the word; and the word was with god. And the word was god; this was in the beginning with god. All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the father."

⁴ About him, another Hebrew theologian says: "He is the image of the invisible god, the firstborn of all creation. For in him all things were created in heaven and on earth, whether visible or invisible. All things hold together through him, and all things were created in him, both the visible and the invisible."

⁵ But the ideas about the nature and essence of the second cause are also agreed upon by the wise men of the Greeks and the Hebrews. Now, let us move on to other topics.

Book 11, Section 20

In the writings of the Hebrews, after discussing the father and the son, they mention the holy spirit in third place. They suggest the holy and blessed Trinity in this way: it is a nature that goes beyond all created things of the third power, being the first of the intelligible essences created through the son, and the third from the first cause. This is how Plato hinted at such ideas in his letter to Dionysius.

² You need to understand through riddles, so that if you come across something about a tablet, the sea, or the earth, the reader may not recognize it. Here's how it is: concerning the king of all, everything exists, and for his sake, everything exists; he is the cause of all good things. Second, there are the second things, and third, the third things. Therefore, the human soul longs to learn about these matters, looking into what is related to itself.

³ They try to explain these things about Plato, leading to the first god, and discussing the second cause and the third, which is the soul of the world, defining it as a third god. However, the divine writings place the holy and blessed Trinity of the father, the son, and the holy spirit at the beginning, according to what has been passed down. After this, they examine the essence of the good.

Book 11, Section 21

The divine scripture among the Hebrews teaches that the essence of the good and the good itself is nothing other than god. It says that the good lord is for all who endure him, for the soul that seeks him. And, "Give thanks to the lord, for he is good; his mercy lasts forever." The saving word also spoke about this, saying, "Why do you ask me about the good? No one is good except one, god."

² Listen to Plato and what he says in the Timaeus: "Let us discuss the reason for the creation of the whole and how it came to be. It was good, and no one ever envies what is good. But everything that wanted to exist, being outside of this goodness, was most similar to itself."

³ And in the Republic, he says: "Is not the sun itself not sight, but is seen by sight? So it is, indeed." Therefore, I would say that the offspring of the good, which the good has generated, is like itself. Just as it exists in the intelligible realm, relating to the mind and the things that are thought of, so it exists in the visible realm, relating to sight and the things that are seen.

⁴ And then he adds: "Therefore, this which provides truth to those who know and gives the power of knowing is said to be the idea of the good." And again he says...

⁵ You would say that the sun not only provides the power of sight to those who see, but also brings about generation, growth, and nourishment, while itself being ungenerated. For how is this so? And for those who know, it is not only said that knowing comes from the good, but also that being and essence come from it to them. This is not because the good itself has essence, but because it surpasses essence in power and authority.

⁶ Clearly, through these things, not only does knowing come from the intelligible essences, but also being and essence come from the good, which is to say, from the divine, as Plato says. He states that the good "does not have essence, but is beyond essence, surpassing it in power and authority." Therefore, it should not be considered as having the same essence, nor should it be thought of as ungenerated, since both being and essence come from what is not essence, but are beyond essence in power and authority. This is why it is fittingly called the only God by the Hebrews, as it is the cause of all things.

⁷ "Therefore, since it has neither being nor essence from itself, nor is it of the nature of the good, it is not reasonable to consider them as gods, to whom the good does not belong by nature. For this should only be attributed to the one good, which indeed surpasses all essence in power and authority," Plato wonderfully declared. Again, Numenius, while explaining Plato's thought in his work on the good, expresses this same idea.

Book 11, Section 22

We can take bodies from what is similar and from the known things that are nearby. But the good cannot be taken from anything nearby, nor from any similar sensible thing by any means. Instead, it is necessary, like someone sitting in a watchtower, to see a ship far away from those shores. Just as one might see a single, lonely ship moving swiftly, someone who has gone far away from sensible things should associate only with the good alone. In that place, there is neither a person nor any other living being, nor any large or small body, but rather an ineffable and indescribable solitude. There, the good has its qualities and delights, and it itself is in peace, kindness, calm, and a guiding presence over essence.

² If someone thinks that the good shines among sensible things and then believes they have found the good while enjoying them, they are mistaken about everything. For what truly exists is not easy to grasp, and one must approach it through a divine method. It is best, after neglecting sensible things, for a young person who has turned to learning, having contemplated numbers, to study the lesson of what being is.

³ These things are mentioned in the first and in the fifth. He says, "If being is indeed intelligible and the idea is true, then the mind is acknowledged to be older and the cause of it. This alone is found to be the good. For if the creator god is the cause of generation, it is enough for the good to be the beginning of being. In relation to this, the creator god, being its imitator, is to being as generation is; for generation is an image and imitation of it."

⁴ If the creator of generation is good, then the creator of being will also be good by nature, as it is inherent to being. For the second one, being twofold, creates both the idea of itself and the world, as a creator; then, it is entirely contemplative.

⁵ When we gather our thoughts, let there be four names for four things: the first is the god who is good by nature; the second is the good creator who imitates him; the essence is one, that of the first, and another is that of the second; the beautiful world is an imitation of this, adorned by its participation in the beautiful.

⁶ And in the sixth, it is said, "What participates in it does not share in anything else, but only in thinking; thus, it would be possible to connect with the good only through this, otherwise not. Indeed, thinking has happened only with the first. Through this, the other things become good and useful, if this is only connected to that one; otherwise, the soul would still be uncertain."

⁷ For if the second is good, it is not from itself, but from the first. How can it be that this good, which participates in something, is not good itself? Moreover, even if the second happens to share in the good, how can that be?

⁸ "Thus, Plato, with sharp insight from reasoning, defined the good as one." And again, he says more.

⁹ Since these things are true, Plato distinguished them in different ways. He wrote about the circular one in the Timaeus, saying, "It was good." But in the Republic, he referred to the good as the idea of the good. Thus, the idea of the good comes from the creator, showing that the good appears to us through participation in the first and only.

¹⁰ For just as people are called human because they are shaped by the idea of humanity, cows are called bovine because of the idea of a cow, and horses are called equine because of the idea of a horse, it is reasonable to say that the creator, if he is good by participating in the first good, would be the idea of the first mind, being good in himself.

Book 11, Section 23

Thus, since the world has come into being, it is clear that it can be understood through reason and thought, and it has been created according to the same principles. With these things in place, it is necessary for this world to be some kind of image. For all the intelligible living beings are contained within it, just as this world contains us.

² These things were written by Plato in the Timaeus. But I will explain the ideas of those mentioned from the writings of Didymus about what pleases Plato. He writes it this way.

³ He says that there are certain examples defined by nature for the sensible things, which are the ideas from which knowledge and definitions arise. For among all people, there is a concept of a human, and among all horses, there is a concept of a horse. Generally, among all living beings, there is an idea of a living thing that is uncreated and imperishable.

⁴ Just as many and various images can be made from one seal, in the same way, countless natures arise from each idea of sensible bodies. For example, all humans come from the idea of a human, and the same is true for other natural things.

⁵ The idea is a unique essence, the cause and principle of each thing being what it is.

⁶ Just as the parts serve as models for sensible bodies, there exists a most beautiful and perfect essence that contains all things within itself, which is the example of the world. This essence has been shaped by the creator according to a plan drawn from the whole essence.

⁷ These things also come from the revealed man. Indeed, the wise Moses speaks of these things before the appearing sun and stars, and before the visible sky, which is called the firmament. He speaks of the dry land beneath us and of the light of day and night that is different from the sun's day and night, teaching about the all-governing and causing god of all things.

⁸ But the children of the Hebrews after Moses describe a certain sun that is incorporeal and not visible to everyone, nor does it come under mortal eyes. This is as the prophet speaks from the presence of god, saying, "For those who fear me, the sun of righteousness will rise."

⁹ Another prophet of the Hebrews understood this righteousness, not the kind found among humans, but its true idea. He spoke about god, saying, "Who has raised up righteousness from the east? He called it to his face, and it will go forth as in the presence of nations."

¹⁰ The divine word, which is incorporeal and essential, is now presented to us in the writings of the Hebrews. About this word, it has also been said by the same authors, "For to us wisdom has been born from god, along with righteousness, sanctification, and redemption."

¹¹ It is called life, it is called wisdom, it is called truth. The words of the Hebrews teach us about all things that exist and endure (if indeed the Hebrews are the apostles and disciples of our savior). Yes, they also speak of many other incorporeal powers, beyond the heavens and all material and flowing substances. They say that the images of these powers are impressed in our senses, and they have already taken the name of the image.

¹² Indeed, they say that man is a clear image of an intelligible pattern, and that all human life should be understood through this image. So Moses says, "And god made man; he made him in the image of god." Again, another Hebrew philosopher says, "Indeed, man walks in the image." Now, the interpreters of the sacred laws explain how they clarify the meaning in the writings of Moses. The Hebrew Philo interprets the ancestral teachings for them with his words.

Book 11, Section 24

If someone wanted to speak more simply about the names, they would say nothing different about the intelligible world than the word of god that is already creating the cosmos. The intelligible city is nothing else but the plan of the architect, who is already thinking about building the intelligible city.

² But this teaching is from Moses, not mine. Indeed, he clearly states in his later writings that the creation of man was made in the image of god.

³ If the part is an image of the whole, then this entire visible world, if it is greater than humanity, is clearly a copy of the divine image. The original seal, which we call the intelligible world, would itself be the example, the original idea of ideas, the word of god.

⁴ It says that in the beginning, god made the heaven and the earth, taking the beginning not as some think, according to time; for time did not exist before the cosmos. Instead, it either came into being with it or after it.

⁵ For time is the measure of the movement of the cosmos, and before something moves, movement could not happen. Therefore, it is either necessary for movement to come into being later or at the same time. Thus, it is also necessary for time to be either equal to the cosmos or younger than it. To claim that time is older would be bold and unphilosophical.

⁶ If the beginning is not understood as being according to time, it would likely reveal Aristotle's idea that what was made in the beginning is equal to what he first created, which is the heaven.

⁷ Then it says, "First, the creator made the heaven without a body, the earth invisible, the idea of air, and the void. Of these, darkness was named, since the air is black by nature, and the abyss was named, for the void is deep and vast."

⁸ Then there was the essence of water and spirit, and above all, the seventh light, which was also without a body, along with the idea of the sun and all the shining stars that were to be formed in the sky.

⁹ But the spirit and the light were honored. The spirit was called god because it is the most vital, and god is the source of life. The light was called beautiful because it is exceedingly lovely. The idea is brighter and more radiant than what we can see, just as the sun is, I believe, compared to darkness and night. The mind serves as the guide for the whole soul, like the eyes of the body.

¹⁰ But that invisible and intelligible light became a reflection of the divine word, which explained its origin. It is a heavenly star, the source of all visible stars. No one could call it completely bright from a distance, for the sun, moon, and other planets draw their light from it, each according to its own power, shining with what is fitting. This light is pure and clear, but it begins to fade as it changes from the intelligible to the visible. For nothing we perceive is completely pure.

¹¹ And after a short time, it is said, "Since light came into being, darkness withdrew, and boundaries were set in the spaces in between: evening and morning. According to the necessary measure of time, what was called day was completed right away. It was not called the first day, but simply one, named for the unity of the intelligible world, which has a unique nature."

¹² "So the incorporeal world already had a limit, established in the divine word, while the sensible world was being formed as a model of this. First among its parts, which is the best of all, the creator made the heaven, which he rightly called a firmament, since it is a physical body. A body is by nature solid, whatever is three-dimensional. What other idea of solidity is there besides that which is completely distinct? Therefore, contrasting the intelligible and incorporeal with the sensible and bodily, he called this one solid." These are the words of Philo. Clement also agrees with him, stating this in the sixth book of the Stromata.

Book 11, Section 25

The barbarian philosophy understands both the intelligible world and the sensible world; the former is the archetype, and the latter is the image of the beautiful model. It presents the intelligible as one, since it is intelligible, while the sensible is presented as six. Among the Pythagoreans, the union that creates a fruitful number is called six.

² In the one, he establishes an invisible heaven, a holy earth, and an intelligible light. "In the beginning," it says, "God made the heaven and the earth; and the earth was invisible." Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. But in the creation of the sensible world, he creates a solid heaven; and the solid is sensible: both the visible earth and the light that can be seen.

³ Does it not seem to you that from here, Plato leaves the ideas of living beings in the intelligible world and creates the sensible forms according to their kinds in the sensible world?

⁴ Therefore, it makes sense that Moses says the body is shaped from the earth, which Plato calls a "shadow," while the rational soul is breathed into the face from above by God.

⁵ For here they say that the ruling part is established, interpreting the entrance of the soul through the senses as the entrance of the first created being. That is why man has been made in both image and likeness. The divine and royal word is the image of God, while man is without passion; the human mind is the image of the image. Let us also listen to what has been said.

Book 11, Section 26

Furthermore, Plato, following the words of the Hebrews, says that there are not only incorporeal and good powers, but also opposing ones, as he writes in the tenth book of the Laws.

² How could the soul, which governs and dwells in all things that move, not also be said to govern the heavens? Indeed, is it one or many? I will answer for them: it is many. Let us not assume there is less than two: one that does good and one that works against.

³ Then he says, "Since we have agreed that the heavens are full of many good things and also of opposing ones, we say that there are more that are not. Indeed, this kind is immortal and needs wonderful protection. The gods and spirits are our allies, and we are possessions of the gods and spirits."

⁴ I would not be able to explain these things to Plato; however, what I can say is true: many years before Plato, this teaching was agreed upon by the Hebrews.

⁵ Then the writing among them says, "And it was like this day, and the angels of God came to stand before God; and the devil came among them, going around the earth and walking on it," referring to the devil as the opposing power and the angels of God as the good ones.

⁶ These good powers, divine spirits, and servants of God are referred to in the passage that says, "He who makes his angels spirits and his servants a flame of fire."

⁷ But the struggle of the opposing forces is also shown here by the one who says, "Our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

⁸ On the other hand, it seems that Plato translates the saying of Moses, "When the Most High divided the nations, when he scattered the sons of Adam, he set the borders of the nations according to the number of the angels of God," by which he determined that all of humanity belongs to the possessions of gods and demons.

Book 11, Section 27

In the matters concerning the immortality of the soul, Plato did not differ from the view of Moses. He first stated that the soul in a human is an immortal essence, saying that it exists as an image of God, and even more, that it was created in the image of God. "For God said, 'Let us make man in our image and likeness.' And God made man; in the image of God he made him."

² And next, dividing the composite being into both the visible body and the part understood by the soul, he adds, "And God took dust from the ground, and formed man, and breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul."

³ But he also says that he became the beginning and ruler of all things on earth. Therefore, he states, "And God said, 'Let us make man in our image and likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the animals, and all the earth.'" And God made man in his image; in the image of God he made him.

⁴ How could the image and likeness of God be understood in any other way than through the powers of God and the likeness of virtue? Indeed, Moses, just like Plato who seems to have learned this, explains it in the Alcibiades.

⁵ Therefore, we can say that what is most divine about the soul is knowing and understanding. We do not have anything else. So, it seems that this is similar to God; anyone who looks at this, knowing all that is divine, would know God and understanding, and thus know himself best. It seems so. Therefore, just as a mirror is clearer than what is seen in the eye, so God is the best, clearest, and brightest part of our soul. It seems so, Socrates. By looking at God, the most beautiful mirror, we would turn from human things to the virtue of the soul, and in this way, we would see and know ourselves best.

⁶ These ideas are found in the Alcibiades. But in the work On the Soul, listen to how he explains things more broadly. "Let us say, then, that there are two kinds of beings: the visible and the eternal." "Let us say so," he replied. "And the eternal always remains the same, but the visible never stays the same?" "And let us say this," he replied.

⁷ "Come now," he said, "is our body one thing and our soul another?" "Nothing else," he replied. "Which of them do we say is more similar in nature and closer to its form: the body?" "Clearly, this is true for the visible," he said. "And what about the soul? Is it visible or eternal?" "Not by humans, Socrates," he replied. "But do we not say that the visible and the non-visible belong to human nature, or do you think otherwise?" "To human nature."

⁸ "What then do we say about the soul? Is it visible or invisible?" "Not visible." "Then it is eternal?" "Yes." "So the soul is more similar to the eternal than to the visible?" "Absolutely, Socrates."

⁹ "Therefore, we have long said that when the soul uses the body to look at something, whether through seeing, hearing, or any other sense—(for this is what it means to look through the body, through the senses)—then it is pulled by the body toward things that never stay the same. The soul itself wanders, is disturbed, and feels dizzy, as if it were drunk, because it is connected to such things."

¹⁰ "But when it looks at itself, it goes to what is pure, always existing, immortal, and similarly real. Being always connected to that, it becomes one with it whenever it looks at itself and steps outside of itself. Then it stops wandering and remains with those same things, as it is linked to such things. This experience of the soul is called wisdom."

¹¹ "Absolutely, you speak well and truly, oh Socrates. So, which do you think the soul is more similar to, based on what has been said before and what is being said now? It seems to me that anyone would agree, Socrates, that by this method, the soul is more similar to what is always the same than to what is not."

¹² "And what about the body? It is the opposite. You can see here: when the soul and body are together, nature commands the soul to rule and lead, while the body is meant to serve and be ruled. So, which do you think is more similar to the divine and which to the mortal? Or do you not think that the divine is meant to rule and lead, while the mortal is meant to be ruled and serve? At least, that seems true to me."

¹³ "Which do you think the soul resembles? Clearly, oh Socrates, the soul is like the divine, while the body is like the mortal. So, look, oh Kebes, and see if all that has been said fits us: the soul is most similar to what is divine, immortal, intelligible, uniform, unchanging, and always the same. On the other hand, the body is most similar to what is human, mortal, unintelligent, diverse, changeable, and never the same."

¹⁴ "Do we have anything else to say about this, dear Kebes, that isn't true? We do not. So, what then? Since these things are true, isn't it fitting that the body quickly falls apart, while the soul should always remain unchanged, or at least very close to that?"

¹⁵ "How could it not be? So, you understand, he said, that when a person dies, the visible part, the body, which we call dead, is meant to fall apart and decay. Yet, it does not immediately experience any of these things; rather, it remains intact for a considerable time. If someone dies gracefully, at just the right moment, then the body, once it has fallen and been embalmed, like those embalmed in Egypt, stays whole for a while. Some parts of the body, even if they rot, like bones and nerves and such, are still, so to speak, immortal, right? Yes."

¹⁶ "But the soul, then (the eternal one, going to a different place, noble, pure, and everlasting, to Hades, as it truly is, by the good and wise god, to whom, if god wishes, my soul will go immediately), this kind of soul, when it is freed from the body, will quickly escape and be lost, as many people say?"

¹⁷ "Indeed, my dear Kebes and Simmias, it is much more like this. If the soul is freed, not dragging anything from the body, since it has not willingly shared anything with it in life, but is fleeing from it and gathered into itself, always thinking about this (and this is nothing other than truly being a philosopher and easily contemplating what it means to die; wouldn't this be the study of death? Absolutely)."

¹⁸ "Therefore, having this quality, the eternal one goes to what is similar to itself, the divine, immortal, and wise. When it arrives there, it is happy, free from wandering, ignorance, fears, wild desires, and other human evils, just as it is said about those who have been initiated, that they truly spend the rest of their time with the gods. Is this what we mean, Kebes, or something else? Yes, by Zeus, says Kebes."

¹⁹ "But if, I think, it is stained and unclean when it is freed from the body, always being with the body, caring for it, desiring it, and being enchanted by it, then it seems to believe that nothing is real except what is like the body—things that anyone can touch, see, eat, drink, and use for pleasure. Since it is dark and always visible to the eyes, but is understood and chosen through philosophy, this soul will be used to hating, fearing, and fleeing from it. Do you think that such a soul can truly free itself? Not at all," he said.

²⁰ "These are the words of Plato. Porphyry explains this idea simply in the first of his writings, 'On the Soul,' addressed to Boethus."

Book 11, Section 28

"Right away, it seems that there is a strong argument from Plato for showing the soul's immortality based on similarity. For if it is similar to the divine, immortal, always existing, unchanging, undivided, essential, and standing in immortality, how could it not belong to that kind based on the example?"

² "When two extremes are clearly opposed, like the rational and the irrational, there is another way to discuss what kind of part it is: by showing what it is similar to among the opposites. For in this way, even though many people remain in the mistakes of irrationality throughout their lives, it is still believed that this kind is rational from the beginning because it shares many similarities with the purely rational."

³ "Since the divine system exists and is pure, clearly belonging to the gods, and since the earthly and mortal is also clearly present in decay, when some people argue about which part of the soul is assigned to which of the opposites, Plato believed it was necessary to seek the truth based on similarity."

⁴ "And since the mortal, foolish, and lifeless being is connected to what is tangible, perceptible, changing, and perishing, it does not resemble the divine, immortal, ever-living, and intellectual being, which is related to truth. As he reflects on these matters, he believed it was acceptable to acknowledge the other similarities to the divine, but to reject the similarity of essence, which is why it was able to attain these qualities."

⁵ "For just as things that are unlike the divine in their actions are immediately changed in the structure of their essence, it follows that those who share in the same kinds of actions achieve a similarity of essence. The nature of the essence determines what kinds of actions exist, as they flow from it and are its offshoots."

⁶ "Therefore, as the Helper removes the strength of this argument, he listens right at the beginning, just as the one who created it writes."

⁷ "If the soul is immortal and has a nature that is stronger than any destruction, then many who have waited and considered the arguments must speak up."

⁸ "However, if nothing similar to the divine can be found in our souls, then someone who seeks much study would not believe, not only because of the constant and unending movement given to us, but also because of the mind that exists within itself."

⁹ "To this end, the philosopher from Croton also said that the soul is immortal and, by its nature, escapes all disturbance, just like the divine aspects of bodies."

¹⁰ "But also, if one reflects on the idea of the soul, especially the ruling mind within us that often stirs up many thoughts and impulses, then to the one who understands, a great similarity to the divine would become clear."

¹¹ "And further, he adds, 'If the soul shows itself to be most similar to the divine of all things, what need is there for other arguments to prove its immortality? Especially if one considers this as just one among many, which is enough to convince the wise, since it would not share in divine actions unless it itself is divine?'"

¹² "For if, even in a being that is mortal, weak, foolish, and essentially dead—always perishing and flowing into destruction—it both creates and holds itself together, showing its own divine essence, even though it is surrounded and hindered by the threat of total destruction, how could it, if separated by reason, like gold wrapped in clay, not reveal its own form? It is similar only to the divine, but also because it shares in it, preserving the similarities in its actions, especially in its mortal part, just as it is when it is bound in the mortal. Therefore, it is not destroyed because it has a nature that does not share in decay."

¹³ "And he goes on to say, 'It is reasonable that it appears divine because of its similarity to the unchanging. It is also mortal because it comes from and descends toward those things, and it has a mortal form while being similar to the immortals.'"

¹⁴ "For a person is someone who feeds themselves and tries to be full, just like animals. But a person is also someone who saves themselves at sea through knowledge in dangerous situations, like a ship's captain. They save themselves from diseases, find the truth, and seek knowledge. They discover fevers and observe the stars, and they create imitations of the maker's creations."

¹⁵ "For a person has imagined gatherings on earth of the seven, creating them through movements and imitating the things in heaven with machines. And why hasn't he thought of this, revealing the divine and the god-like mind within himself?"

¹⁶ "From this, many show the boldness of the Olympian and the divine, and not at all of the mortal. Because of their self-love, they see him as one of those below, believing he is similar to the mortals they see around them. And being one, they find comfort in their own troubles, convincing themselves, based on outside appearances, that all people are alike, both on the outside and the inside."

¹⁷ "Of all these things, Moses has shown himself to be a teacher. He explained the first creation of humans according to the words that were given and confirmed the teachings about the immortality of the soul by comparing it to the divine."

¹⁸ "But since the ideas about the incorporeal and invisible essence are agreed upon and in harmony between Moses and Plato, it is time to look at the other parts of Plato's philosophy. We should also show that he is loved by the Hebrews, unless he has been led to speak in a more human way or has made some true statement."

¹⁹ "Right away, everything that has been successfully said about the man would agree with what has been established by Moses. However, anything that does not please Moses and the prophets would not fit well into the argument. We will present this at the right time. For now, since it has been made clear in our understanding of the intelligible that the established ideas are in harmony, it is time to return to the study of the sensible and briefly examine how the man's views align with those of the Hebrews."

Book 11, Section 29

"When Moses speaks of creation and says that everything was made by God, he begins his writing with, 'In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.' After this, he continues, 'This is the book of the generation of heaven and earth, when they were created, on the day that God made the heaven and the earth.' Pay attention to Plato, as he also expresses this understanding in a similar way."

² "Everything that comes into being must necessarily come from some cause; for it is impossible for anything to exist without a cause."

³ "And he adds, 'Now let us call the whole heaven or world, and anything else that is named, this. Therefore, we must first consider what lies beneath this; we need to examine whether it has always existed without any beginning, or if it came into being from some starting point.'"

⁴ "It has come into being; for it is visible and has a physical body. All such things can be perceived, and the things we can perceive seem to be understood through our senses and are generated. Therefore, we say that what has come into being must necessarily have a cause. Thus, it is impossible to find the creator and maker of this whole universe and to say who they are."

⁵ "And again, he says, 'Therefore, according to reason, we must say that this world is a living being with a soul, and indeed it has come into being through the care of the divine.'"

Book 11, Section 30

"Again, Moses taught that these things were created, as he said, 'And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to shine upon the earth; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and for years." And God made the two great lights and the stars, and he set them in the firmament of heaven.'"

² "Similarly, Plato says that from the reason and thought of God, such things were created for the generation of time, so that time might come into being: the sun, the moon, and five other wandering stars, to mark and keep track of the numbers of time. And God made their bodies and set them in motion."

³ "It is worth noting that the phrase 'from the reason and thought of God' mentioned by Plato is similar to what the Hebrews say: 'By the word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.' Additionally, when Moses said, 'And he set them in the firmament,' Plato uses a similar expression when he says, 'And God made their bodies and set them in motion.'"

Book 11, Section 31

"In the Hebrew scripture, for each of the creations, it says, 'And God saw that it was good,' and at the conclusion of everything, it says, 'And God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good.' Listen to Plato as he says, 'If this world is indeed beautiful, then the creator must be good, which shows that he looked toward the eternal.' And again, 'For the most beautiful of things that exist is the best of causes.'"

Book 11, Section 32

"And about this, the Hebrew scripture speaks in different ways. Sometimes it says, 'And the heavens will be rolled up like a scroll,' and at other times it adds, 'And there will be a new heaven and a new earth, which I make to remain before me,' says the Lord. And again, at another point, it says, 'For the form of this world is passing away.'"

² "And listen to Plato as he explains his teaching in the Timaeus, saying, 'And he established a visible and tangible heaven; and from these things and similar things, the body of the world was created through proportion. It had a bond of friendship from these, as if coming together into one, unbroken by the others, except by the one who brought them together to become.'"

³ "Then he says, 'Time was born along with the heavens, so that they might be created together and also be dissolved together, if ever a dissolution of them should occur.'"

⁴ "And again, he says, 'Gods of gods, of whom I am the creator and father of works, which have become unbreakable through my unwillingness;' he continues, saying, 'Therefore, everything that is bound can also be loosed, but that which is well put together and desires to be loosed does not wish for evil. For since you have come into being, you are neither immortal nor unbreakable in all things. Indeed, you will not be loosed, nor will you face the fate of death, having received a greater bond and authority than those to whom you were bound when you came into being.'"

⁵ "And in the Political work, he says this: 'For everything, at times, the god himself guides and surrounds, and at other times, he releases it, when the cycles of the fitting measure have already taken hold of time. But again, it automatically returns to the one, moving around, being a living thing and possessing reason, drawn from the one who arranged it from the beginning. This returning happens out of necessity, having become a natural part of it. For what reason, then?'"

⁶ "It is fitting that only the most divine beings always remain the same and be identical in all things, but the nature of the body is not of this kind. The heaven and world that we have named have participated in many blessed things from the one who created them, but indeed, they have also shared in the nature of the body. Therefore, it is impossible for them to change in any way, as they are most capable of moving in the same way at the same time, because they have embraced the cycle, experiencing only the smallest change in their own movement. It is almost impossible for them to turn themselves except by the one who guides all moving things. And to move this one sometimes in one way and at other times in the opposite way is not lawful."

⁷ "From all these things, it is not right to say that the world always turns itself, nor that it is turned entirely by a god in two opposite ways, nor that two gods, thinking for themselves, turn it in opposite directions. Rather, as was just mentioned, sometimes it is guided by another divine cause, gaining life again and receiving restored immortality from the creator. At other times, when it rises, it moves by itself in due time, having been released in such a way that it can again travel through countless cycles, moving toward the greatest and most balanced being, taking the smallest step."

⁸ "It certainly seems very reasonable to say all that you have explained. Let us think together about the nature of what has been said now, which we said is the cause of all wonderful things. For this is indeed the same thing."

⁹ "What kind? The movement of the whole sometimes moves in the way it is currently going around, and sometimes in the opposite way. How is that? This change should be seen as the greatest and most complete change of all the changes happening in the heavens."

¹⁰ "It seems so. Therefore, we should believe that the greatest changes happen to those living within it. And this is likely. But do we not know that the nature of living things is to endure great, many, and various changes with difficulty?"

¹¹ "How could it not? Therefore, the greatest destructions must happen to the other living things, and indeed, the human race is affected a little as well. Many other strange and new experiences occur regarding these, but the greatest of these, which follows the movement of the whole, happens when the opposite change of the current state takes place." After considering all this, he goes on to talk about the revival of those who have died, similarly influenced by the beliefs of the Hebrews, and he adds these things.

Book 11, Section 33

"What was the origin of living things then, stranger, and how did they come from one another?"

² "Clearly, Socrates, what comes from one another was not produced in that nature at that time. However, there was a race said to be born from the earth, which was returning from the ground. This was remembered by our earliest ancestors, who, having died in the previous cycle, were reborn in the next, while those of this time were born at the beginning. For these were the heralds of our words, who are now wrongly doubted by many."

³ "For this reason, I think it is important to understand what is here. It is connected to the elders going to the nature of the child, coming from those who have died and lying in the earth, being put together again and being reborn, following the change as the cycle of birth turns back to the opposite. Indeed, those born from the earth must have this name and story, as long as no god has sent them to another fate. Therefore, this follows from what was said before."

⁴ "Then again, as he goes further, he will explain this in a way that is similar to the teachings of the Hebrews about the completion of the world."

Book 11, Section 34

"For all these things, time has come to an end, and a change had to happen. Indeed, all earthly beings have already completed their kind, and each soul has given up its births. As many commands were given to each, so many seeds fell to the ground. Then, the ruler of all, like a pilot leaving the helm, withdrew to his own viewpoint, while fate and natural desire turned the world back again."

² "Therefore, all the gods who gather in the places with the greatest spirit, having already understood what is happening, released the parts of the world from their care once more. And he, changing and coming together, driven by the opposing forces of beginning and end, caused a great shaking within himself and brought about another destruction of all kinds of living beings."

³ "After a sufficient time had passed, and as the noise and disturbance were calming down, along with the earthquakes, he embraced peace. He returned to his usual path, taking care and control over what was within him and himself."

⁴ "And after a short time, he says, 'Indeed, then, the god who arranged it, seeing it in confusion and caring for it so that it would not be destroyed by disturbance and scattered into the endless realm of dissimilarity, became once again the support of its controls. He turned back the sick and broken parts to their previous order, arranging and restoring it, making it immortal and ageless. This is the end of all things.'"

Book 11, Section 35

"Therefore, I say, there is nothing in number or size compared to those things that each one has completed. It is necessary to hear them so that each one may fully understand what is owed to them by the reasoning."

² "You might say, he said, that there are not many, but they are sweeter to hear. But I will not speak to you about Alcinous; instead, I will tell you about the brave man, Hero of Armenia, from the lineage of Pamphylus. He, having fallen in battle after the bodies of the ten thousand had already been destroyed, was taken up healthy. He was brought home, and while he was about to be buried, lying on the pyre, he came back to life and shared what he saw there."

³ He said that, since he knows the soul leaves the body, it travels with many others and arrives at a certain divine place. There, two openings in the earth face each other, and above, in the sky, there are others directly opposite.

⁴ Judges sit between these places. When they have finished their task, they command the just to go to the right and up through the sky, marking them with signs of those who have been judged before. They command the unjust to go to the left and down, also marking them with signs of everything they have done.

⁵ As he approached, he was told that he needed to become a messenger for humans from there and to command them to listen and see everything in that place.

⁶ This is what Plato says, and Plutarch also shares something similar in the first part of his work, On the Soul.

Book 11, Section 36

We were also present with Antyllus, but we will tell the story of Sositelis and Heracleon. The doctors thought he was suffering from a serious illness. After being brought in from an uncertain condition, he did nothing and said nothing to encourage them. He kept saying he was dying, then that he would be released, and that he would not die at all from that sickness. However, he had also heard bad news from those who brought him by the order of the master. They had sent him to Nicandrus instead of bringing him back. Nicandrus was a skilled surgeon, well-known and familiar with many things that happen in wrestling schools. The young men who approached him mocked him as if he had already escaped and ruined the servants from there. However, he clearly showed signs of being upset and troubled. Finally, after a fever struck him, he died on the third day. But this one came back to life and is now doing well, being very kind to us as a guest.

² Let these things be laid out for me because in the Hebrew scriptures, there are stories of the dead coming back to life. There is also a certain land promised only to those who are beloved by God, as the saying goes, "the meek shall inherit the earth." This is explained to be a heavenly place by the saying, "but the above Jerusalem is free, which is our mother." The prophet also hints at this same idea, saying that it will be built with precious and honorable stones in a way of allegory: "Behold, I am preparing for you a stone of coal, and I will set your battlements with jasper, your foundations with sapphire, and your surrounding walls with chosen stones." Just as Plato also agrees that these things, or similar ones, are true in his work On the Soul, presenting the argument to Socrates in this way.

Book 11, Section 37

But, my dear Simmias, I do not think that the art of Glaucon is easy to explain as it is. In fact, it seems to me to be harder than Glaucon's art. While I might not even be able to do it, even if I knew how, my life, Simmias, does not seem long enough for this discussion. However, I am convinced about the idea of the earth, and nothing stops me from speaking about its places. "Well," Simmias says, "that is enough."

² I am convinced, therefore, that there is a sphere in the middle of the sky, which does not need anything—neither air to keep it from falling nor any other necessity like that. It is enough for it to maintain the same shape as the sky itself and to balance with the earth. A balanced object placed in the middle of something similar will not tilt more or less anywhere, but will remain upright in the same way.

³ First of all, I am convinced of this. "And rightly so," said Simmias. "Furthermore," he continued, "it is something very great, and we live in a small part of it, from the Pillars of Hercules to Phasis, just like ants or frogs living around a puddle, with many others living in many such places."

⁴ For there are many hollow and various places all around the earth, along with the shapes and sizes into which water, mist, and air have flowed together. The earth itself is pure and rests in a clear space, where the stars are, which many people call the ether. These things are said to be a foundation and always flow into the hollows of the earth.

⁵ We think we are living in the hollows of the earth and believe we are above on the surface, just like someone living in the middle of the sea who thinks they are on the surface of the water. They see the sun and the other stars through the water, believing the sea to be the sky. But because of their slowness and weakness, they would never reach the edges of the sea, nor would they see it. If they came up and looked out from the sea into this place, they would find it much clearer and more beautiful than what they are used to, and they would not have heard of anything else they have seen.

⁶ We have experienced the same thing. Living in a certain hollow of the earth, we think we are above it and call the air the sky, as if the stars are moving through this sky. But because of our weakness and slowness, we cannot reach the upper air. If someone were to come to the edge of it or become a bird and fly up, they would see, just like fish coming up from the sea see what is here. In this way, they could also see what is up there. And if nature were strong enough to endure the sight, they would know that up there is the true sky, the true light, and what is truly the earth.

⁷ This earth, the stones, and all the places here are decayed and consumed, just like what is in the sea from the salt water. Nothing worthy of mention grows in the sea, nor is there anything complete, so to speak; there is nothing but tunnels, sand, useless clay, and mud, wherever it may be. Compared to what is beautiful among us, it is not worthy of any judgment.

⁸ But those things over there would seem to be much more different from what we have here. For if it is indeed good to tell stories that are worthy to hear, as you find what is on the earth under the sky. "But," said Simmias, "oh Socrates, we would gladly listen to this story."

⁹ It is said then, he said, oh friend, that this earth would look like this if someone were to see it from above, just like the twelve-colored balls, colorful and mixed with hues. The colors here are like samples that painters use. But there, the whole earth would be made of such things, and much more of brighter and clearer ones than these.

¹⁰ On one hand, the sea-blue would be a wonderful beauty, and on the other hand, the golden one. The one as white as gypsum and snow would be even whiter, made up of other colors in the same way, and even more beautiful than all that we have seen.

¹¹ And indeed, these hollow parts of it, filled with water and air, would provide a kind of shining color among the variety of other colors. In this way, it would seem to have a continuous and colorful appearance.

¹² In this kind of place, it would be fitting for trees and flowers to grow like this, bearing their fruits. Likewise, the mountains and stones would share the same qualities, with smoothness, clarity, and even more beautiful colors. The little stones we love here, like sardonyx, jasper, and emeralds, would not be found there, and there would be even more beautiful things than these.

¹³ The reason for this is that those stones are pure and not worn down or damaged like the ones here, which are affected by decay, salt, and other things that flow here, bringing harm and diseases to stones, soil, and other living things and plants. But the land itself would be adorned with all these things, as well as with gold, silver, and other similar treasures. For these would be naturally present, abundant and large, found in many places on the earth, making it a sight for happy viewers.

Book Twelve

In the Hebrew scriptures, there will be a judgment and a decision for souls after this release, as foretold through many signs and through what is written: "The judge sat, and the books were opened, and the Ancient of Days sat. A river of fire flowed before him; countless thousands served him, and thousands of thousands stood before him." Listen to Plato's account of divine judgment, and also to the river that is named, along with many punishments for the righteous and various punishments for the wicked, in agreement with the words of the Hebrews.

² It says in the work *On the Soul* that a third river flows out in the middle of these, and near its mouth, it falls into a great place burning with a lot of fire, creating a lake larger than our sea, bubbling with water and mud. From there, it moves in a swirling motion, muddy and thick, traveling through the earth and reaching other places, including the edge of the Acherusian lake, without mixing with the water. After being twisted many times beneath the earth, it pours down below Tartarus.

³ This is what they call Pyriphlegethon, from which the streams bring up fragments wherever they touch the earth. Against this, the fourth river falls into a place that is terrible and wild, as it is said, having a color like dark blue, which they call Stygian, and the lake that the river flows into is the Styx. Whoever falls in there gains terrible powers in the water and sinks into the earth, moving in the opposite direction to Pyriphlegethon. They meet in the Acherusian lake from the opposite side, and its water does not mix with anything. This river, moving in a circle, pours into Tartarus opposite Pyriphlegethon. This river is named, as the poets say, Cocytus.

⁴ When those who have died arrive at the place where the spirit brings each one, they are first judged: those who have lived well, righteously, and justly, and those who have not. Some may seem to have lived in between, and they go to Acheron, climbing into the boats that belong to them, and they reach the lake. There, they live and, after being cleansed of their wrongdoings, they are released by paying their debts if they have done wrong. Those who have done good deeds receive honors based on their worth. But those who seem to be suffering greatly because of the seriousness of their sins, or because they have committed many and serious sacrileges, or many unjust and illegal murders, or other such things, are thrown by their fitting fate into Tartarus, from which they never escape.

⁵ Those who seem to have committed serious sins, such as acting violently against a father or mother in anger, and later live a different life, or those who are murderers or commit other such acts, must fall into Tartarus. After they have fallen in and spent a year there, the wave throws them out: the murderers are sent down the Cocytus, and those who have killed their parents are sent down the Pyriphlegethon. When they are burning in the Acherusian lake, they cry out and call for those they have killed or insulted, begging to be allowed to escape into the lake. If they persuade them, they come out and end their suffering; but if not, they are taken back into Tartarus and then again into the rivers. They suffer these things until they persuade those they have wronged, for this is the punishment set for them by the judges.

⁶ Those who seem to live very differently in a righteous way are the ones who are freed from these places on earth, just like prisoners. They reach the pure dwelling above and live on earth. Among them, those who are sufficiently cleansed by philosophy live without toil forever into the future, and they reach even more beautiful homes than these, which are not easy to describe, and there is not enough time to do so in the present. But for the sake of these things, we must, oh Simmias, do everything we can to share in virtue and wisdom in life, for the prize is beautiful and the hope is great.

⁷ This is what Plato says. You should add to the part, "and they reach even more beautiful homes, which are not easy to describe, and there is not enough time to do so in the present," the following: "for no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, what God has prepared for those who love him."

⁸ In the mentioned dwellings, many homes are promised by the Father to those who love God. Concerning the Pyriphlegethon, it is said that there is an eternal fire prepared for the wicked. According to the Hebrew prophet who speaks to them, "Who will announce to you that fire is burning? Who will announce to you the eternal place?" And again, "Their worm will not die, and the fire will not be quenched, and they will be a sight for all flesh."

⁹ Notice that Plato agrees with this, saying that the wicked will go to Tartarus, adding, "from where they will never escape." And again, speaking of the righteous, he says they will live in happiness, adding, "always and into the future." But also, what he says about living without toil would be similar to "pain and sorrow and sighing have fled away."

¹⁰ He says that those going to Acheron do not simply arrive there, but first ascend to what are their vehicles. What do these vehicles mean, or are they the bodies into which the souls of the dead are taken to be judged according to what is prescribed by the Hebrews? For I will take enough of this discussion to move on to the twelfth book of the Evangelical Preparation.

Book 12, Section 1

The twelfth book will now show how the earlier ideas of Plato agree with the words of the Hebrews, like the harmony of a lyre. It will begin with a defense of our faith, which many have spoken against.

² So, whether someone rightly criticizes the Spartan and Cretan ways of life or not, that would be a different matter. What most people say, I might be more inclined to discuss with both of you. For if the laws are made reasonably, one of the best laws would be not to seek any new ones, whether they are good or not. Instead, everyone should agree with one voice and one mouth that everything is well arranged by the gods. And if someone says otherwise, they should not be listened to at all. But if an elder understands something from you, they should not speak such words in front of a ruler or someone older than a young person. You speak very rightly, O stranger.

³ It is fitting that the writings of the Hebrews, which come before the divine scriptures, place faith first, as it says, "If you do not believe, you will not understand." And again, "I believed, so I spoke."

⁴ From this, among us, for those who are just being introduced and have an incomplete understanding, the reading of the divine scriptures is presented more simply, along with the need to believe as the words of God instruct. But for those who have advanced in understanding and are older, they are allowed to deepen their thoughts and examine the meaning of what is said. For these, it was common for the Hebrews to call them "second teachers," as if they were interpreters and explainers of the meaning of the scriptures.

Book 12, Section 2

Then, after these things, we might say that you, O Tyrtaeus, praise most of all those who are renowned in foreign and outside wars. Would he say this somewhere and agree? What do you think?

² But we say that, while these things are good, those who are the best in the greatest war are even better. We have a witness in the poet Theognis, a citizen of the Megarians in Sicily, who says that a faithful man is worthy to resist gold and silver in a difficult situation, O Kyrne, when there is division.

³ We say that in a more difficult war, this person becomes much better than that one, almost as much as justice, moderation, and wisdom come together with courage alone. For a faithful and strong person in conflicts can never be without all virtue. Tyrtaeus says that many among the mercenaries fight well and are willing to die in battle, but most of them become bold, unjust, arrogant, and almost all are foolish, except for very few who are truly good.

⁴ Where does this speech end for us now? And what does he want to make clear by saying these things? It is clear that, more than anything else, the lawgiver from Zeus, always looking toward the greatest virtue, will set the laws with great benefit. And, as Theognis says, this faithfulness in difficult times is what one might call perfect justice.

⁵ And among us, the saving message connects wisdom with faith, which is shaped by both sides of his words, saying, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager?" And again, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a little, I will set you over much." Clearly, in these words, he does not present blind faith, but faith linked with the greatest virtues, if indeed such wisdom and goodness exist.

Book 12, Section 3

For it seems to me that we are about to discuss the earlier words, as the souls of those who have died have some power and take care of human affairs. These things are true, but the words are lengthy and cover a lot. It is necessary to believe in the other sayings about such matters, which are many and very old, and to accept that these things are true according to the lawgivers, unless they seem completely foolish.

² And in the book of the Maccabees, it is said that the prophet Jeremiah, after leaving this life, prayed to be seen for the people, showing care for the people on earth. And Plato also says that it is necessary to believe these things.

Book 12, Section 4

There are two kinds of words: the true and the false. Yes. But should we teach both, starting with the false? I do not understand, he said, how you say this. You do not understand, I replied, that first we tell stories to children. This is somewhat like saying that the whole is a falsehood, but there are also truths in it. Should we use myths with children or with the educated first? These things are true.

² These are the things Plato says. Among the Hebrews, it is a custom to teach the stories of the divine writings to young children in a simpler way, like certain myths. But to those who are educated, they provide deeper and more serious teachings through what is called clarification and the revealing of hidden meanings.

Book 12, Section 5

Do you not know that the beginning of every great work is very important, especially for a young and impressionable person? For at that time, a form is shaped and taken on, which anyone may wish to mark for each individual.

² Therefore, we should be careful. Should we easily let the children hear the created myths and take them into their souls as if they were very different beliefs, which we will think they should hold once they are fully formed?

³ We should not allow this at all. First, it seems to us that we must oversee the storytellers. We should approve the beautiful myths they create, but reject those that are not good. We will encourage those who are approved to tell the stories to the children and to shape their souls with the myths much more than their bodies with their hands. Many of the stories that are spoken of now should be discarded.

⁴ These things were preserved by the Hebrews before Plato. Those who have a divine spirit, a discerning spirit, tested what was said and written correctly and from the holy spirit, and they rejected what did not meet these standards, just as they did with the words of false prophets. For little children, the most helpful stories from the divine writings, like certain myths, were commonly told by parents and caregivers as preparation for the reverence toward the gods that would come to them as they grew into men.

Book 12, Section 6

"Listen then," they say, "to a very beautiful word. You might think it is a myth, but I believe it is a true word; for I will tell you about things that are real."

² "And after a little while, the one who lived justly and piously, when he dies, will go to the islands of the blessed, living in complete happiness, free from evils. But the one who lived unjustly and without respect will go to the place of punishment and justice, which is called Tartarus."

³ "And again, after a little while, all of these must be judged naked; for the dead must be judged. The judge must also be naked, seeing the soul of each person who suddenly dies, alone without any relatives and leaving behind everything from this world on earth, so that the judgment may be fair."

⁴ "And from here, I present this: 'These are the things, oh Callicles, that I have heard and believe to be true. From these words, I think the following follows: death is, as it seems to me, nothing more than the separation of two things, the soul and the body, from each other.'"

⁵ "But when they are separated, each one still retains its own nature, just as it had when the person was alive. The body has its own nature, along with all its traits and conditions, clearly visible. For example, if someone had a large body by nature or due to food, or both, while living, then even after death, that person's body remains large. If they were fat, they are still fat after death, and the same goes for others."

⁶ "And if he was used to having long hair, the dead person will have long hair too. If he had scars from whips on his body, which he received while alive, those scars will still be visible after death. If any of his limbs were broken or twisted while living, they will still be broken or twisted after death."

⁷ "In short, whatever the body was like while living, all those things are clearly visible after death, or for a long time. It seems to me that the same is true for the soul, oh Callicles. All things are clearly present in the soul when it is separated from the body, including its nature and the experiences that each person had while alive."

⁸ "When they arrive before the judge, those from Asia go to Rhadamanthus, who examines each soul, not knowing whose it is. But often, he seizes the great king or some other ruler and sees nothing healthy in the soul. Instead, it is beaten and full of wounds from lies and injustice, which each action has marked on it. Everything is twisted by falsehood and arrogance, and nothing is straight because it has grown without truth. He sees the soul filled with the excesses of power, luxury, arrogance, and lack of self-control, as well as the imbalance and shame of its actions. After seeing this, he sends it away without honor, for it is about to face the fitting punishments."

⁹ "It is right for anyone who is being punished by another to be justly punished or to become better, or to serve as an example for others. This way, others who see what they are suffering may become afraid and improve."

¹⁰ "There are those who are both helped and punished by gods and humans, those who commit wrongs that can be healed. However, their benefit comes through pain and suffering, both here and in Hades, for it is not possible to be freed in any other way."

¹¹ "But those who commit the worst injustices and become incurable because of these wrongs serve as examples. These individuals no longer gain any benefit, as they are beyond healing, while others learn by witnessing them suffer the greatest, most painful, and most terrifying punishments for all time. They are clearly shown as examples in Hades, in the prison, for those who continually arrive to see the fates and warnings of the unjust."

¹² "I say this to show that Archelaus will be like this if Polus is telling the truth, as will anyone else who is a tyrant like him. I also believe there are many examples of this among tyrants, kings, and rulers, as well as those who act in cities; for these individuals commit the greatest and most wicked wrongs because of their power."

¹³ "Homer also supports this idea. He created kings and rulers in Hades who are always being punished, like Tantalus, Sisyphus, and Tityus. But for Thersites, and anyone else who was a wicked commoner, no one made him suffer great punishments as if he were beyond healing; for I believe it was not possible for him. Therefore, he was happier than those who were punished."

¹⁴ "But truly, oh Callicles, among those who have power, there are also very wicked people. However, this does not stop good men from being born among them; and they are truly worthy of great admiration. For it is difficult, oh Callicles, and deserving of much praise, to live justly while having the great power to do wrong. But very few become such people; for both here and elsewhere, I believe there will be other good individuals who will manage this virtue of acting justly as long as someone allows it."

¹⁵ "And indeed, Aristides the son of Lysimachus has become very respected among the other Greeks. But most people, oh best one, become wicked. As for the judges, what I was saying is that when Rhadamanthus catches someone like this, he knows nothing else about them—neither who they are nor what they have done—except that they are wicked. And seeing this, he sends them down to Tartarus, deciding whether they seem to be curable or incurable."

¹⁶ "But when he arrives there, he suffers what is appropriate. Sometimes, when he sees another soul that has lived rightly and truthfully—especially, as I say, oh Callicles, the soul of a philosopher who has acted for himself and not meddled in others' affairs—he is honored and sent to the islands of the blessed."

¹⁷ "The same is true for Aeacus; each of them judges with a staff. Minos, however, sits alone, watching, holding a golden scepter. As Odysseus says in Homer, he sees him with a golden scepter, giving laws to the dead."

¹⁸ "I am convinced, oh Callicles, by these words, and I look for a way to show the judge that my soul is the healthiest. Therefore, setting aside the honors of most people, I will practice the truth, trying to be the best I can, both in living and, when I die, in dying."

¹⁹ "I also urge all other people, as much as I can. Indeed, I especially urge you to this life and this struggle, which I believe is greater than all the contests here."

²⁰ "And I blame you for not being able to help yourself when the trial and judgment are against you, as I just mentioned. But when you go to that judge, the son of Aegina, if he takes hold of you, you will yawn and feel dizzy just like I do here and you do there. He might even strike you if someone insults you and treats you poorly."

²¹ "Perhaps you think these words are just stories, like those told by an old woman, and you look down on them. It wouldn't be surprising to dismiss these ideas if we could find better and truer ones."

²² "Now you see that you three—who are the wisest of the Greeks today, you, Polos, and Gorgias—cannot prove that anyone should live a different life than this one, which seems better over there. But in this discussion, while the others are being challenged, this idea alone stands firm, saying that it is wiser to avoid doing wrong than to be wronged, and that a person should focus not on appearing good, but on being good, both in private and in public."

²³ "Indeed, Plato suggested that Aeacus, Minos, and Rhadamanthus would be judges of the dead. However, the divine word tells us that everyone must stand before the throne of God, and each person will bring with them what they did in their life, whether good or bad."

²⁴ "And again, on the day when God judges the hidden things of people, he will give each person what they deserve based on their actions. To those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through patience in doing good, he will grant eternal life. But to those who are selfish and do not believe in the truth, who are led astray by wrongdoing, there will be anger, wrath, trouble, and distress for every person who does evil, both Jew first and Greek; for there is no distinction."

Book 12, Section 7

"Be careful that these ideas do not fall into the hands of uneducated people; for, as it seems to me, there is nothing more laughable to the masses than these, nor is there anything more wonderful and inspiring to the wise. Often repeated and always heard, and for many years, like gold, they are refined through much effort."

Book 12, Section 8

"And among us, the saving word says, 'Do not give what is holy to dogs, nor throw your pearls before pigs.' For the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; they are foolishness to him. Indeed, when a man, who is wise in spirit, does nothing more and instead does the opposite, I would consider all these kinds of ignorance to be the most serious, both for the city and for each citizen, but not for the creators, if you would understand what I am saying, O strangers. We are learning, my friend, and we agree with what you say."

² "Let this then be established and said in such a way that nothing should be allowed for those citizens who are ignorant of these things, and that they should be blamed for their ignorance, even if they are very logical and skilled in all things that relate to the quickness of the soul. But those who hold the opposite views should be called wise, even if they do not know letters or music, and the principles should be given as if they are wise."

³ "For how, my friends, could there be even the smallest kind of understanding without agreement? It cannot be. But the most beautiful and greatest of agreements could rightly be called wisdom, where one person lives according to reason, while the other, being left behind, becomes a destroyer and is in no way a savior for the city. Instead, he becomes more ignorant of these things each time."

⁴ "Let these things be established for me from the Laws. The same person also says in the Politics that one should not pay too much attention to names and words. He says, 'Well said, Socrates; if you manage to avoid focusing on names, you will seem richer in understanding as you grow older.'"

Book 12, Section 9

"When Moses first introduced the writings among the Hebrews, he asked to be excused from leading the people. To the one who was providing for him, he said, 'I beg you, Lord, choose another who is able, whom you will send.' Then there was Saul, hiding so that he would not accept the kingship, and the prophet Jeremiah, who also asked to be excused. Listen to how Plato supports the reasonableness of such excuses, saying this."

² "Therefore, O Thrasymachus, it is already clear that no art or authority prepares what is beneficial for itself. Instead, as we said before, it prepares and commands what is for the benefit of the one being ruled, focusing on what is less important, and not on what is for the greater good."

³ "Because of this, my friend Thrasymachus, I just said that no one wants to willingly rule and deal with the troubles of others to fix them. Instead, they ask for a reward. The one who is going to act well in their craft never does what is best for themselves, nor do they command according to their craft, but rather for the benefit of the one being ruled. For this reason, it seems that there must be a reward for those who are willing to rule, whether it is money, honor, or punishment if they do not rule."

Book 12, Section 10

"Among the Hebrews, the writings teach that the prophets and righteous men bravely endure the worst insults and all dangers. You can learn about this from the songs of Plato and his ideas on this topic in these very words, which are found in the second book of the Republic."

² "Now, let us present the just man as he describes, a simple and noble man, who does not appear to be good according to Aeschylus, but rather wants to be good. We must set aside the appearance of goodness. For if he seems to be just, he will receive honors and gifts that make him appear that way. It is unclear whether he is truly just or if he is seen as such because of the gifts and honors."

³ "Let him be stripped of everything except justice, and let him be in a state opposite to what he was before. He should not have the appearance of wrongdoing, which is the greatest injustice, so that he may be pushed toward justice, without being influenced by bad opinions and the things that come from them. But let him remain steadfast until death, appearing to be unjust throughout his life, while actually being just."

⁴ "And after a short while, he adds, 'So let us speak. And indeed, even if it is said more roughly, do not think that I am speaking about myself, Socrates, but about those who praise injustice instead of justice. They will say this: that in this state, the just man will be whipped, twisted, bound, and have his eyes gouged out. After suffering all these evils, he will be shown to not be just, but will want to seem that way.'"

⁵ "These are the words of Plato. But in actions, much earlier, I see that among the Hebrews, the just and the prophets are remembered for having suffered all these things. They, being the most just, were treated as the most unjust. They were stoned, sawed in half, and died by the sword. They wandered in sheepskins and goatskins, lacking what they needed, troubled, and mistreated, roaming in deserts, mountains, caves, and the holes of the earth, of whom the world was not worthy."

⁶ "And the apostles of our savior, while sharing in the highest justice and piety, were surrounded by the appearance of injustice among many. What they suffered is clear from their words: 'We have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men.' And 'until this very hour, we hunger and thirst, we are naked, we are beaten, and we wander. When we are insulted, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we encourage. We have become like the scum of the world.'"

⁷ "But even here, the noble witnesses of our savior throughout the whole world do not seek to seem just, but to be just and pious, suffering all that Plato has described. For they were whipped, endured chains and torture, and even had their eyes cut out. Finally, after suffering all these terrible things, they were revealed. Among the Greeks, you would find no one comparable to them, as it is reasonable to say that the philosopher has nothing else to say about those among us who excel in piety and true justice."

Book 12, Section 11

"Moses, in some hidden words, said that at the beginning of the world's creation, God made a paradise, and in this paradise, man was deceived by the serpent through the woman. Plato, changing only the words, responded in the Symposium, where he himself presented allegories. Instead of God's paradise, he named a garden of Zeus, and instead of the serpent and the deception that happened, he suggested a plot of Poverty. Instead of the first man, whom God's wisdom and providence had just brought forth, he called the son of Metis, Poros. And instead of saying that when this world was formed, Aphrodite came into being, he spoke of the world as an allegory for the beauty around it. Therefore, he says to them these words."

² "When Aphrodite was born, the gods were feasting, including the son of Metis, Poros. After they had dined, while the feast was going on, Poverty arrived and stood by the doors. So, Poros, being drunk from the nectar (for there was no wine yet), entered the garden of Zeus and fell asleep. Poverty, wanting to create a child with Poros because of her own lack, lay down beside him and conceived Eros." In this way, Plato hinted at something similar to Moses.

Book 12, Section 12

"Again, Moses said, 'But for Adam, there was not found a helper suitable for him. And God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept, and took one of his ribs and filled up the flesh in its place. And the Lord God made the rib that he had taken from Adam into a woman.' Plato, knowing this saying, clearly shows that he understood its meaning. However, Aristophanes, as is usual for him in comedy, mocks and presents serious matters in the Symposium, saying these things while introducing him."

² "You must first learn about human nature and its feelings. Our nature was not the same in the past as it is now; it was different. Originally, there were three kinds of humans, not just the two we have now, male and female, but a third kind that was common to both. This kind no longer has a name and has disappeared. There used to be a being called androgynous, which was a form and name shared by both male and female."

³ "Then, continuing, he spoke about the usual things: 'After saying this, Zeus cut humans in two, just as one cuts the ears of grain and prepares to preserve them, or just as those who cut eggs with hair. For whoever he cut, he ordered Apollo to turn the face around and to make half of the neck face the cut, thinking that the person would be more beautiful with this division, and he ordered the rest to be healed.'"

Book 12, Section 13

"Moses, after describing the life of the first humans as being in the paradise of God, says that they lived without wealth and in a place without ownership, that everything grew without being planted, and that they were naked without any clothing. Listen to the philosopher, who alone translates these things into Greek. He says therefore..."

² "God himself provided for them, just as humans do now, being a different kind of living being, while other lesser kinds were ruled by them. At that time, there were no cities or possessions of women and children; for all lived from the earth, not remembering anything from before. But all such things were absent, and they had abundant fruits from trees and plenty of wood, not grown by farming, but given freely by the earth. They were naked and without beds, mostly living in the open. For the seasons brought them no trouble, and they had soft beds made from the abundant grass that grew from the earth. So, Socrates, you hear about the life of those in the time of Cronus; this one, as the story goes, is said to be in the time of Zeus, which you yourself have experienced."

Book 12, Section 14

"Again, after Moses wrote that the serpent was wiser than all the animals, he described what the serpent said to the woman and what the woman said to the serpent, explaining their conversations. Plato writes something similar; listen."

² "If then the followers of Cronus, having so much leisure and power, were able to communicate not only with humans but also with animals through words, they used all of this for philosophy. They talked with both animals and each other, asking all of nature if anyone had a special ability to sense something different from the others in gathering wisdom. It is clear that those in the past were very different from those now when it comes to happiness."

³ "If they were filled with food and drink, talking with each other and telling stories about the animals, just as they are said to do even now, then it seems very clear to me to say this. However, let us set these things aside until a capable messenger appears to tell us whether they had desires for knowledge and the need for words at that time."

Book 12, Section 15

"Moses, having established laws for humans, thought it was necessary to include ancient history in the introductions. He mentions the flood and the life of humans afterward, then the deeds of ancient men who were beloved by God among the Hebrews. He also discusses the governance of others who were examined for their wrongdoings. He believed that the history he organized about these matters would be suitable for those he was legislating."

² "And Plato, likewise, when he approached the writing of the laws, followed the same path as Moses. In the introductions of the Laws, he refers to ancient history, mentioning the flood and the life after it. Starting from the third book of the Laws, listen to what he says: 'Do the ancient stories seem to have some truth to you? Which ones? That many humans have perished due to floods, diseases, and many other things, leaving only a small part of humanity. Indeed, such a thing seems very likely to everyone.'"

³ "Come then, let us consider one of the many, the one that happened during the flood. What should we think about it? It's as if those who escaped destruction were like mountain dwellers, living on the peaks where a small part of the saved human race remained. It is clear."

⁴ "And indeed, such people must have lacked many skills, as well as the tools in the cities that worked against each other out of greed and rivalry, along with all the other kinds of evil they thought up against one another. This seems likely. Let us say that the cities in the plains and those by the sea were completely destroyed at that time. Let us say this. Therefore, all tools would have been lost, and if there was any skill that had been carefully developed, whether in politics or in some other form of wisdom, we can say that all of these were swept away at that time."

⁵ "And after this, he says, 'Therefore, let us say that at that time, when destruction occurred, the situation for humans was a terrible emptiness, and the land was filled with abundance.'"

⁶ "After saying these things and others like them, he goes on to discuss the lives of people after the flood. Just as Moses connects the way of life of the ancient, God-fearing Hebrews with what comes after the flood, Plato similarly tries to explore the lives of the ancient Greeks after the flood, just as Moses does for the Hebrews. He mentions those at Troy, the first way of life in Laconia, the Persians, and those nearby, whether they lived rightly or not. Then, after this history, he begins the discussion of the laws, following along with Moses."

Book 12, Section 16

"Moses, in all his laws and the way of life he established for the worship of the one true God, the creator of all, laid the foundation of the law. He taught that divine goods come down to humans and directed the mind toward the ruler of all, that is, the God of everything. Following this path, the philosopher criticizes the laws of the Cretans and Spartans but teaches the law that pleases Moses, saying it this way."

² "Where then would I want to speak, and you to listen? Do you want me to explain? Certainly, my friend. It should be said that the laws of the Cretans are not in vain, as they are well-respected by all the Greeks. For they rightly make those who follow them happy, since they provide all good things."

³ "There are two kinds of goods: human and divine. The human goods depend on the divine. If a city receives the greater goods, it also gains the lesser ones; but if it does not, it lacks both. The lesser goods include health, beauty as the second, and strength for running and all other movements of the body as the third. The fourth is wealth, which should not be blind but clear-sighted, if it follows wisdom."

⁴ "The first of the divine goods that leads is wisdom. The second is a wise state of the soul. From these, with courage, the third would be justice, and the fourth is bravery. All these are naturally arranged before the others, and indeed, they should be arranged this way by the lawmaker."

⁵ "After these, the other rules should be given to the citizens, focusing on these matters. The human goods should lead to the divine, and the divine should be guided by the wisdom of the whole leader."

⁶ "Regarding marriages between individuals, and then in the births and care of children, both boys and girls, while they are young and as they grow older into old age, it is important to honor them properly and not to dishonor them. In all their gatherings, one should carefully consider and protect their sorrows, pleasures, and desires, and fairly blame or praise them according to those laws."

⁷ "And after a little while, he says, 'The one who established the laws will appoint guardians over all these, some through wisdom and others through true understanding, so that by bringing all these together, the mind will follow moderation and justice, not wealth or ambition.'"

⁸ "So, O strangers, I would like you, and I still want you now, to explain how the laws said to be from Zeus, and those of Pythian Apollo, which Minos and Lycurgus established, are all connected. I also want to know how the order taken is clearly shown by the experienced knowledge of laws and certain customs, while for the others, it is not clear to us at all."

⁹ "And among us, it has been said, 'Seek first the kingdom and its righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.' But even Moses, much earlier, laid the foundation for teaching about God. He also applied the laws concerning his own government and the rules about agreements and common life, appointing as rulers and guardians those who are dedicated to God, as the teachings say: just men who hate pride, some through wisdom and others through true understanding."

Book 12, Section 17

"I say then, and I affirm that any good man who is going to be such should practice this from childhood, both playing and studying in matters that are suitable for each. For example, the one who is going to be a good farmer or builder should play with small models of buildings, while the one who is going to farm should prepare small tools that are true copies of the real ones. He should also learn all the necessary lessons beforehand, like measuring for a carpenter or weighing, and practice riding for a soldier, or doing something else similar. He should try to guide the pleasures and desires of the children so that they reach their proper end."

² "We call the main point of education the proper nourishment, which guides the soul to love what is most important. This is necessary for a man to become perfect in the virtue of his actions."

³ "And having anticipated this, Moses established the law, saying, 'And these words that I command you today shall be in your heart and in your soul, and you shall teach them to your children.' This is what Hebrew children are accustomed to, being raised from a young age in the teachings of reverence for God. This is also practiced here as a traditional custom among the Jewish people."

Book 12, Section 18

"Therefore, let us not allow what we call education to become unclear. Right now, while we are criticizing, we praise each person's upbringing, saying that one person is educated while another is uneducated, sometimes referring to those who are very skilled in trades like shops and shipbuilding. It seems that these skills are not considered true education in this discussion. Instead, we should focus on the education that leads to virtue, which inspires a citizen to become perfect and teaches them how to both lead and be led with fairness."

² "This speech, having defined this kind of nourishment, seems to me to recognize only this education as true. The education that leads to wealth, strength, or some other skill without reason and justice is both lowly and unworthy of being called education at all."

³ "But let us not differ even in name. Instead, let this agreement we have reached stand: those who are truly educated become nearly good. We must not dishonor education anywhere, as it is the most important of the finest things for the best people. If it ever goes wrong, it can be corrected; this is something we should always strive for throughout our lives, as much as we can."

⁴ "And in the second book of the Laws, it says, 'I call education the first thing that brings virtue to children. Pleasure, friendship, pain, and hatred, if they arise correctly in the souls of those who cannot yet understand reason, will lead them to agree with reason when they do understand it. They will then be shaped properly by the right customs. This agreement is the essence of virtue, and it is about pleasures and pains that it is rightly trained. One should hate what should be hated from the very beginning to the end, and love what should be loved. This, in essence, would rightly be called education according to my understanding.'"

⁵ "These ideas are from Plato. However, David, who came before him in his psalms, teaches us to hate what should be hated and to love what should be loved. He says, 'Come, children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Who is the person who wants life and loves to see good days? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.'"

⁶ "And Solomon similarly says, 'Listen, children, to your father's teaching. For I give you a good gift; do not forget my laws.' And again, 'Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget them.' And 'I said that wisdom is your sister, and understanding is a friend you should keep close.' And 'Do not walk in the ways of the wicked, nor envy the paths of the lawless.' You would find many other similar teachings in the writings of the Hebrews, which are educational for the pursuit of piety and virtue, suitable for both young and mature people."

Book 12, Section 19

"When the divine oracle said to Moses, 'See, you shall make everything according to the pattern shown to you on the mountain,' the sacred word more clearly states that those who served the heavenly things did so by a model and shadow. It teaches that the symbols given by Moses contain an image of the divine things in the spiritual realm. Listen to how Plato explains similar ideas in the sixth book of the Republic, writing in this way."

² "Indeed, the philosopher, when speaking of God and the world, becomes as orderly and divine as possible for a human. However, there is much slander everywhere."

³ "Therefore, if someone, I said, has to study the things he sees there and apply them to the behavior of people both privately and publicly, not just to shape himself, do you think he will become a bad creator of self-control, justice, and all public virtue? Certainly not, he said."

⁴ "But if the many feel that we speak the truth about him, they will become angry with the philosophers and distrust us, saying that a city could never be happy unless those who use the divine model as their guide create it."

⁵ "They do not become angry," he said, "even if they sense it. But what kind of drawing do you mean? I said, just as if they were creating a picture of a city and the behavior of its people, they would first make it pure, which is not very easy."

⁶ "But you know that they would immediately involve the others, who would not want to touch a private person or a city, nor write laws, until they received it in a pure form, or created it themselves."

⁷ "And rightly so," he said. "So, after this, do you think they would write down the structure of the city? Why not?"

⁸ "Then, I think, by working carefully, they would consider both what is naturally just, beautiful, and wise, as well as what is found in humans. They would mix and blend from their practices the image of a strong character, judging from that, which indeed Homer called a god-like and god-resembling quality that arises in humans."

⁹ "Rightly so," he said. "I think they would erase some things, but they would also write down others, as long as they could make human customs as god-like as possible."

Book 12, Section 20

"I think the third or fourth argument is returning to the same point: that education is indeed the guiding and leading force towards the correct law stated by the law. It is connected through experience to the most just and oldest people, as it truly is correct."

² "Therefore, so that the soul of the father does not get used to rejoicing and grieving against the law and those set by it, it should instead join in rejoicing and grieving with the same things as the old man. This is for the sake of those things we call songs, which are truly songs that have now come to the souls, leading towards the harmony we speak of. However, because young souls cannot bear the effort, they are treated as children and songs. This is similar to how those who are weary and weak in body try to provide proper food for those who care for them, while they embrace bad food in unpleasant ways, getting used to rightly hating one and loving the other."

³ "Likewise, the correct lawmaker will persuade and compel the poet with beautiful and praiseworthy words to create the forms of wise, brave, and all good men in rhythms and melodies. Therefore, it is fitting that our children become accustomed to studying the songs made by the divine prophets and the hymns to God."

Book 12, Section 21

"You force the poets to say that the good man, who is wise and just, is happy and blessed, whether he is great and strong or small and weak, and whether he is rich or not. But if he is rich, like Cinyras and Midas, and is unjust, then he is wretched and lives in misery."

² "And the poet says to you, if he speaks correctly, 'I would not even mention a man who does not do all the things that are beautifully said with justice. Indeed, being such a man, he would not dare to stand nearby and desire to see bloodshed or to defeat the Thracian Boreas. Nor would anything good that is said ever happen to him. For the good things said by many are not said correctly.'"

³ "For it is said that the best thing is to be healthy, the second is beauty, and the third is wealth. Many other good things are also mentioned. It is good to see clearly and to hear well, and to have all the senses working well. Moreover, it is also good to do whatever one desires with power. Indeed, the ultimate goal of all happiness is to have all these things and to become immortal as quickly as possible."

⁴ "But you and I say that all these things are the best possessions for just and holy men, and the worst for unjust men, starting from health. Indeed, both seeing and hearing and feeling, as well as living at all, are the greatest evils for a person who is immortal and has all the good things that are mentioned, except for justice and all virtue. It is less so if such a person lives only for a very short time."

⁵ "I think that the poets among you say these things, just as I do, and you will persuade and encourage them. You will also teach your young people by giving them rhythms and harmonies that follow these ideas. Do you see? I clearly say that the things called bad are good for the unjust but bad for the just. And the things called good are truly good for the good but bad for the bad. So, I ask, do you and I agree, or what do you think?"

⁶ "These ideas are not far from the Psalms of David, which he composed with divine inspiration through songs and hymns, teaching what a truly blessed person is and what the opposite is. The book begins by saying, 'Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,' and similar phrases. Plato, changing these ideas, says that poets should express, 'The good man, being wise and just, is happy and blessed; but if he is unjust, he is wretched.' David also shares this in his Psalms, saying, 'If wealth flows, do not set your heart on it.' And again, 'Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, and when his house's glory increases.' You would find each of these ideas written throughout the entire sacred text of the Psalms."

Book 12, Section 22

"It is indeed legislative and political, but you would find other bad things there. However, what is said about music is true and worthy of consideration: it is possible to confidently create laws about such things, using melodies that offer natural correctness. This would come from a god or some divine person."

² "It is likely that among the Hebrews, no other hymns and songs were accepted in their divine teachings except those created by divine inspiration through divine and prophetic men, along with melodies that were appropriate for them, sung in their usual way."

Book 12, Section 23

"I agree with many that music should be judged by how pleasurable it is, but it should not only be about what is popular. Instead, it should be regarded as the most beautiful muse, which delights the best and most educated lawmakers, especially one that stands out for its virtue and education."

² "For this reason, we say that the judges of these matters must possess virtue, as they should also have a sense of wisdom and especially courage."

³ "For a true judge should not judge while still learning and being disturbed by the noise of the crowd and their own lack of education. Nor should he recognize weakness and cowardice from the same mouth that calls upon the gods. If he is to judge, he may easily give a false judgment. For he is not a student, but a teacher, as is right. The judge sits among the spectators and opposes those who do not provide pleasure properly or rightly."

⁴ "And among the Hebrews, it was not the crowd that judged those who spoke words from the divine spirit and the inspired songs; rather, such judges were few and rare. They themselves shared in the divine spirit that helped them distinguish the spoken words, and only they had the authority to approve and set apart the books of the prophets, while rejecting those of others who were not like them."

Book 12, Section 24

"And just as the word was intended in ancient times to show the well-spoken help of the chorus of Dionysus, it has been said to be powerful. Let us see if this has happened in this way. The gathering is indeed noisy, as it must be, because of the need for drink, and it continues to grow louder, which we mentioned at the beginning must happen regarding what is now being said. Necessity."

² "Everyone indeed feels lighter in spirit and is filled with joy and boldness, and they are unrestrained in such a gathering. But a capable leader believes he has become worthy of himself and of others. What then?"

³ "Therefore, we said that when these things happen, like iron, the souls of those drinking become softer and younger. This makes it fitting for the strong and knowledgeable to teach and shape them, just as they did when they were young."

⁴ "This creator is the same as before, the good lawmaker, whose laws should focus on drinking. He allows the hopeful and brave person to become even more shameless than necessary. He does not want to maintain order or the proper silence in speech, drinking, and music, but wishes to do the opposite. When entering the unworthy, he encourages the most beautiful to confront fear, which we have called a divine fear of respect and shame. These things exist. Among these laws, the guardians and co-creators are those who are calm and sober."

⁵ "Therefore, it is fitting for us to sing songs and hymns dedicated to the god at our drinking parties, while the guardians of our proper order take care of everything."

Book 12, Section 25

"If a city takes this matter seriously and uses the mentioned practice with laws and order for the sake of moderation, without giving up other pleasures in the same way and for the same reason, it should apply this method to everyone. But if it acts like a child, then it will allow anyone to drink whenever they want and with whomever they want, along with any other activities. I would not suggest this law, that anyone should ever drink in this city or with this man. Instead, I would prefer to add to the needs of the Cretans and Spartans rather than follow the law of the Carthaginians, which states that no one should ever taste this drink while in camp, but should only drink water during that time. In the city, neither a slave nor a free person should ever taste it, nor should the rulers of the year, nor active governors or judges ever drink wine at all. No one who comes to the council for any serious matter should drink, nor should anyone drink during the day unless it is for exercise or illness, nor at night when someone might think about having children, whether man or woman. Many other points could be made, that for those who have a sound mind and good laws, wine should never be consumed. So, according to this reasoning, there would be no need for many vineyards in any city, and all other matters would focus on farming and the overall way of life."

² And Moses, knowing that priests should not drink wine during their service, establishes a law saying, "And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, 'You and your sons shall not drink wine or strong drink when you enter the tent of meeting, so that you do not die; this is a lasting law for your generations.'" He also sets a rule for those who pray, saying, "If a man or woman makes a great vow, they shall be cleansed for the Lord from wine and strong drink." They shall not drink vinegar made from wine or vinegar made from strong drink. Solomon also forbids rulers and judges from drinking, saying, "Do everything with counsel; drink wine with counsel. For rulers are fierce; let them not drink wine, lest they forget wisdom and their duties." And the apostle allows Timothy to drink a little wine for his stomach and frequent illnesses.

Book 12, Section 26

"If there is a need for a city to pay attention to philosophy, whether this has happened in the endless past, is happening now in some foreign place far from our view, or will happen later, let us be ready to discuss this matter. Just as the mentioned city has come to be, is, and will be when the Muse of the city becomes strong. For it is not impossible for this to happen, nor do we speak of impossible things."

Book 12, Section 27

"Should he think of himself as a warrior against an enemy, or how else should we speak? O foreign Athenian, I would not want to greet you, for you seem to me more worthy to be called by the name of the god. By correctly bringing the argument to the beginning, you have made it clearer. If you search, you will find that it has indeed been rightly said by us that everyone is an enemy to everyone, both in public and in private."

² "How have you said this, O wonderful one? And here, O stranger, to conquer oneself is the first and best of all victories, but to be defeated by oneself is the most shameful and the worst of all defeats. For these things show that in each of us, there is a war against ourselves."

³ "And besides these things, he adds by saying, 'Shall we not consider each one of us as one?' Yes. But if we have two things within ourselves, opposing and foolish, as we call pleasure and pain? These things exist. For both of these, the common name is hope, while the specific names are fear, which is hope before pain, and courage, which is hope before the opposite. And over all these, there is reasoning about which of them is better or worse, which, when it becomes a belief, is called the common law of the city."

⁴ "And from here he says, 'This we know: these passions within us are like nerves or certain strings that pull us and each other in opposing directions toward opposing actions, where virtue and vice are defined. For the argument says that one must always follow these pulls and never leave behind what draws us to the other strings. This is the golden and sacred guidance of reasoning, which is called the common law of the city, while the others are harsh and iron-like. The soft one, being golden, should be compared to the others of various kinds. One must always grasp the most beautiful guidance of the law; for when reasoning is good, gentle, and not forceful, it needs helpers for its guidance, so that the golden nature within us may conquer the other natures. And thus, concerning wonders as they exist, a myth of virtue would be preserved, and it would become clear in some way that what is better is better and what is worse is worse, both for the city and for the individual, with the true argument taking hold within oneself about these pulls, and one must live following this.'"

⁵ "And a city, whether from some god or from this very one who knows, would accept this argument, establishing a law to connect itself with others and with the other cities. In this way, vice and virtue would be more clearly defined for us."

⁶ "And among us, the divine teaching says, 'I agree with the law of God according to the inner person, but I see another law in my thoughts that opposes the law of my mind.' And again, 'Among each other, the thoughts accuse or defend themselves,' along with many other similar things."

Book 12, Section 28

"We remember, indeed, that we agreed earlier that if the soul appears older than the body, then the things of the soul would also be older than those of the body. Absolutely. The ways, habits, intentions, thoughts, and true beliefs would be careful considerations and memories that have developed over time in terms of length, width, depth, and strength of bodies, if indeed the soul belongs to the body. It is necessary."

² "Is it then necessary to agree that the soul is the cause of good things as well as bad, beautiful, and shameful things, both just and unjust, and of all opposites, if we are to make it the cause of everything? And let these ideas be taken from the tenth book of the Laws. Moses also supports this many times in the laws, saying, 'And if the soul sins and commits a wrongdoing;' and all that has been said similarly by them."

Book 12, Section 29

"In the Hebrew writings about the one who studies philosophy seriously, it is said, 'It is good for a man when he takes up a yoke in his youth; he will sit alone and be silent about what he has taken upon himself.' It is also said about the God-loving prophets that they lived in the wilderness, mountains, and caves, focusing their thoughts only on God. Listen to Plato, who describes this kind of life as he talks about the one who truly studies philosophy."

² "Let us speak, as it seems to you, about the top philosophers: what can someone say about those who waste their time in philosophy? These people do not even know the way to the marketplace when they are young, nor where the court or council is, or any other public gathering in the city. They neither see nor hear about the laws and decrees that are spoken or written. Their serious activities involve gatherings, meetings, banquets, and parties with flute girls; they do not even dream of doing anything else."

³ "Whether good or bad has happened in the city, or what harm has come from ancestors or from men or women, he is more unaware of it than the so-called tides of the sea. He does not even know these things; he is not far from seeking honor, but in reality, only his body is in the city and present. His mind, seeing all these things as small and worthless, dishonors them and flies everywhere, as Pindar says, measuring the earth below and the surface, studying the stars above, and exploring the nature of everything, without ever settling on anything close to himself."

⁴ "How can you say this, oh Socrates? Just like Thales, who was studying the stars, oh Theodorus, and looking up, it is said that he fell into a well, and a beautiful and graceful servant girl mocked him, saying that he was eager to know what was in the sky, while what was right in front of him and at his feet escaped his notice."

⁵ "This is the same joke for everyone who spends their time in philosophy. For truly, such a person is unaware of both his neighbor and those around him, not only of what they are doing but also of whether they are human beings or some other creature. But what is a human being, and what difference does this nature make in doing or suffering compared to others? He seeks and examines things. You must be learning this somewhere, oh Theodorus, or not?"

⁶ "I agree, and you speak the truth. So, my friend, when such a person is with each one privately and in public, as I was saying at the beginning, whenever he is forced to talk about what is at his feet and in front of his eyes in a courtroom or somewhere else, he brings laughter not only to the Thracians but also to the other crowd. He falls into wells and every kind of trouble, overwhelmed by confusion, and his shame is great, giving the impression of foolishness."

⁷ "For insults, he has nothing special to say against anyone, since he does not know anything bad about anyone because he has not studied. Therefore, he seems ridiculous in his confusion. In both praises and the boasting of others, he does not pretend, but genuinely laughing, he appears to be foolish."

⁸ "For he thinks that praising a tyrant or king is the same as praising someone from the common people, like a swineherd, shepherd, or cowherd, believing that he hears them being made happy while they are quite foolish. However, he thinks that those creatures are harder to manage and more dangerous to lead and to make foolish."

⁹ "But an uneducated country person, busy with work, is just as necessary as the common people, like a wall covered with brush in the mountains. And when the land hears countless sounds or even more, whoever has gained amazing numbers seems to hear everything, accustomed to seeing all the land."

¹⁰ "But those who sing praises, believing that someone with seven rich grandfathers is truly noble, see the praise as completely dull and insignificant. They cannot see the bigger picture due to their lack of education, nor do they realize that each person has countless grandfathers and ancestors, among whom there have often been many rich and poor, kings and slaves, both barbarian and Greek. Yet, they focus on a list of twenty-five noble ancestors or even refer to Heracles, the son of Amphitryon. This seems strange to them because they think that being a descendant of Amphitryon makes him a distant relative, as if it were merely luck for him, while the twenty-fifth descendant laughs, unable to think deeply and free from the emptiness of a foolish mind."

¹¹ "In all these matters, such a person is laughed at by many, appearing proud about some things while being ignorant of others and confused about each one. You speak of everything that happens, oh Socrates."

¹² "But when someone, my friend, pulls another up and someone wants to push him down, what wrong do I do to you or you to me? In examining justice and injustice, what is different about each and how do they differ from one another? Is it because a king, possessing much gold, is happy, or is it about kingship and human happiness and misery? What belongs to a person, and how should one acquire some things and avoid others? When he needs to give a brief account of all these matters, the sharp and just soul often responds in the opposite way. Hanging from a high place and looking down, he feels dizzy and, troubled by ignorance, does not provide laughter for Thracians or any other uneducated person, for they do not understand, but rather for those who are the opposite or for all who are raised like slaves."

¹³ "This is indeed the way of each, oh Theodorus. The one who is truly raised in freedom and leisure, whom you call a philosopher, seems simple-minded and has no concern when he falls into servile tasks, like preparing a bed without knowing how, making a tasty dish, or using flattering words. But the other, who can skillfully and sharply do all these things, does not know how to freely lift himself up to the right, nor can he correctly sing the praises of the gods and the lives of happy men."

¹⁴ "If, oh Socrates, you persuade everyone as you have persuaded me, there would be more peace and fewer evils among people. But it is not possible for evils to be completely destroyed, oh Theodorus; for there must always be something opposite to the good. They cannot even be established among the gods, and the nature of mortals and this place must necessarily go on."

¹⁵ "Therefore, one must try to flee from here to there as quickly as possible. Flight is a way to become like the divine as much as possible; and this likeness must be just and holy with understanding. But, oh best one, it is not very easy to persuade others that we must flee from evil and pursue virtue. For this reason, one should practice fleeing from evil and not pursuing virtue, so that one does not seem bad and appears to be good."

¹⁶ "These are indeed the words of the so-called old writings, as it seems to me; but the truth is expressed like this. A god is in no way unjust, but as much as possible, he is the most just. There is nothing more similar to him than anyone among us who becomes just. About this, there is also the true greatness of a man, along with both cowardice and a lack of manliness."

¹⁷ "For knowledge of this is true wisdom and true virtue, while ignorance is clear foolishness and wickedness. The other kinds of greatness that seem to be wisdom arise in political powers and are burdensome, while in crafts they are rough. Therefore, for the unjust and impious person who speaks or acts wrongly, it is best not to agree with them, as they are far from being wise through deceit."

¹⁸ "For they rejoice in the insult, thinking they hear that they are not fools, but rather men who should be saved in the city. Therefore, the truth must be told: they are much more capable than they realize. They are unaware of the harm that comes from injustice, which they should least of all ignore. It is not what they believe— the blows and deaths they sometimes suffer without doing anything wrong— but rather the things that are impossible to escape."

¹⁹ "What are you saying? Of examples, my friend, truly standing before us— the most blessed divine person and the most miserable godless person— they do not see how it really is. They are blinded by foolishness and the worst ignorance, becoming similar to one through unjust actions, while failing to become similar to the other. Thus, they are punished for living a life that fits the one they resemble."

²⁰ "But if we say that, if they do not free themselves from their terrible state, when they die, that pure place of evils will not accept them. Here, they will always share their behavior, being bad among bad people. Indeed, these things will be seen as terrible and crafty by some foolish individuals."

²¹ "And indeed, oh Socrates. I know, my friend. However, one thing has happened to them: when they need to give and receive a personal account about the things they blame. If they willingly endure for a long time with courage and do not flee cowardly, then strangely, oh divine one, when they die, they do not find satisfaction in the things they say. That rhetoric somehow fades away, making it seem no different from that of children."

Book 12, Section 30

"And among us, it has been said about all the wisdom of humans, 'For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. It is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the understanding of the wise. Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age?'"

² "But we are also taught by those who philosophize according to God that we should think nothing small. It has been said, 'We do not look at the things that are seen, but at the things that are not seen; for the things that are seen are temporary, but the things that are not seen are eternal.'"

³ "And concerning the evil on earth and mortal life, the divine word says, 'Make the most of your time, because the days are evil.' And 'Sufficient for the day is its own evil.' The prophet also says, 'Curses, theft, adultery, and murder are widespread on the earth, and blood mixes with blood.'"

⁴ "And about fleeing from here to God, Moses says, 'You shall follow the Lord your God, and you shall cling to him.' He also teaches us to imitate God, saying, 'You shall be holy, for the Lord our God is holy.'"

⁵ "And David, knowing God, encourages us to be imitators, saying, 'The Lord is righteous, and he loves righteousness.' He also taught us to look down on wealth, saying, 'If wealth comes in, do not set your heart on it.' And, 'Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, and when the glory of his house increases; for when he dies, he will take nothing with him, nor will his glory follow him.'"

⁶ "But he also taught us not to admire the rulers among people, saying, 'Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, in whom there is no salvation. His spirit departs, and he returns to the earth; on that very day, his plans perish.'"

Book 12, Section 31

"But the lawgiver, even if there is a small benefit, if it were not so, as the word suggests now, if he dared to lie for the good of the young, there is something that would be more useful than this lie, which could make them do what is right willingly, not by force. Truth is indeed beautiful, O stranger, and lasting; it seems that it is not easy to persuade."

² "You would find many such things in the Hebrew scriptures, about God being jealous, or sleeping, or angry, or being affected by other human feelings, for the benefit of those who ask in this way."

Book 12, Section 32

"Then do we agree on these things? About what is necessary? That every man and child, free and slave, female and male, and the whole city should never stop singing these things that we have discussed, always changing and providing variety, so that there is some desire for the songs among those who sing and pleasure. How could it not be agreed that these things should be done this way?"

² "And in the fifth book of the Republic, he writes similar things, saying, 'Do you know if there is anything among humans that is studied, where the nature of men is different from that of women? Or should we talk at length about weaving and the care of food and cooking, where it seems that the female nature exists, which is also the most ridiculed and looked down upon everywhere?'"

³ "Truly, you say, the nature of gender is very strong in everyone, so to speak. Many women are better than many men in many ways; but as you say, the whole is as it is. Therefore, there is nothing, my friend, that a woman does in managing a city simply because she is a woman, nor does a man do so just because he is a man. Both natures are equally present in both kinds of beings. A woman participates in activities according to her nature, while a man does so in all things; however, in everything, a woman is weaker than a man."

⁴ "Absolutely. So, shall we assign everything to men and nothing to women? How can that be? But I think there are women who are doctors, while others are not, and women who are musicians, while others are not musical by nature. What about physical training and military skills? Some women are not warriors and do not enjoy exercising. I think that is true. What about philosophers and those who dislike philosophy? And what about those who are spirited, while others are not? These cases also exist."

⁵ "Therefore, there are also women who can be guardians, while others cannot. Did we not choose such a nature from the guardians among men? Indeed, we did."

⁶ "Therefore, the nature of a woman and a man is the same when it comes to guarding a city, except that the woman is weaker and the man is stronger. That seems to be true. Women are indeed suitable to live with and guard alongside such men, since they are capable and share a similar nature."

⁷ "Therefore, our argument rightly includes all kinds of people, not just men but also women, not only free people and slaves, but also foreigners and Greeks, in education and philosophy according to what is divine."

Book 12, Section 33

"Let us think about this. Imagine someone who praises the goat and its nature as good, while another person, having seen goats in places where they are cared for, criticizes them as bad. If someone sees any creature without a leader or with bad leaders, would they not blame that creature? Do we really believe it is right to criticize such things at any time? And how?"

² "What can we say about praising or criticizing a society that is meant to be led by a good ruler? If someone has never seen it functioning well with a good leader, but always sees it without a leader or with bad leaders, do we really think that such observers would ever find anything good to praise or criticize about those societies? How could they?"

³ "Surely, if some people seem to act without a leader or with bad leaders, it is not right for us to criticize our entire teaching. Instead, we should admire the truly pious way of life that is led properly."

Book 12, Section 34

"In the Proverbs of Solomon, it is briefly stated, 'The memory of the righteous is praised, but the name of the wicked is erased.' And again, it says, 'Do not call a man blessed before his death.' Pay attention to how Plato explains this in the seventh book of the Laws."

² "Among the citizens, those who have completed their lives with good and challenging deeds, whether in their bodies or in their souls, and who have obeyed the laws, surely deserve to be praised. Why wouldn't they?"

³ "Honoring the living with praises and hymns is not wise until someone has completed their life and shown it to be good. Let all these things be shared among good men and good women who have clearly proven themselves."

Book 12, Section 35

"Do not give me wealth or poverty, as Solomon says in the Proverbs. Plato mentions in the Republic, 'We seem to have found other things to protect, which must be guarded in every way so that they do not slip away into the city. What are these? Wealth and poverty; for wealth leads to luxury, idleness, and change, while poverty brings unfreedom and harmful actions related to change.' Harmful actions are any deeds that are dishonorable."

Book 12, Section 36

"Again, Moses says in the laws, 'Let each person fear their father and mother, and honor your father and mother so that it may go well with you.' Plato similarly states in the Laws, 'Everyone who has sense fears and honors the prayers of their parents, knowing that many have been fulfilled many times.' And again in another place, he says, 'Let everyone respect their elder in both actions and words. And let anyone who is twenty years older, whether male or female, be regarded as a father or mother to you.'"

Book 12, Section 37

"Moses, in the laws, forbids the Hebrews from enslaving other Hebrews, saying, 'If you acquire a Hebrew child, he shall serve you for six years; but in the seventh year, you shall send him away free.' Similarly, Plato states in the Republic, 'Let no Greek be made a slave, nor should anyone advise others among the Greeks to do so.' Indeed, he said, 'They would rather do this to barbarians, but keep themselves free.'"

Book 12, Section 38

"Let no one move the boundaries of the land, neither of a neighboring citizen nor of a fellow citizen, even if they have acquired land at the edges from a foreign neighbor, thinking that moving what cannot be moved is truly acceptable. He goes on to say, 'Whoever works on the land of a neighbor, crossing the boundaries, must pay for the damage. And for the shame and lack of freedom caused, let them pay double the damage to the one harmed.'"

Book 12, Section 39

"In short, let no one suffer the blame and punishment of a father for their children, except if someone is punished by their father, grandfather, and great-grandfather in succession for a crime that leads to death."

Book 12, Section 40

Moses, in the law, says, "If someone steals a calf or a sheep and kills it or sells it, they must pay back five calves for one calf and four sheep for one sheep. But if they are caught in the act of stealing, they must pay double for a living calf, donkey, or sheep." Listen also to what Plato says next: "If someone steals, whether it is a large or small item, let one law apply and one punishment for all. For indeed, the stolen item must first be paid back double. If someone cannot pay this punishment but has enough other property to cover the cost of the stolen item, they should pay that. But if not, they shall be held until they can pay or convince the one who condemned them."

Book 12, Section 41

Again, Moses says, "If a thief is found in the act of breaking in and is killed, they are not guilty of murder." Plato agrees with this, saying, "If someone goes into a house at night to steal money and kills someone while stealing, let them be innocent. And if they kill a thief while defending themselves, let them also be innocent."

Book 12, Section 42

If someone kills a draft animal or any other creature, except for those involved in public contests, the relatives of the victim shall pursue the killer. They shall bring the case to trial, and the landowners shall decide according to what the proper authorities command. But if someone kills outside the boundaries of the land, they shall be judged differently." This is what Plato says. But Moses, anticipating this, says, "If an ox gores a man or a woman and they die, the ox shall be stoned, and its meat shall not be eaten. But the owner of the ox shall be innocent."

Book 12, Section 43

The prophetic writing says, "Son of man, look, the house of Israel has become mixed with bronze, tin, iron, and lead, like silver in the middle of a furnace." Therefore, say this: says the lord, "Because you have all become one mixture, I will accept you, just as silver, bronze, iron, and lead are accepted in the middle of a furnace, where the fire is blown upon them to melt them." And Plato also says something similar.

² Therefore, listen to the story. For we are all brothers in the city, as we will say to them while telling the tale. But god, as the creator, gives gold to those of you who are fit to rule, because they are the most honorable. He gives silver to those who are helpers, and iron and bronze to the farmers and other workers.

³ Since you are all related, you would mostly have children who are like you. However, there are times when a child born from gold might be silver, and a child born from silver might be gold, and everything else happens in this way.

⁴ Therefore, god strongly commands the rulers that no one should be a better guardian than their own children, and that they should care for nothing as much as for them, since these children are mixed in their souls. If a child is born from them who is of bronze or iron, they should not show pity in any way, but should give them the honor that fits their nature, whether they become creators or farmers. If, from these, someone is born who is of gold or silver, they should honor them by sending some to be guardians and others to be helpers, since the city will be in danger when it is guarded by the iron or bronze guardian. So, do you have any way to convince them of this story?

Book 12, Section 44

The prophecy among the Hebrews says to the leaders of the people, "O shepherds of Israel, do you not feed the sheep yourselves? Do not the shepherds feed the sheep? Look, you eat the fat, you slaughter the fattened animals, and you clothe yourselves with the wool, but you do not feed my sheep. You have not sought the lost, you have not bound up the broken, and you have not brought back the wandering."

Also, the saying of the Savior states, "The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep, but the hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, leaves them."

Listen also to Plato in the first book of the Republic, where he explained these things.

² Now you see, O Thrasymachus, we will still examine the earlier points. The one who is truly a doctor, when defining the true shepherd, does not think that he must later guard carefully, but believes that he should feed the sheep, as far as he is a shepherd. He does not look to the best interest of the sheep, but acts like a banquet host preparing for a feast, or like a merchant, but not like a shepherd.

Surely, the shepherd cares only for what he is responsible for, to provide the best for them, since he has enough to make them the best, as long as nothing is lacking for him to be a shepherd. Thus, I thought it was necessary for us to agree that every leader, as a leader, should not seek the best for anyone else but for the one who is being led and cared for, in both public and private leadership. But do you think that the rulers in the cities, those who are truly rulers, want to lead willingly?

Book 12, Section 45

The prophecy among the Hebrews says, "Because of your fear, Lord, we have conceived, we have been in pain, and we have given birth to a spirit of salvation." Plato, in the Theaetetus, makes Socrates say this: "Those who are with me suffer the same as those who give birth; for they are in pain and are troubled much more day and night than they are. But my art can both awaken and relieve this pain."

Book 12, Section 46

The prophet Ezekiel said, "The hand of the Lord came upon me, and I saw, and behold, a spirit was lifting me up from the north." Then he said, "And in the middle, there was the likeness of four living creatures. Their appearance was like a man, and each one had four faces. The likeness of their faces was a human face, and on the right side of the four was the face of a lion, while on the left side was the face of an ox. And for the four was the face of an eagle." And listen also to what Plato says in a similar way.

² Now then, I said, let us talk with him, since we have agreed that both wrongdoing and doing what is right have their own power. "How?" he asked. "By creating an image of the soul with words, so that the one speaking can understand what he is saying." "What kind?" I asked. "Some kind like those that I, as they say, are ancient beings, like the Chimera, Scylla, and Cerberus, along with many other ideas that are often said to be mixed together."

³ "They say," he said. "So then, create an idea of a strange beast with many heads, having the heads of tame animals arranged in a circle along with wild ones, and capable of changing and producing all these things from itself. 'A terrible creation,' he said, 'but still, since the idea is easier to shape than wax and similar materials, let it be formed.'"

⁴ "Now then, create another idea of a lion, and one of a man; let the first be much larger, and the second smaller." "These," he said, "are easier, and they are formed." "So then, combine them into one, so that they seem to be mixed together." "They are combined," he said. "Now shape an image around them, that of the man, so that the one who cannot see inside can only see the outside, appearing as a living creature, a man."

⁵ "It has been shaped," he said. "Let us say then that it is beneficial for the one speaking to do wrong to the man, but it is not good to do what is right, because he will say nothing else but that it is beneficial for him to make the various beast strong while the lion and those around the lion suffer, and to make the man weak and starving, so that he is pulled wherever either of them leads him. He does not join with the other or make a friend, but lets them bite and fight each other."

⁶ "For in every way," he said, "the one who praises doing wrong would say this. So then, the one who speaks what is right would say that it is necessary to do these things and to say these things. Therefore, the inner man will be the most self-controlled, and he will take care of the many-headed creature just like a farmer, feeding and training the tame ones, and preventing the wild ones from growing. He will make the nature of the lion an ally and care for all of them together, making them friendly to each other and to himself, so he will nurture them. For again, the one who praises what is right says these things."

Book 12, Section 47

"Of the whole nation of the Hebrews, divided into twelve tribes, Plato similarly says that it is necessary to organize his own citizens, saying this: 'Let the entire land be divided into equal parts of power into twelve. And let one tribe be assigned to each part every year, providing five leaders who are farmers.' And again he says, 'Let twelve chosen generals be appointed for them, one commander for each tribe.'"

Book 12, Section 48

"About the royal metropolis of the Hebrews, which was established long ago, located away from the sea and settled in the mountains, possessing very fertile land, Plato says that there should be a similar place for his own people in the Laws. He says this:"

² "This is what I want to ask you more: will it be by the sea or on land? Almost, O stranger, the city we are talking about is eighty stadia away from the sea. But what about it? Are there harbors there, or is it completely without a port? It is indeed well-harbored here, as much as possible, O stranger."

³ "Indeed, you speak well. But what about the land? Is it very fruitful, or does it lack some things? It is almost not lacking in anything. Is there a city nearby? Not at all, which is why it is settled; for an old settlement has left this land deserted for a very long time. But what about the plains, mountains, and forests? How much of each do we have? It is similar to the nature of the other Crete as a whole. Would you say it is rougher or flatter? Certainly rougher."

⁴ "Therefore, it would not be hopeless to gain virtue. For if it were by the sea, well-harbored, and not very fruitful, but lacking many things, it would need a great savior and some divine lawgivers, unless it had many different bad habits because of such a nature. But now it has the advantage of being eighty stadia away."

⁵ "However, it is closer to the sea than necessary, almost as if you say it is better-harbored. Still, this is also appreciated. For the sea is sweet to the land, though it is indeed very salty and bitter as a neighbor. It fills itself with trade and commerce through shops, bringing back habits that are deceitful and untrustworthy to the souls, making the city itself untrustworthy and unfriendly, and likewise towards other people. But it is indeed comforting that it is very fruitful, while being rough shows that it cannot be both very busy and very fruitful at the same time. For having this, it would provide much export, filling itself again with silver and gold coins; which is a greater evil, so to speak, for a city than having nothing for the sake of noble and just habits. But let us consider how, up to this point, we have shown that the way of education among the Hebrews rejects the Greek way, as written in the tenth book of the Republic."

Book 12, Section 49

"As for you, let it be said, for you do not speak against the poets of tragedy and all the other imitators; it seems that all such things are an insult to the minds of the listeners, especially those who do not have the remedy of knowing what they truly are. So, what are you saying, I ask? It must be said, I replied, and yet a certain friendship and shame I have felt since childhood about Homer prevents me from speaking."

² "For it seems that among all these beautiful things, tragedy is the first teacher and leader. But he should not be honored before the truth; what I say must be said. Indeed, he said."

³ "Then, let us not ask for an account about Homer or any other poets, wondering if any of them was a doctor, but rather if he was more than just an imitator of medical words. What healthy poet, whether from the old or the new, is said to have created works like Asclepius? Or what students of medicine did he leave behind, like he did with his descendants? And again, let us not question him about the other arts; let us leave that aside."

⁴ "Regarding the greatest and most beautiful things that Homer attempts to speak about—wars, strategies, the management of cities, and the upbringing of people—it is right to ask him, 'O dear Homer, if you are not merely a distant reflection of the truth, a creator of an image of virtue, which we have defined as an imitator, but also a second voice, how do you know which practices make people better or worse, both privately and publicly? Tell us which of the cities has become better because of you, just as Sparta did because of Lycurgus, along with many others, both great and small.'"

⁵ "Which city blames you for being a good lawgiver and for helping them? Italy and Sicily praise Charondas, and we praise Solon; but who praises you? Will anyone say anything? I don't think so, said Glaucon. In fact, he is not mentioned by those who are descendants of Homer. But what war is remembered as well-fought under the leadership or advice of Homer? No one."

⁶ "But indeed, many inventions and clever ideas are said to come from the works of a wise man, just as those about Thales of Miletus and Anacharsis the Scythian. However, there is nothing like that."

⁷ "But indeed, if not publicly, some say that Homer himself was a leader in education while he lived. Those who loved him in gatherings passed on a certain way of life called Homeric, just as Pythagoras was greatly admired for this. Even today, those who follow him still call their way of life Pythagorean, believing it to be distinct from others."

⁸ "Nor again," he said, "is anything like that said. For Creophylus, oh Socrates, the companion of Homer, would seem even more foolish regarding education if what is said about Homer is true."

⁹ "For it is said that there was much neglect of him during his time, when he lived. It is said, therefore, I said. But do you think, oh Glaucon, that if he truly was able to educate people and make them better—not by imitating these things, but by understanding them—he would not have made many friends and been honored and loved by them?"

¹⁰ "But Protagoras from Abdera, Prodicus from Ceos, and many others can stand on their own, coming together privately. They will not be able to live in the same house or city unless they take charge of their education. They love this wisdom so much that their friends do not just carry them on their heads."

¹¹ "Now, if Homer was able to help people become virtuous, or if he could sing about Hesiod while passing by, would they not resist him more than gold? Would they not try to make him stay with them? Or if they could not persuade him, would they not educate themselves wherever they went, until they gained enough knowledge?"

¹² "Absolutely," he said, "you seem to me to be speaking the truth. So, shall we start with Homer and consider all the poetic imitators as images of virtue and of the other things they create, while not touching the truth? But just as we are saying now, the painter may seem to be a leather worker, yet he himself knows nothing about leather working, and those who do not know will only see the colors and shapes?"

¹³ "Indeed. So, I think we will say that the poetic philosopher colors each of the arts with names and phrases without truly knowing them; instead, he imitates, making others believe he understands from the words. If he speaks about leather working in meter, rhythm, and harmony, he seems to speak very well, whether it is about strategy or any other subject."

¹⁴ "Thus, these things have a great charm by nature, since when stripped of the colors of music, the words of the poets, spoken on their own, seem to have their own power. I think you know what I mean. Have you seen this or not? I say."

¹⁵ "And with these things being so, it seems good to me to briefly go through some of Plato's ideas, through which he offers a more logical explanation about god and providence, comparing it to the beliefs of the Hebrews. First, let us consider how he presents the views of the atheists."

Book 12, Section 50

"Some say that all things are either coming into being, have been, or will be: some by nature, some by skill, and some by chance. Well then, that seems right. It is likely that wise men speak correctly. Let us consider what those who follow them think and how they reason."

² "Certainly. They say that the greatest and most beautiful things are produced by nature and chance, while the smaller things are made by skill. This skill takes from nature the great and primary creations to shape and construct all the smallest things, which we all call technical."

³ "What do you say? Let me explain it even more clearly. They say that fire, water, earth, and air exist by nature and chance, but none of these are made by skill. The bodies that come after these, like those of the earth, sun, moon, and stars, are completely formed from these lifeless things. They come together by chance, each according to its own power, fitting together in a certain way—hot with cold, dry with wet, and soft with hard. Everything that has been mixed together by the necessity of opposing forces, they say, has come to be in this way, forming the whole sky and everything that exists in the sky, as well as all living things and plants, which they claim have come to be from all these, not through reason, nor through any god, nor through skill, but as we say, by nature and chance."

⁴ "Skill came later from these things, being mortal and arising from mortals. It has given birth to some truths that are not widely shared, but rather to images that are somewhat related to themselves, like those created by drawing and music, along with all the arts similar to these. If they do produce anything truly important among the arts, it is those that share their power with nature, such as medicine, farming, and physical training. They also say that politics is a small part of this, sharing in nature, but mostly a skill. Therefore, all law-making is not by nature, but by skill, which is not based on true principles."

⁵ "What do you say? They say that the gods are first created by skill, not by nature, but by certain laws, and these laws differ for each group, depending on what each has agreed upon for themselves. Indeed, beautiful things are one way by nature and another way by law. However, just things are not at all by nature; instead, they continue to be disputed among each other and are always being changed. Whatever they agree upon and whenever they do so, those things are then considered valid, being created by skill and laws, but not by nature."

⁶ "These things, my friends, are what wise men say among young people, both private individuals and poets, claiming that the most just thing is whatever one can achieve by force. Because of this, impiety falls upon young people, as if there are no gods, and the law commands them to think this way. This leads to conflicts, pulling them away from living according to nature, which means living in truth, stronger than others, and not being enslaved to others according to the law. Just as you have explained, stranger, the argument, consider how much shame young people face in public cities and in their own homes."

⁷ "And after this, he says, 'But again, tell me, Cleinia, you too; for you must be a part of the discussion. The one who speaks these things risks thinking that fire, water, earth, and air are the first of all things, naming these as nature, while the soul comes from these later. It seems that he does not really risk this, but truly means these things to us in the argument.' Indeed."

⁸ "Then, have we found some source of foolish opinions among people who have ever pursued questions about nature? Consider all the arguments carefully; for it is not a small matter if some of these arguments seem to connect to the impious and lead others astray, using arguments incorrectly. It seems to me that this is indeed the case. You speak well; but wherever it is, I will try to explain. It seems that we are dealing with less familiar arguments."

⁹ "And after a short time, he adds, 'Friend, they are in danger of not understanding the soul, both in its nature and the power it has, as well as its origins. It is the first of all bodies, coming before everything, and it rules over all changes and transformations. If this is the case, then isn't it necessary that what is related to the soul came before what belongs to the body, since the soul is older than the body?' Necessarily."

¹⁰ "Indeed, opinion, care, thought, skill, and law would come before the hard and soft, the heavy and light. Also, the great and primary works and actions of skill would arise first, while those that are natural and nature itself, which they do not call correctly, would come after and begin from skill and thought. How is it not correct?"

¹¹ "They want to call nature the origin of the first things. But if the soul appears first, not fire or air, and if the soul is born first, then it could almost rightly be said to be different by nature. If this is the case, if someone shows that the soul is older than the body, then it cannot be said otherwise. You speak very truly."

Book 12, Section 51

"Come now, if we are to call upon a god at any time, let it be now; let them be called with all their effort for proof of themselves, as they are. And let us enter into the present discussion, holding on as if to some secure argument. It seems very certain to me that when questioned about such matters, I should answer in this way."

² "O stranger, whenever someone asks, is everything standing still and nothing moving, or is it the complete opposite? Or do some things move while others stay still? I would say that some things do move, while others remain still. But is it not true that in some place, both the standing things stand and the moving things move? How could it not be? And indeed, some things would act in one place, while others would act in many."

³ "You say that the power of the standing things is in the middle, and we would say that it moves in one way, just like the circles that are said to stand turn in a circle? Yes."

⁴ "And then let us say this, and let us answer ourselves again. If everything were to stand together, just as most of those who think like this dare to say, what then would be the first movement among them that must happen?"

⁵ "Surely it would be the same thing moving itself. For it would never change from another, nor would there be any change among them before it."

⁶ "Therefore, we must say that the first movement of all movements, both in what stands still and in what is moving, is that which moves itself. This is the oldest and strongest of all changes, while that which is changed by another and moves other things is second. You are speaking very truly."

⁷ "Whenever we are here in this discussion, let us answer this: What kind? If we see something like this happening on the earth, in water, or in something fiery, whether it is separate or mixed, what will we say is present in such a situation?"

⁸ "Are you asking me if it is alive when it moves itself? Yes. It is alive; how could it not be? And what about when we see a soul in something? Should we not agree that this is the same as being alive? Nothing else. So, regarding Zeus, wouldn't you want to think of three things about each one?"

⁹ "What do you mean? One is the essence, one is the reason for the essence, and one is the name. And indeed, there should be questions about both of these. How? Sometimes we ask for the name when the reason is given, and sometimes we ask for the reason when the name is given. Do we want to discuss this kind of thing now?"

¹⁰ "What kind? It is something that is divided into equal parts, both in other things and in number. This one, then, has an even name, and the reason is a number divided into two equal parts. Yes."

¹¹ "I mean something like this. So, do we not call the same thing in both cases? Whether we give the name when we are asked for the reason, or whether we call the reason an even name and reason, referring to it as a number divided into equal parts? It is indeed the same."

¹² "O soul, what is the reason for this name? Do we have another reason besides the one just mentioned, which is the ability to move itself? You say that to move itself has the same essence as the name, which we all call soul?"

¹³ "I say yes. If this is the case, do we still wish to show that the soul is the same as the first origin and movement of all beings, both those that exist and those that have come to be, as well as all things opposite to these? Since it has been revealed as the cause of all change and movement? No, it has been shown quite clearly that the soul is the oldest of all, having become the source of movement."

¹⁴ "Isn't it true that movement caused by something else, which does not provide any movement within itself, is a second type? And if someone wanted to count it as many times as there are numbers, it would truly be a change of a lifeless body. That's correct."

¹⁵ "Therefore, we would be saying truly and most completely that the soul came before the body, or not? The body is second and comes after the soul, following its natural order. Indeed, that is true."

¹⁶ "Surely we remember that we agreed earlier that if the soul appears older than the body, then the things of the soul would be older than those of the body. Indeed, that is completely true."

¹⁷ "Traits, habits, intentions, thoughts, and true beliefs would have existed before the lengths, widths, depths, and strengths of bodies, if indeed the soul belongs to the body. It is necessary."

¹⁸ "Is it then necessary to agree that the cause of good things is the soul, as well as the cause of bad things, beautiful and ugly things, just and unjust things, and all opposites, if we are to see it as the cause of everything? How could it not be?"

¹⁹ "Surely, if the soul governs and lives in all things that are moved, isn't it necessary to say that it also governs the heavens? Indeed! Is there one or many? Many; I would say that we should not consider fewer than two: one that does good and one that can do the opposite."

²⁰ "You have spoken very rightly. Indeed, the soul guides all things in the heavens, on earth, and in the sea with its own movements, which include wishing, considering, caring, planning, thinking rightly or falsely, rejoicing, feeling sad, being brave, being afraid, hating, loving, and all those related to these or that are primary movements. These movements lead to the secondary movements of bodies, directing everything toward growth, decay, separation, and gathering. Following these are warmth, coldness, heaviness, lightness, hardness, softness, whiteness, blackness, harshness, sweetness, and bitterness. The soul interacts with all these, always receiving divine reason, guiding everything rightly and happily toward the gods. However, when it is mixed with ignorance, it brings about all the opposites of these."

²¹ "Shall we say that these things are true? Or are we still unsure if they might be different? Certainly not. Then, should we say that the nature of the soul is strong, coming from the heavens, the earth, and all around, full of wisdom and virtue, or that it has neither? Do you want us to answer in this way?" How?

²² "If we say, oh wonderful one, that the entire path of the heavens, along with the movement and all the beings within it, shares a similar nature in thought, movement, and reasoning, it is clear that we should take care of the best soul of the whole universe and guide it along that kind of path. This is indeed correct."

²³ "But if it comes in a wild and disorderly way, it is the bad one. And this is very true. So what kind of nature does the movement of thought have? This is already a difficult question, my friends, to answer wisely. Therefore, it is fair for me to take my time in responding to you. You speak well."

²⁴ "Therefore, let us not, like looking at the sun, bring night into midday. Instead, let us give an answer as if the mind could be seen and understood clearly by mortal eyes. By looking at the image of the one asking, we can see more clearly."

²⁵ "What do you say? Let us take the image of the mind as it relates to movement, one of the ten movements. Remembering this, I will give the answer together with you. You would say it very well. So let us remember this much from then: some things are meant to move, while others are meant to stay still. Yes."

²⁶ "Of those that move, some move in one place, while others are carried in many places. This is true. Therefore, among those movements, the one that is always carried in one place must move around something, like a circle. It should be as close and similar as possible to the nature of the mind."

²⁷ "What do you say? It is indeed true that both must move in the same way, in the same place, around the same things, and toward the same things, with one idea and one order. When we talk about the mind and the movement that is carried in one place, like the motion of a sphere, we would never seem to be poor creators of beautiful images."

²⁸ "You are speaking very correctly. Therefore, this movement that never moves in the same way, nor in the same place, nor around the same things, nor toward the same things, nor is carried in one place, nor in the universe, nor in order, nor in any idea, would indeed be connected to all forms of ignorance."

²⁹ "For it would indeed be very true. Now, it is not difficult to say clearly that, since the soul is what carries everything for us, we must say that the movement of the heavens is necessarily guided, being cared for and organized, whether it is the best soul or the opposite."

³⁰ "O stranger, it is indeed sacred to say something different than that there is one soul that has all virtue or that many souls carry them. Very well, O Kleinia, you have listened to the words. But listen to this further."

³¹ "What kind? The sun, the moon, and the other stars—if the soul carries everything, isn't there also one for each? Indeed? Let us talk about one, since the stars that connect with everything are visible to us."

³² "Whose? Every person sees the body of the sun, but no one sees its soul. For there is none for any other body, whether living or dead, of any animals. However, there is great hope that this entire race is completely unaware of all the senses of the body, but can be understood. Let us focus only on the mind and thought regarding such a matter."

³³ "What kind? If the soul carries the sun, we will hardly avoid saying that it acts in three ways. In relation to what?"

³⁴ "It's as if the soul, within this visible body, completely carries such a thing, just as our soul carries us. Or does it obtain a body from outside, whether from fire or from some air, as some say, and violently pushes one body against another? Or is it a third option, being a simple body but having other powers that surpass, leading to wonder? Yes. This is necessary, for the soul must go through everything while acting."

³⁵ "These things have indeed been said in the tenth book of the Laws to the philosopher. And in the Philebus, pay attention to how it develops the same idea: 'For all the wise agree, truly honoring, that the mind is a king for us of both heaven and earth.' And perhaps they say this: if you wish, let us expand on the thought of this race."

³⁶ "Speak as you wish, without worrying about the length, O Socrates, as if you will not be offended. You have spoken well. Let us begin here by asking again. How? Should we say that the whole and this beautiful thing is governed by the irrational and random power, wherever it may occur, or the opposite, just as those before us said, that a wonderful mind and understanding are guiding it?"

³⁷ "Nothing of the same, O wonderful Socrates; for what you say now does not seem right to me. But to say that the mind arranges everything—the appearance of the world, the sun, the moon, the stars, and all the movements—is worthy, and I would never say otherwise about them, nor would I think so."

³⁸ "Do you want us to agree with what has been said before, that these things are true? And let us not only think we should speak about others without danger, but let us also share in the risk and take part in the blame when a clever man says these things are not true, but are disordered? For how could I not want that? Come then, let us now consider the upcoming discussion about these matters."

³⁹ "Just listen. We see the nature of all bodies—fire, water, air, and earth—existing in the mixture, just as those who are struggling say? And indeed. For we are truly struggling with confusion in these discussions now. So come, let's take this kind of approach for each of the things we have."

⁴⁰ "What kind? That each of these things is small and weak among us, and in no way is it pure, nor does it have the power worthy of its nature. But when you take one, think the same about all. Just as fire exists among us, it also exists in everything."

⁴¹ "Well then? Is what we have small and weak, and ordinary, while what exists in the whole is wonderful in its abundance and has great power regarding fire? What you say is very true. But tell me, does the fire of the whole come from the fire we have, or does it come from that fire and control both mine and yours and all the other bodies? This is not even worth answering."

⁴² "Correct. For you will say these things, I think, about the earth in the living beings here and in the whole, and about the others I asked a little earlier, you will answer in the same way. For who would seem healthy if they answered differently?"

⁴³ "Almost no one. But after this, follow along. For all these things we have just said, do we not see them coming together as one body? What do you think? Take the same idea about the world we are discussing; for in the same way, it would also be a body, made up of the same parts. You are saying this very rightly."

⁴⁴ "Which then comes from this body, our body here, or does this grow from our body along with all that we have just said about it? And this other thing, oh Socrates, is not worth asking about. But what? Is this not worth asking about? Or how will you say it?"

⁴⁵ "Tell me what kind. Do we not say that our body has a soul? It is clear that we will say so. From where, dear Protarche, would it come, if not from the body of the whole, being alive and having the same qualities and even more beautiful? It is clear that it comes from nowhere else, oh Socrates."

⁴⁶ "For we do not seem, dear Protarche, to have those four things: limit and infinite, common and the kind of cause, as a fourth among all. These give a soul and shape a body among us, and provide healing for a body that has fallen. In other things, they bring together and teach all kinds of wisdom. But with the same things existing in the whole sky and in large parts, along with beautiful and genuine things, it would not be possible to create the nature of the most beautiful and most valuable. But this would not make any sense."

⁴⁷ "Then if not this, following that reasoning, we would say something better, as we have often said: that there is much that is infinite in the whole and a sufficient limit, and that there is a cause that is not trivial, organizing and arranging years, seasons, and months, with wisdom and mind being rightly called. Indeed, rightly so."

⁴⁸ "Indeed, wisdom and mind could never exist without a soul. For that is not the case. In the nature of Zeus, you would say that a royal soul and a royal mind come into being because of the power of the cause. In other things, there are other beautiful things, as each is said to be beloved."

Book Thirteen

"Now, if someone thinks that the gods are leaders, they should not concern themselves with human affairs. O excellent one, let us say that if someone leads like a god, perhaps some divine connection makes you honor and believe that it is so. But regarding the bad and unjust fates of humans, both individually and publicly, they are not truly happy, even though many think they are. However, they do not guide you rightly toward impiety, whether in the Muses or in all kinds of speech."

² "Or perhaps, when you see wicked old men coming to their end, leaving behind children in the greatest honors, you feel troubled when you see or hear about all these things. Or even when you yourself, as an eyewitness, encounter many acts of impiety and terrible events happening to some because of these. From small things, they arrive at tyranny and the greatest evils. Then, through all these experiences, it becomes clear that you would blame the gods as the causes of these things, but you might not want to do so because of their connection. Yet, being led by irrationality and unable to bear it, you have come to this state, so that it seems they care little for human affairs and neglect them."

³ "Therefore, to prevent a greater passion from coming upon you toward impiety because of the current belief, if we can somehow drive it away with words, let us try. We will connect it to the following argument, in which we do not see the gods as having guided us from the beginning. Let us use this argument then."

⁴ "You, Cleinias and Megillus, should respond about the young man, just as before, continuing the discussion. But if something difficult comes up in the conversation, I will take it from you, just as I am doing now, and carry it across the river. You speak rightly; and we too will do our best to follow what you say."

⁵ "But it wouldn't be very hard to show this: that the gods are just as careful about small things, and even more so, than about great matters. For it seems they were present and listened to what is being said now, as they have the greatest care for all virtues, which is most natural for them. And they listened very closely."

⁶ "After this, then, as we examine together which virtue we agree makes them good, let's say that having wisdom and self-control is a virtue, while the opposites are vices. Shall we say that? What about courage as a virtue, while cowardice is a vice?"

⁷ "Absolutely. And shall we say what is shameful among these and what is beautiful? That's necessary. As for the things that belong to us, if they are indeed minor, shall we say that the gods have no concern for either great or small matters of this kind? Everyone would agree with this."

⁸ "What then? Shall we consider carelessness, laziness, and indulgence as virtues of the soul? Or what do you think? And how? But rather the opposite? Yes. So the opposites of these are indeed the opposite? That's right. What then? A person who is indulgent, careless, and lazy, whom the poet said is most like a drone, would such a person be good for us?"

⁹ "Absolutely correct. Therefore, we should not say that a god has a character that he himself hates, nor should we allow someone to speak in such a way. Indeed not; how could that be? It is fitting to act and take care of things differently. A person of this kind takes care of great matters but neglects small ones; so why, when praising such a person, would we not be completely mistaken? Let's think about this: does the one acting do so in two ways, whether he is a god or a man? What are we saying then?"

¹⁰ "Does he think there is no difference in the whole while neglecting the small things, or is he lazy and indulgent if there is a difference and he neglects? Or is there some other way that neglect happens? For surely, when it is impossible to take care of everything, then neglect will occur with either small or large things, depending on what a god or some weak person can manage. How could that be?"

¹¹ "Now let both of them answer us, since there are two. They both agree that there are gods, but one denies it while the other neglects the small things. First, both say that the gods know and see everything, and it is impossible for them to be unaware of anything they can sense or know. Do you say that they have these abilities, or how? Yes, that is so."

¹² "What then? Can they do everything that both mortals and immortals can do? How could they not agree that they have these abilities? Indeed, we have acknowledged that they are both good and excellent, being five in total. Very much so. Therefore, is it not impossible for them to act in any way out of laziness and indulgence, being as we say they are? For laziness is a child of weakness, and it comes from idleness and indulgence."

¹³ "You speak very truly. No one neglects the gods out of idleness or laziness, for they do not share in weakness. You speak correctly. Therefore, if they neglect the small and few things related to the whole, or if they know that they should not take care of any of these things, they would act accordingly. Or what else could it be, except knowing the opposite? Nothing."

¹⁴ "Which is it then, O best and most excellent one? Are we amazed at you saying that they neglect things out of ignorance, or that they know they should take care of them, just like the very worst of humans are said to do? They know there are better things to do, but they do not do them because of some lesser pleasures or pains."

¹⁵ "How could it be otherwise? Surely, human things share in the nature of living beings, and among all creatures, humans are the most devoted to the gods. It seems that way. Indeed, we say that everything that is mortal or has thought, including the entire sky, belongs to the gods. How could it not be?"

¹⁶ "Now then, whether small or large, let someone say that these things belong to the gods; for it would not be fitting for us, who are the most careful and the best, to neglect what we have. Let us also think about this further. What is it? Is it not true that sensation and power are naturally opposed to ease and difficulty? What do you think?"

¹⁷ "It seems that seeing and hearing small things is harder than large ones, but carrying, holding, and taking care of small and few things is much easier than their opposites. And indeed, it is. For a doctor who is instructed to treat a whole person and is willing and able will pay attention to the larger parts but may neglect the smaller and lesser ones. Will that be good for the whole? Not at all."

¹⁸ "Indeed, neither ship captains nor generals nor stewards, nor anyone else in politics can manage many or large things without the small or few. For stone workers say that large stones cannot be placed well without the smaller ones. How could that be?"

¹⁹ "Therefore, let us not think of the god as less worthy than mortal creators, who, as much as they are better, work more carefully and perfectly on small and large things with one skill. But we want the god, being the wisest and willing to take care, to manage the small things, which are easier to handle, not at all like a lazy or cowardly person who neglects the hard work of the larger tasks."

²⁰ "Let us by no means accept such a thought about the gods, stranger, for it is neither holy nor true to think this way. But I believe we have now reasonably discussed the great carelessness regarding the gods. Yes. It seems that, when pressed by words, he agrees that he is not speaking correctly. Still, I think he needs some more stories about spells. What kind, good sir?"

²¹ "Let us persuade the young man with words that everything in the universe is organized for the care of salvation and virtue, and that each part experiences and acts according to its own strength. Moreover, there are rulers assigned to each of these for the smallest matters of suffering and action, arranged for the very last division."

²² "Of these, your part, oh wretched one, always reaches toward the whole, even though it is very small. You have forgotten that all of this exists for that purpose, so that there may be a happy existence that belongs to the life of the universe, not made for you, but for that. For every doctor and every skilled creator works for everything, aiming to make the best for the common good, but they work for a part, not for the whole because of the part."

²³ "But you are angry, not realizing how what is best for you happens for the whole and for you according to the power of the common creation. Since the soul is always connected to a body, sometimes one and sometimes another, it goes through all kinds of changes, either by itself or through another soul. Nothing else is left for the one who is seeking but to move the better nature to a better place and the worse nature to a worse place, each receiving what is fitting according to its fate."

²⁴ "Where do you say this? If someone were to have a reason for the easy care of all things by the gods, I think this is what I mean. For if someone always looks toward the whole, transforming everything, like turning fire into living water, and not just changing one thing into another or from many into one, having taken part in the first, second, or even third generation, the changes would be endless in the arrangement of the universe. But now there is a remarkable ease for the one who cares for the whole."

²⁵ "How do you say this again? Here it is. Since the king has seen all our actions as living beings, with much virtue in them and much evil, and having become perishable but not eternal, both soul and body, just like the gods who exist by law; for there would never be a generation of living beings without one being lost to another. It was understood that the good is always by nature meant to help the soul, while the bad is meant to harm. Having grasped all this, he devised a way for each part to be placed where virtue prevails and vice is defeated, so that it might provide the best and easiest for the whole."

²⁶ "Indeed, he has figured out how for every kind of being that is always coming into existence, it should be decided what actions it must take and what places it should inhabit. For the generation of each kind, he has left the reasons to the choices of each of us. For wherever one desires to go and whatever kind of soul one has, in that way, almost every time, each of us becomes like that, as is most likely."

²⁷ "Therefore, everything that shares in the soul changes, having within itself the reason for that change. It changes according to the order and law of fate. Those that change less, being smaller in nature, move less across the surface of the land, while those that change more and are more unjust go deeper into the underworld, which is greatly feared and dreamed about by those who have been separated from their bodies. Indeed, the soul of evil is greater than that of virtue whenever it changes because of its own desires and strong connections. When it mixes with divine virtue, it becomes different and transforms into a whole sacred place, moving to a better location. But when it does the opposite, it leads its life in the wrong direction."

²⁸ "This is indeed the justice of the gods who hold Olympus, my child and young man, believing that they are overlooked by the gods. When one becomes worse, he moves toward worse souls, but when he becomes better, he moves toward better ones, both in life and in all deaths, experiencing what is fitting for those who are close to him and doing what is right."

²⁹ "Neither you nor anyone else who becomes unfortunate will ever escape from the justice of the gods, which is different from all other kinds of justice. Those who have established it have made it necessary to be careful about everything. For your father will not be overlooked by it. You will not be so small that you cannot sink into the depths of the earth, nor will you be so high that you can fly up to the sky and avoid the punishment that is right for you, whether you stay here, travel through the underworld, or even if you are moved to an even holier place."

³⁰ "The same reasoning applies to those you have seen grow from small beginnings into great figures, committing wrongdoings or something similar. You thought they became happy despite their misfortunes, and you believed that in their actions you could see the complete neglect of the gods, not knowing their ultimate fate, which eventually comes to everyone. To understand this, oh bravest of all, seems unimportant to you, as someone who does not know it would never even see a sign of it, nor could they form an idea about life that would lead to happiness or misfortune."

³¹ "If this reasoning convinces you, Kleinias, and this entire council of ours, that you do not know what you are saying about the gods, then the god himself would help you well. But if you still need more explanation, listen to us as we speak to the third person, if you have any understanding at all."

³² "The essence of these ideas, even if not the exact words, has been expressed very briefly in the writings of the Hebrews, with the thought contained in just a few phrases. For the saying goes, 'If I am so small that I cannot sink into the depths of the earth, or if I rise high into the sky, I would be like the one in David who asks: "Where can I go from your spirit, and where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I go down to Hades, you are there."'"

³³ "If I take the wings of the morning and settle in the farthest parts of the sea, even there your hand will lead me." For the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky shows the work of his hands. And again in Isaiah, "Lift up your eyes on high and see who created all these things." And "from the greatness and beauty of created things, the creator is seen." And "for the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and divinity."

But the saying, "I was jealous of the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked," seems to be translated by Plato through the words, "The same reasoning would apply to those you have seen grow from small beginnings into great figures, committing wrongdoings or something similar; you thought they became happy despite their misfortunes."

All the other things that are similarly said would lead to a broader explanation of Plato's interpretation in the writings of the Hebrews. Therefore, if you examine each of these parts closely, you would find them accurately matching the writings of the Hebrews. The writings of the Hebrews are not only those from Moses, but also those of other God-loving men after Moses, whether prophets or apostles of our Savior, whose teachings agree in one way and would rightly be considered to have the same meaning.

Introduction

Preface. Since I have shown in earlier writings how Plato's philosophy connects with many of Moses' teachings and the sacred writings of the Hebrews, as if it carries the voice of Greece, I now come to present the remaining parts of the argument and discuss what has been said before us. I will also address the reasonable cause of the slander, if anyone asks us, "What then, should we consider the teachings of Moses and Plato as similar?" It should not be that we compare Plato's ideas to those of Moses, but rather the other way around, since the Greek teachings would rightly belong to those who are equal to us, whether they are Greeks or non-Greeks. However, I hesitate to respond to this out of respect for the philosopher, so I will set that discussion aside for now and first examine what has been said before. Therefore, take note of Plato's opinion about the Greek theologians and poets, how he examined all the traditional beliefs about the gods and pointed out their absurdities.

Book 13, Section 1

About the other spirits, it is important to discuss and understand their origins more than our own. We should trust what has been said before, that they are descendants of the gods, as they claim, and they clearly know their own ancestors. Therefore, it is impossible to doubt the children of the gods, even though they speak without clear or necessary proof. However, they share these beliefs as if they are their own, and we should believe them, following the law.

² Thus, let us tell the story of the origins of these gods. From Earth and Sky, Oceanus and Tethys were born. From them came Phorcys, Cronus, and Rhea, along with others who came after them. From Cronus and Rhea, Zeus, Hera, and all those we know as their siblings were born, along with other descendants from them.

³ Because of this, we should believe the myths about the gods and the poets who tell those myths, since they claim to be descendants of the gods. First, it seems to me that the poets mock those who say they are the offspring of the gods, as if they are humans who have become like the descendants of the gods.

⁴ Next, he criticizes the theologians, whom he claims are descendants of the gods, by saying that "even without clear or necessary proof, they say" and adds "as they have said." It seems he is joking when he says "they clearly know their own ancestors." He also states that "it is impossible to doubt the children of the gods." He mentions these things against reason for the sake of the laws, admitting that it is necessary to follow the law and believe them.

⁵ To understand these things, pay attention to how he openly and plainly criticizes all the theologians, striking them with these words.

Book 13, Section 2

Therefore, it seems necessary for me to first give a poor description of the creation of gods and the creation of living things, as those before me have done. However, it is better to describe it according to the later account, using the argument I have directed against the impious.

² He wisely rejects the theology of the early thinkers in the second book of the Republic, where it is important to understand all that the poets and theologians, who have been passed down from ancient times, say about the Greek gods, speaking these words to them.

Book 13, Section 3

"In the greater myths, I said, we will also see the lesser ones. For it is necessary that the same type be present, so that both the greater and the lesser can be the same. Don't you think so? I do, I said; but I do not understand who you mean by the greater ones. Those whom Hesiod and Homer have told us about, I said, and other poets as well. For these poets seem to have created false myths for people, both telling and speaking them."

² "Whom exactly," he said, "and what are you blaming them for?" To which I replied, "It is necessary to blame first and most of all, especially if someone speaks falsehoods poorly. What does that mean? When someone wrongly imagines the nature of gods and heroes in their words, they are like a painter drawing things that have no resemblance to what they want to depict." "And indeed," he said, "it is right to blame such things. But how exactly do we speak, and what do we say?"

³ "First of all," I said, "the greatest falsehood about the greatest things is that he spoke poorly when he said that Uranus did what Hesiod claims he did, and that Cronus punished him. I thought the deeds and sufferings of Cronus should not be spoken of so easily, even if they were true, especially to foolish and young people. Instead, it is best to remain silent; but if it is necessary to speak, it should be done in secret, so that very few hear it, like a great and terrible sacrifice, so that only a handful might listen."

⁴ "And indeed," he said, "these words are difficult and should not be spoken." I replied, "O Adeimantus, in our city, it is not right to tell a young person that the worst wrongdoings are nothing to be amazed at, nor to punish a father for wrongdoing in every way. Instead, it would be better to act as the greatest and first gods do." "By Zeus," he said, "it does not seem fitting to me to speak of such things."

⁵ "Nor indeed," I said, "is it true that the gods wage war against each other and plot against one another. For if we believe that those who will guard the city think it is shameful to easily hate one another, then we must tell many stories about the battles of giants and describe various other conflicts and enmities among gods and heroes against their own relatives and kin. But if we want to convince ourselves that no citizen ever hated another and that this is a holy thing, then such tales should be told to children right away, and to the old as they grow older. Poets should be encouraged to create stories that reflect this."

⁶ "The bonds of Hera, thrown by her son and Hephaestus while their father was about to defend his mother who was being struck, along with all the battles of the gods that Homer has created, should not be accepted in the city, neither as suggestions nor without any hints."

⁷ "For a young person cannot judge what is a hint and what is not. Instead, whatever he accepts in his beliefs, he tends to become stubborn and unchangeable. Therefore, it is perhaps necessary to create stories about everything that they first hear, which are beautifully crafted to encourage virtue."

⁸ "It makes sense," he said. "But if someone were to ask us what these things are and what myths we might tell, what would we say? I replied, 'O Adeimantus, we are not poets, you and I, at this moment, but founders of the city. Founders should know the kinds of stories that poets ought to create, and they should not be allowed to tell myths about those whom we do not permit.'"

⁹ "Correct," he said. "But what kinds of stories should there be about theology?" I replied that they should be like this: whatever the god is like, he should always be represented in some way, whether in verses, in songs, or in tragedy. For this is necessary. Therefore, the good god should be described in this way, both in essence and in words.

¹⁰ "What about this?" he asked. "But surely nothing good is harmful." "Is that so?" I replied. "I don't think so." "So, does what is not harmful cause harm?" "Absolutely not." "And what does not cause harm does not make anyone the cause of harm." "How so?" "What then? Is the good beneficial?" "Yes." "Is it then a cause of good outcomes?" "Yes."

¹¹ "Therefore, the good is not the cause of everything, but it is the cause of those who are well off, and it is not the cause of the bad." "Absolutely," he said. "So, I said, since the god is good, he would be the cause of everything, as many say. However, he is only the cause for a few humans and not for many, because the good things among us are far fewer than the bad. For the good, there is nothing else to seek as a cause, but for the bad, we need to look for other causes, not the god."

¹² "Absolutely true," he said. "You seem to speak wisely." "So, I said, we should not accept this mistake from either Homer or any other poet, who foolishly makes errors about the gods, saying that 'two jars are set down in the house of Zeus, one full of good things and the other full of bad things.'"

¹³ "And whenever Zeus mixes both, sometimes he gets the bad and sometimes the good. But when he does not mix, the other things are pure, and the bad food drives him down to the earth."

¹⁴ "Nor is Zeus a manager for us of both good and bad things. As for the mixing of oaths and sacrifices, which Pandarus confused, if anyone says it came from Athena and Zeus, we will not praise that. We will not accept the quarrel and judgment of the gods through Themis and Zeus. And again, as Aeschylus says, we should not let the young hear that 'a god brings blame to mortals when he wants to ruin a house completely.'"

¹⁵ "But if someone creates these iambic verses that tell of the sufferings of Niobe, the Pelopids, the Trojan events, or something similar, we should either not say they are the works of a god, or if they are from a god, we need to find out who it is that we are now trying to discuss. It should be noted that the god did both just and good things, while the others were punished. As for the wretched ones who are facing the consequences, it was the god who did these things, and we should not say otherwise about the poet."

¹⁶ "But if they say that the bad ones, being wretched, asked for punishment, and that by accepting a penalty they were helped by the god, we should accept that."

¹⁷ "But to say that a god, being good, is the cause of bad things should be argued against in every way. No one should say such things in their own city if they hope to have good order, nor should anyone listen to them, whether they are younger or older, whether speaking in a measured way or not. For the things said would neither be holy if they were said, nor would they be beneficial to us or consistent with themselves."

¹⁸ "I agree with you on this law," he said, "it seems good to me. Therefore, I would be one of the laws and customs about the god, in which it is necessary for those who speak to speak and for those who create to create, not blaming the god for everything, but only for the good things. And indeed," he said, "it is very important."

¹⁹ "But what about this second one? Do you think the god is a trickster, appearing in different forms at different times, sometimes changing his own shape into many forms, and sometimes deceiving us into thinking such things about him? Or is he simple and least of all changing from his own nature? I cannot say," he said, "not at this moment."

²⁰ "But what about this? Isn't it necessary that if something changes from its own nature, it must either change by itself or by something else? It is necessary. Therefore, those things that are best, when changed by something else, change the least and are moved the least, like a body affected by food, drink, and pain, and every plant affected by seasons, winds, and similar experiences. Does not the healthiest and most beautiful change the least? How could it not?"

²¹ "But the soul, which is the bravest and wisest, is least disturbed by any outside experience. Yes. And indeed, all things made of parts, like tools, buildings, and clothing, for the same reason, those that are well made and in good condition change the least over time and from other experiences. This is true."

²² "Everything that is good, whether by nature or by skill, or both, is least likely to change by something else. It seems so. But surely, the god and the things of the god are the best in every way. How could they not be? Therefore, the god would be least likely to take on many forms. Indeed, he would. But could he change himself and become different? Clearly, he said, if he changes."

²³ "Does he change himself for the better and more beautiful, or for the worse and more shameful? It is necessary, he said, for him to change for the worse, if he changes at all; for we would not say that the god is lacking in beauty or virtue. That is absolutely right, I said. And with this being the case, does anyone, dear Adeimantus, willingly make himself worse in any way, whether among gods or men?"

²⁴ "It is impossible," he said. "Therefore," I replied, "it is also impossible for a god to want to change himself. Rather, as it seems, being the most beautiful and the best, each of them always remains simply in his own form. Every change, it seems to me, is unnecessary. So, no one, I said, dear friend, should tell us that the poets say that gods appear as strangers and take on many forms, wandering through cities."

²⁵ "Let no one deny the story of Proteus and Thetis, and let no one introduce Hera as changed in tragedies or in other works, as if she were a priestess gathering the life-giving children of the river Inachus of Argos."

²⁶ "And let not many such things deceive us. Nor should we be persuaded by those who, while frightening children, tell the myths poorly, saying that some gods wander at night as many strange and different beings, so that they do not both blaspheme the gods and make the children more cowardly. 'For do not,' he said."

²⁷ "But I said, are the gods really such that they do not change, while they make us think they appear in many forms, deceiving and enchanting us? 'Perhaps,' he said. And I asked, would a god want to deceive us by showing illusions either in words or in actions? 'I do not know,' he said."

²⁸ "I do not know," I said, "if this thing, if it can be said truly, is hated by all gods and humans as a real lie. How do you say that? You must know," I said, "that no one willingly wants to deceive about the most important things, but everyone is most afraid of having that lie for themselves." "Not even now," he said, "do I understand."

²⁹ "Do you think," I said, "that I am speaking seriously? But I say that the soul would least accept and most hate being deceived about what is real, being ignorant, and having and holding on to lies."

³⁰ "Very much," he said. "But indeed, what I just said could be called a true lie: the ignorance in the soul of the deceived person. What is in words is a kind of imitation of what is in the soul, a feeling and later a false image, which is not completely a pure lie. Is that not so? Certainly."

³¹ Indeed, the real lie is hated not only by the gods but also by humans. It seems to me. But what about this? Is the lie in words ever useful, so that it is not worthy of hate? Is it not true that against enemies and even among those called friends, when they act out of madness or some foolishness to do something wrong, it can become useful as a remedy to avoid harm?

³² And in the stories we are now discussing, since we do not know where the truth lies about the ancients, do we make the lie most similar to the truth so useful? "Yes," he said, "it is so." Then why is the lie useful to the god? Is it because, not knowing the past, it would imitate the lie? "That would indeed be ridiculous," he said.

³³ Is there then no false poet in the god? I do not think so. But would he lie out of fear of enemies? That seems very unlikely. What about lying out of foolishness or madness for his own people? "But no one," he said, "is loved by the gods if they are foolish or mad." So, is there any reason for a god to lie? "There is not." Therefore, the divine and the spirit are always truthful. "Indeed," he said.

³⁴ Therefore, the god is simple and true in both action and word. He neither changes himself nor deceives others, neither through imagination nor through signs, nor in waking or in dreams. "Thus," he said, "it seems to me and to him that you are saying." "Do you agree then," I asked, "that this is a second type in which we must speak and create about the gods, so that neither they themselves are deceivers by changing themselves, nor do they lead us astray with lies in word or in action?" "I agree."

³⁵ Therefore, when we remember many things from Homer, we do not praise this, the dream sent by Zeus to Agamemnon. Nor do we praise Aeschylus when Thetis says, "As Apollo sings at her wedding, he brings forth her beautiful children and speaks of endless diseases and long-lasting fates." Paean has spoken, making me joyful. I hoped that the divine and truthful mouth of Phoebus would be flowing with prophetic skill. But he himself, while singing and present at the feast, is the one who says these things. He is the one who kills my child.

³⁶ When someone speaks such things about the gods, we will not get angry, and we will not allow the teachers to use this in the education of the young, if the guardians are to become both pious and divine, as much as is possible for a human. "Indeed," he said, "I agree with these ideas, and I would follow the laws if they applied to them."

³⁷ These things are from Plato. However, you would find in the Hebrew writings no shameful myths about the God of all things, nor about the divine angels around him, nor about the god-loving men in the same way as in Greek theology. Instead, the ideas presented by Plato show that God is good and that everything that happens concerning him is like this.

³⁸ Therefore, in each of the creations, the wonderful Moses says, "And God saw that it was good." And concerning all things, he sums up the statement by saying, "And God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good." It is a teaching of the Hebrews that God is not the cause of evil, since God did not create death, nor does he take pleasure in the destruction of the living. For he created all things to exist, and the generations of the world are for salvation. "But through the envy of the devil, death entered into the world."

³⁹ Therefore, the prophet says that God speaks about the evil that has come from a person's own choice. "But I planted you as a fruitful vine, all true; how have you turned into a wild vine?" And if it is said that evils happen to the wicked from God, it should be understood in the same way as the punishments that are called such. A good God does not bring these for the harm of those being punished, but for their benefit and good. Just as a doctor might be thought to bring painful and bitter treatments for the healing of the sick.

⁴⁰ Therefore, in the divine scripture where it is said that evils come to people from God, we must understand this in light of Plato, who says that God works justly and does good things. When he brings sad and evil things that are thought to be deserved by those people, they suffer punishment. This is not only according to the philosopher but also according to the Hebrew scripture, which says, "For whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son whom he receives."

⁴¹ So, while the wretched ones are receiving punishment, it is God who is doing these things. It should not be said that the poet allows this, but if they claim that they deserve punishment as wretched evildoers, and that by receiving punishment they are helped by God, that can be accepted. However, to say that some good God is the cause of evils is something that should be argued against in every way.

⁴² But also about God not changing, the prophecy from the Hebrews teaches this in the following way, saying, "For I am the Lord your God, and I do not change." And in the writings of theology, David cries out, saying, "All will wear out like a garment, and like a robe you will change them, and they will be changed; but you are the same, and your years will never end."

⁴³ But if they present the word of God as appearing in human form, it should be noted that this is not like the myths of the Greeks about Proteus, Thetis, and Hera, nor like the gods who wander at night among many creatures and appear in different forms. The words of the Hebrews show the word of God revealed to humans. However, as Plato himself says, it is sometimes necessary for the good of friends, when out of madness or foolishness they try to do something wrong, that the passage of God to humans becomes a helpful remedy for their avoidance.

⁴⁴ Since among the creatures on earth there is nothing more beloved by God than the human race, which is related and close to the word of God, from which the rational nature of the soul was formed, it is fitting, like a caring friend, that the heavenly word comes to heal all of humanity. This happens while people face illness and madness, so that neither does the father know God, nor does he understand the nature of the rational essence, nor the providence of God, the savior of all, as if he were almost like an irrational creature.

⁴⁵ That is why they say that the savior and healer is known, not having changed from his own nature, nor deceiving those who see him, but keeping both the true and the visible. For the true man was seen, and the word of God was true, not enchanting or misleading those who beheld him, since it seemed good to Plato that the divine should be without deceit.

⁴⁶ Therefore, the word of God, being simple and true in both action and speech, neither changed himself nor deceived others. He did not come through fantasies, nor through words, nor through signs, nor even in dreams. For all such things, like a healer of rational souls, are truly for the salvation of all humanity. However, he did not seem to negotiate through the means by which he became a man, but rather through the friendship and return to his own father, given to all of us through the revealed knowledge of God and true piety.

⁴⁷ And these are our matters; but to others, we say that we will not give a hard time or a performance, nor will we allow the teachers to use the youth for education if they are to become for us guardians who are pious and divine, as it seemed best to the philosopher.

Book 13, Section 4

For these people believe that Zeus is the best and most just of the gods, and they agree that he bound his own father, claiming that he swallowed his sons unjustly and that he cut off his own father for such reasons. But they are angry with me because I confront the father for doing wrong, and in this way, they say contradictory things about the gods and about me.

² Therefore, oh Euthyphro, this is why I am avoiding the charge: when someone speaks about the gods, I find it hard to accept what they say, for it seems that someone will accuse me of wrongdoing. Now, if you also agree with this, knowing well about such matters, it seems necessary for us to agree as well. For what can we say, since we admit that we know nothing about them? But tell me, my friend, do you truly believe that these things have happened this way? And even more astonishing are those things that most people do not know, Socrates.

³ And do you really think there is a war among the gods against each other, with terrible hatreds and battles, and many other such things, as the poets say? Indeed, the good writers have adorned our sacred things with these stories, and even at the great Panathenaea, the robe is filled with such designs as it is brought up to the Acropolis. Shall we say that these things are true, oh Euthyphro?

⁴ "Do not think only this, oh Socrates, but as I just said, I will tell you many other things about the gods, if you want, that I know will amaze you." This is what Plato says in the Euthyphro. Numenius explains the meaning in his work about the hidden teachings of Plato, saying it this way.

Book 13, Section 5

If Plato, while writing about the theology of the Athenians, found it hard to accept their beliefs and accused them of having conflicts with each other, mixing with their children, and blaming each other for punishments instead of food, along with many other such things; if he took these ideas and openly accused the Athenians of causing harm, just as they did to Socrates, then since he would not choose to live without telling the truth, and he saw that he could safely live and tell the truth, he portrayed Euthyphro as an arrogant and boastful man. And if anyone else speaks poorly about the gods, Socrates himself would confront and challenge them, as he usually does.

Book 13, Section 6

Oh dear Crito, your eagerness is very valuable, if it is based on some correctness. But if it is not, the greater it is, the harder it becomes. Therefore, we must consider whether we should do these things or not, since I am not only like this now, but always like this, believing in nothing else but the argument that seems best to me when I think about it.

² I cannot now reject the words I said before, since this is the fate I have come to. But they seem almost the same to me, and I honor and respect them just as I did before. If we do not have anything better to say at this moment, know well that I will not agree with you, even if the power of many present now frightens us like children, sending us chains and death and taking away our possessions.

³ How then should we consider these things moderately? If we first take up this argument you mentioned about beliefs, was it said well each time or not? Should some beliefs be paid attention to while others should not? Or was it said well before I had to die, but now it has become clear that it was said for another reason, and was really just childish talk and nonsense?

⁴ I wish, Crito, to examine together with you whether I seem different to myself, since I feel this way, or the same. We will either let it be or be convinced by it. It was said, as I think, that each time people say something like I am saying now, some beliefs should be valued highly while others should not.

⁵ Is it not right, Crito, to say this to the gods? For you, as long as you are not about to die tomorrow, would not be shaken by the present misfortune. Consider this: do you not think it is said well that not all beliefs of people should be honored, but some should and some should not? Not all of them, but some of these and not those? What do you say? Is this not said well? Well said.

⁶ Then should we honor good beliefs and not bad ones? Yes. Good beliefs are those of the wise, and bad beliefs are those of the foolish, right? How could they not be? Now, how were such things said? When a man is training, does he pay attention to the praise, blame, and opinions of all men, or just to one man, whoever happens to be a doctor or a trainer? Just to one man.

⁷ Then one should fear the blame and embrace the praise of that one man, but not the praise of the many. Indeed. Therefore, he should act and train in such a way, and eat and drink as he thinks best according to that one expert who praises him more than all the others. That is true. Yes. But if he disobeys that one and dishonors his opinion and praise, while honoring the opinions of the many who do not praise him at all, will he not suffer some harm? How could he not? What is this harm? And where does it lead, and what does it affect in the one who disobeys? Clearly, it affects the body; for this is what is harmed.

⁸ You speak well. Then, Crito, we should also think about other matters this way, so that we do not chase after everything. And indeed, regarding what is just and unjust, shameful and beautiful, good and bad—about which we are now deciding—should we follow and fear the opinion of the many, or that of the one who praises, if such a person exists, and whom we should be more ashamed of and afraid of than all the others? If we do not follow him, we will ruin that and suffer harm, which benefits the just and is lost for the unjust. Or is this not true? I believe it is, Socrates.

⁹ Come now, if we are made better by what is healthy and harmed by what is unhealthy, should we not follow the opinion of those who praise? Can we live with a body that is damaged? This body does exist, doesn't it? Yes. So, can we live with a bad and damaged body? Absolutely not.

¹⁰ But is it possible for us to live with a body that is harmed, one that is hurt by injustice but benefits from justice? Or do we think that body is worse than our own, where both injustice and justice exist? Absolutely not. But is it more valuable? Very much so.

¹¹ Therefore, my best friend, we should not worry at all about what the many say about us, but rather what the one who understands justice and injustice says, along with the truth itself. So, first of all, it is not right to suggest that we should pay attention to the opinions of the many about what is just, beautiful, and good, and their opposites.

¹² And the saving word says, "You seek the opinion of people, but you do not seek the opinion of the one alone." Therefore, we act rightly in our struggles for piety, not focusing on what the many will say about us, but on what the one word of God desires. This word should be honored equally in judgment, both now and in the past, and should not be changed, even if the power of the many frightens us like children. Such were those who once shone among the Hebrews as witnesses.

Book 13, Section 7

We say that no one should willingly do wrong, or that some should do wrong in some way while others should not? Or is it not good or right at all to do wrong, as we have often agreed before? This is what was just said. Or are all those earlier agreements scattered in these few days, and have we, old men, forgotten ourselves, talking seriously with each other as if we were no different from children? Or is it more true that it is just as it was said to us before, whether the many say so or not? And whether we must suffer even more difficult things or even easier things, still, doing wrong is always bad and shameful for anyone who does it. Do we say this or not? We say it.

² Therefore, it is never right to do wrong. Indeed not. Nor is it right to do wrong in return to someone who is doing wrong, as many think, since it is never right to do wrong. That does not seem true. What then? Is it necessary to do evil, dear Criton, or not? It must not be, Socrates. What about this? Is it just to do wrong to someone who is suffering badly, as many say, or not just? Not at all. For doing evil to people is no different from doing wrong. You speak well.

³ Therefore, one should neither do wrong in return nor do evil to anyone, even if someone suffers because of them. But look, dear Criton, as you agree to these things, be careful not to agree just for the sake of it. I know that only a few think this way and will continue to think this way. So, for those who hold this belief and those who do not, there is no common agreement, and it becomes necessary for them to look down on each other's opinions. Therefore, consider carefully whether you agree and if it seems right to you. Let us start from here, believing that it is never right to do wrong, to do wrong in return, or to defend oneself against someone who is suffering badly by doing wrong to them. Or do you stand apart and not agree with this principle? For it seems to me that it has always been this way and still is.

⁴ And if you have been taught something different, speak and teach it; but if you stick to what was said before, listen to what comes next. But I do stick to it, and it seems right to me; now speak. So tell me again what comes next, and I ask more strongly: should one do what is agreed to be just, or should one deceive? One should do what is just.

⁵ Set aside the saying, "do not repay evil for evil," and the words, "bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat and persecute you, so that you may become children of your Father who is in heaven, who makes his sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and the unjust." Also, the saying, "when we are insulted, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we encourage," is found in our sacred writings. And the prophet among the Hebrews says, "If I have repaid those who have harmed me." And again, "I was peaceful with those who hated peace."

Book 13, Section 8

But back then, you were acting as if you weren't angry about having to die, but you chose, as you said, death over exile. Now, however, you are not ashamed of those words, nor do you respect our laws, as you try to destroy us. You are doing what the most worthless slave would do, trying to escape against the agreements and promises under which we have agreed to live together.

² First of all, we need to answer this: if we say that you agreed to live according to our ways in action, not just in words, is that true or not? What should we say about this, Crito? Should we say anything other than that it is true? It is necessary, Socrates. But if you claim that you are breaking the agreements and promises made with us, you are not doing so out of necessity, nor were you deceived, nor were you forced to decide quickly. Instead, it has been seventy years, during which you could have left if we were not pleasing to you, and you did not think the agreements were just.

³ But you chose neither Sparta nor Crete, which you say are well-governed, nor any other Greek city, nor any of the barbarian ones. Instead, you left for less than that, or you went away with the lame, the blind, and the other disabled. So, the city and we, the laws, pleased you more than the other Athenians, clearly; for what city would please anyone without laws? But now you are not sticking to what you agreed to? If you are convinced by us, Socrates.

Book 13, Section 9

For whoever corrupts the laws would seem to be a very corrupt person, especially to young and foolish people. So, will you flee from the well-governed cities and the most respectable men? Is it worthy for you to live by doing this? Or will you approach these people and shamelessly speak some words, Socrates, just like here, as if virtue and justice are the most valuable things to people, along with the laws and customs? And do you not think it will seem disgraceful for the actions of Socrates? You should think so.

² But you will escape from these places and go to Thessaly to the foreign friends of Crito; for there is indeed great disorder and lawlessness there. Perhaps they would gladly hear how you foolishly ran away from prison, putting on some disguise, taking a cloak, or using other things that those who escape usually wear, and changing your appearance.

³ That an old man, with little time left to live, has dared to desire to live so poorly, breaking the greatest laws—who will say anything about this? Perhaps if you do not upset someone; but if not, you will hear, Socrates, many things unworthy of you. You will live like everyone else, working hard. What will you do or enjoy in Thessaly, as if you have traveled there for a feast? But where will those words about justice and the other virtues be for us? But indeed, do you want to live for the sake of the children, to raise and educate them?

⁴ What then? If you take them to Thessaly and raise and educate them, making them foreigners, will they enjoy that from you? Or will they be better raised and educated while you are alive, even if you are not with them? For those who care for them will take good care of them.

⁵ But if you go away to Thessaly, they will be taken care of. But if you go away to Hades, they will not be taken care of, if those who say they will help you are of any use to them. You should know this well.

⁶ But, oh Socrates, if you listen to us, your caretakers, do not value children more than justice, nor life, nor anything else. This way, when you go to Hades, you can defend all this to the rulers there. For it does not seem better, more just, or more holy for you to do these things here than for anyone else, nor will it be better for you when you arrive there.

⁷ But now, if you go away feeling wronged, you will not be wronged by our laws, but by people. If you leave in such a shameful way, having done wrong and harmed others, breaking your own promises and agreements with us; having done bad things to those you should have harmed the least—yourself, your friends, your homeland, and us—we will be angry with you while you are alive. And there, the laws of our brothers in Hades will not welcome you kindly, knowing that you also tried to destroy our part.

Book 13, Section 10

"Perhaps someone might say, 'Then, Socrates, will you not be ashamed to practice such a thing, from which you are now in danger of dying?' But I would respond fairly, saying that you do not speak well, oh man, if you think one should consider the danger of living or dying based on some small benefit. Instead, one should look at whether, when acting, he is doing just or unjust things, and whether he is performing the actions of a good person or a bad one."

² For, according to your words, those who died in Troy would be worthless, including all the others and the son of Thetis, who thought so little of danger that he was willing to endure something shameful. When his mother, being a goddess, said to him, as he was eager to kill Hector, "My child, if you take revenge on your companion Patroclus for his death and kill Hector, you yourself will die." Upon hearing this, he disregarded both death and danger, but he was much more afraid of living badly and not avenging his friends. He said that he would die, bringing justice upon the wrongdoer, so that he would not remain here, a laughingstock by the ships, a burden on the land.

³ Do you not think he cares about death and danger? For this is the truth, oh Athenian men: wherever someone places himself, believing it to be the best, or is placed there by a ruler, there he must, as it seems to me, remain in danger, not considering either death or anything else before what is shameful.

⁴ Therefore, I would be in a terrible situation, oh Athenian men, if when the rulers placed me, whom you chose to lead me, in Potidaea, Amphipolis, Delos, and elsewhere, I remained like anyone else and was in danger of dying. But, as I thought and believed, since the god was placing me, I must live as a philosopher, examining myself and others. If I were to fear death or anything else, I would abandon my position.

⁵ It would indeed be terrible, and truly then someone could justly bring me to court, saying that I do not believe in the gods and that I disobey the oracle, being afraid of death and thinking I am wise when I am not. For to fear death, oh men, is nothing other than thinking one is wise without actually being so; it is believing one knows what one does not know. No one knows death, not even if it happens. To a person, it is the greatest of all goods, yet they fear it as if they know it is the greatest of all evils. And yet, how is this not the shameful ignorance, the belief that one knows what one does not know?

⁶ But, oh men, I differ from most people in this way: even if I seem to be wiser than someone, it is because I do not know enough about what is in Hades, and I believe I do not know. However, I do know that doing wrong and disobeying what is better, both to the god and to man, is bad and shameful. Therefore, before the evils that I know are bad, I will never fear or run away from what I do not know, even if it happens to be good.

⁷ So, even if you now let me go, not believing Anytus, who said that I should not come here or that since I have come, it is not possible for you not to kill me, saying to you that if I were to escape, your sons, practicing what Socrates teaches, would all be completely ruined. If you say to me, "Oh Socrates, we will not listen to Anytus now, but we will let you go on the condition that you no longer spend time in this inquiry or philosophizing; but if you are caught doing this again, you will die."

⁸ "If, then, you let me go on these terms, I would say to you, oh Athenian men, that I embrace and love you, but I will obey the god more than you. As long as I breathe and am able, I will not stop philosophizing and encouraging you, showing you, whenever I meet you, what I have always done." After a short pause, he continues.

⁹ Let us think about this: there is much hope that death is a good thing. For there are two possibilities when it comes to dying: either it is like being nothing at all, having no sense or feeling of anything, or, as it is said, there is some change and movement of the soul from this place to another. And if there is indeed no sense at all, but it is like sleep, when someone sleeps and sees no dreams, then death would be a wonderful gain.

¹⁰ For I think that if someone were to choose a night like this one, in which they slept so deeply that they saw no dreams, and then compare all the other nights and days of their life to this night, they would find that even a great king would count these nights as fewer than the others. So if death is like this, I say it is a gain; for all time seems to be no more than one night.

¹¹ But if death is like going on a journey from here to another place, and if what is said is true, that all the dead are there, what greater good could there be than this, oh men of the jury? For if someone arrives in Hades, free from these so-called judges, they will find the true judges, who are said to judge there: Minos, Rhadamanthus, Aeacus, Triptolemus, and others who were just demigods in their own lives. Then the journey would be a great thing.

¹² Or would someone want to meet Orpheus, the Muses, Hesiod, and Homer? For I often wish to die, if these things are true, since it would be wonderful for me to spend time there, whenever I might meet Palamedes and Ajax, son of Telamon, and anyone else from the past who died unjustly. Comparing my own sufferings to theirs, I think it would not be unpleasant. And indeed, the greatest thing would be to examine and investigate those there, just like we do here, to see who is wise and who thinks they are, but is not.

¹³ And among us it has been said, "It is necessary to obey God more than men." And "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul." Know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made by hands, eternal in the heavens. For when we leave the body, we will be at home with the Lord, who has promised all who hope in him that they will rest in the bosom of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, along with the other beloved prophets and righteous ones among the Hebrews, to live a blessed life for all eternity.

Book 13, Section 11

And of those who die in battle, whoever dies having done well, shall we not first say that they belong to the golden race? Indeed, we will say so. But we will not be convinced by Hesiod when some from this race die, that the pure and good spirits are the guardians of mortal men. So we will be convinced. We will ask God how we should understand the demonic and divine, and in what way we should explain this. Why should we not? And from now on, how will we honor and worship the spirits as they have become? We will consider the same things when someone dies in old age or in some other way, as long as they are judged to have been good in life.

² And these things are fitting for the end of the beloved ones, whom we would not be wrong to say should be honored as soldiers of true piety. Therefore, it is our custom to visit their graves and to offer prayers there, honoring their blessed souls, as it is right for us to do.

³ But we have gathered these things from Plato; yet some other lover of beauty might find even more agreements with our teachings from the same source, and perhaps even from others. Since others have also explored the same ideas before us, I think it is good to examine what they have prepared. I will first present the words of Aristobulus, the philosopher from the Hebrews, which are expressed in this way.

Book 13, Section 12

It is clear that Plato followed our laws, and it is evident that he has carefully examined each part of them. Demetrius of Phalerum explains this through others, before the rule of Alexander and the Persians, both regarding the departure of the Hebrews from Egypt, our own citizens, and the significance of all the events for them, as well as the control of the land and the explanation of the entire legislation. It is clear that the philosopher mentioned has taken much from these ideas. He became very knowledgeable, just as Pythagoras took many things from us and incorporated them into his own teachings.

² But the complete explanation of all these things through the law was presented during the reign of King Philadelphus, your ancestor, who brought greater honor, while Demetrius of Phalerum was exploring these topics.

³ Then, after saying something in between, he adds, "For it is necessary to receive the divine voice not as a spoken word, but as a creation of actions, just as Moses has explained to us the entire origin of the world through the law with the words of God. For he continually says about each thing, 'And God said, and it came to be.'"

⁴ Therefore, it seems to me that everything has been carefully studied by Pythagoras, Socrates, and Plato, who say that they hear the voice of God, closely observing the creation of all things as having been made by God and continuously existing without interruption. Moreover, Orpheus also expresses in his poems, according to the sacred teachings given to him, that everything is held together by divine power, that all things exist, and that God is above all. He says this:

⁵ I will speak of what is just. You, impious ones, shut the doors, fleeing from the laws of the righteous, set by the divine for all. But you, child of the shining Moon, listen to the Muses; for I will speak the truth, and do not let what was previously revealed in the heart of a beloved age escape you. Look to this divine word and pay attention, directing the understanding of your heart. If you ascend the path, you will find the immortal creator of the world. An ancient saying reveals this: there is one who is complete in himself, and by him all things are fulfilled, and in him all things exist, and no one can see him, except with the mind. He does not bring evil to mortals from good things. To him, grace and hatred follow, and war and plague bring painful tears, and there is no other. But you may see everything flow if you should see him. Before you come down to earth, my child, I will show you whenever I look upon his tracks and the strong hand of the mighty god. But I do not see him; for he is surrounded by a cloud. To me, there are ten folds among men; for no mortal can see him reigning, unless some unique descendant from above the Chaldeans, for he knows the way of the stars and the movement of the sphere around the earth as it revolves. He is circular and equal, and he drives the breath around the air and the flow of water. He reveals the brightness of fire, the strong one. He himself is again set high in the sky on a golden throne; the earth has fallen beneath his feet, and he has stretched out his right hand over the ends of the ocean. The base of the mountains trembles within the heart, and it cannot bear the strong force. He is altogether heavenly, and over the earth, he brings all things to an end, having the beginning, the middle, and the end, as the ancient word says, as the wise one has ordered, having received from the divine thoughts according to the double law. Otherwise, it is not lawful to speak; but I tremble, indeed, at the thought. He rules over all things in order. O child, you should approach these thoughts, mastering the tongue well, and within your heart, have divine speech.

⁶ And Aratus also says the same things like this: "Let us begin from Zeus, whom no man ever allows to be unspoken. All streets are full of God, all the marketplaces of men are full, and the sea is full, along with the harbors. In every way, we are all filled with God. For we are of his lineage; he, the gentle one, signals to men and stirs the people to action, reminding them of life. He speaks when the best soil is ready for cattle and crops, and he speaks when the right seasons come and all seeds are to be sown."

⁷ I clearly think it has been shown that the power of God is present in all things. As we have been taught to recognize Zeus and the divine through the poems; for their thoughts are directed toward God. Therefore, it has been said to us in this way. Thus, we are not wrongly presenting these things to those who seek them.

⁸ For all philosophers agree that there should be holy discussions about God, which our school especially encourages. The entire framework of the law is established for us regarding piety, justice, self-control, and the other good things that are based on truth.

⁹ Next, he adds, "It is possible that the one who created the whole world has given us rest because everyone suffers from the troubles of life on the seventh day. Or perhaps the first day could be called the natural birth of light, in which everything is seen together."

¹⁰ It could also be said the same about wisdom, for all light comes from it. Some of those from the school of the Porch have said that it has a radiant order, and those who follow it will remain calm throughout their entire life.

¹¹ One of our ancestors, Solomon, expressed more clearly and beautifully that it is above the heavens and exists on earth. This agrees with what has been said before. What is explained through the law has put an end to the idea of the god being in it. This does not mean, as some suppose, that the god no longer does anything, but rather that, having established their order, they are arranged this way for all time.

¹² For it means that in six days he made the heavens and the earth and everything in them, to show the times and to declare the order of what comes first. Having arranged them, he holds them together and does not change them. It has been explained to us as lawful because of the sign of the seventh day that has been established, in which we have knowledge of human and divine matters.

¹³ The whole world is organized into weeks, with all living things and plants. The Sabbath is called a rest. Both Homer and Hesiod explain this, having drawn from our sacred books that it is holy. Hesiod says: "First is the sacred day of the fourth and the seventh." And again he says: "The seventh is a bright light of the sun."

¹⁴ Homer says this: "Then the seventh day has come, a holy day." And again: "It was the seventh day, and everything was completed." On the seventh day, we leave the flow from Acheron.

¹⁵ This means that from forgetfulness and evil, in the true seventh word, what has been said before is left behind, and we gain knowledge of the truth, as has been mentioned.

¹⁶ Linus says this: "On the seventh day, everything is completed." And again: "The seventh is in good things, and the seventh is a birth." And: "The seventh is among the first, and the seventh is complete." And: "All seven are made in the starry heaven, appearing in circles that mark the years." So these are the teachings of Aristobulus. If you understand what Clement has said about the same topic, you would know through these.

Book 13, Section 13

Next, we must also clearly explain the Greek borrowing from the philosophy of the barbarian. For the Stoics say that god is both a body and a spirit by nature, just like the soul. You will find all these ideas directly in the writings. Do not think of their allegories as if the gnostics are sharing the truth, showing something different, just as the ancient wise men hint at something else. They say that god exists throughout all of reality, while we call him only a creator and a maker in name.

² But they referred to the saying in Wisdom, "It goes through and moves through all things because of purity," since they did not understand that these words are about the wisdom of the creator god. Yes, they say; but the philosophers, including the Stoics, Plato, Pythagoras, and also Aristotle the Peripatetic, do not suggest a single principle. Therefore, let them understand that the so-called matter is described as formless and shapeless in relation to them, and it is bold if it is not said to relate to Plato. Let it not be something very secretive, knowing the one true principle as mentioned in the Timaeus with those words.

³ Now, let it be this way from us: regarding all things, whether there is one principle or many principles, or wherever it seems to relate to these, it should not be stated now, not for any other reason, but because it is difficult to explain what seems to be the case in the current way of discussion.

⁴ Moreover, that prophetic saying, "And the earth was invisible and unformed," gives them a starting point for material substance. Yes, indeed, for Epicurus, the idea of the automatic intrusion did not follow the stated concept, hence "vanity of vanities, all is vanity." But Aristotle went up to the moon to bring down the providence from this psalm, "O Lord, your mercy is in the heavens, and your truth reaches to the clouds." For the revelation of the prophetic mysteries had not yet been made known before the coming of the Lord.

⁵ Also, the punishments after death and the punishment by fire come from barbarian philosophy, as does all poetic inspiration. But Greek philosophy has set them aside. Plato, at least, in the last part of the Republic, says with these words, "Here indeed, fierce men are present, watching and observing the destruction; some take the individuals away, while they bind Aridaeus and the others, hands and feet, and after beheading them, they drag them along the road over the ashes." For indeed, these fierce men want to show angels, and those who take the unjust are punishing them. "He says that the angels are spirits and the ministers are burning fire."

⁶ It follows that the soul is immortal. For what is punished or educated while being aware is alive, even if it is said to suffer. But what about this? Does not Plato know about the rivers of fire and the depths of the earth, which he poetically calls Tartarus, as well as Cocytus, Acheron, and Pyriphlegethon, bringing these into education as punishments? And concerning the lesser beings, according to the text, the smallest of the angels who see God, as well as those who come to us through the angels who stand by, showing oversight, he does not hesitate to write. Since all souls are to be chosen for their lives, just as they were drawn, they come in order to Lachesis, and to each one, whoever chose a spirit, this one is sent as the guardian of life, to fulfill the chosen ones. "Perhaps Socrates hinted at something like this with his spirit."

⁷ Yes, indeed, the philosophers have argued that those who receive are generated. And Plato directly asked whether there was no beginning of generation, starting from some origin, or if it came into being from nothing. For it is visible and tangible and has a body. "Again, whenever he says that the creator and father of this whole thing is found, he not only shows that the world is generated, but also suggests that it came from itself, as if it came from something that existed alone and from nothing that was present."

⁸ The Stoics also consider the world to be generated. And Plato speaks of the devil, which is discussed by barbarian philosophy, as the ruler of demons, saying that it is an evil spirit in the tenth book of the Laws with these words: "Is it not necessary for the soul that governs and resides in all things that are moved to also govern the heavens?" What about this? One or many? I will answer for many. Let us not consider anything less than two: both the benefactor and the one capable of doing the opposite.

⁹ Similarly, in the Phaedrus, he writes: "There are indeed other evils, but a certain demon mixes in with most of the immediate pleasures." But in the tenth book of the Laws, he clearly shows that "our struggle is not against blood and flesh, but against the spiritual things of those in the heavens," writing in this way.

¹⁰ For since we have agreed that the heavens are full of many good things and also of opposites, we say that the struggle is indeed immortal and requires a wonderful guardian.

¹¹ The barbarian philosophy understands both the intelligible world and the sensible one; the former is the original, while the latter is the image of the beautiful example. It presents the intelligible as one, while the sensible is shown as six; for among the Pythagoreans, six is called a fruitful number. In the one, it establishes an unseen heaven, a holy earth, and an intelligible light; for in the beginning, it says, god made the heaven and the earth, and the earth was unseen.

¹² Then god said, "Let there be light," and there was light. In the sensible creation, he made the heaven and the solid sensible things, including the visible earth and the visible light. Does it not seem to you that from this, Plato leaves the ideas of living things in the intelligible world and creates the sensible forms according to their kinds?

¹³ Therefore, it is rightly said that Moses speaks of the body being formed from the earth, which Plato calls a "tent," and that the rational soul is breathed into the face from above by god. Here, they say, the ruling part is established, interpreting the soul's entrance through the senses as the entrance of the first created being. For this reason, they say that man was made in the image and likeness of god.

¹⁴ For the divine word is the image of god and is royal, while man is without passion, and the human mind is an image of the image. If you want to take the name of the likeness, you would find a divine following mentioned in Moses. For he says, "You shall walk behind the lord your god and keep his commandments." I believe that all the virtuous are followers and servants of god.

¹⁵ From here, the Stoics say that the goal of philosophy is to live according to nature, while Plato speaks of becoming like god, as we presented in the second book of the 'Stromateis.' Zeno the Stoic took this from Plato, and he, influenced by foreign philosophy, says that all good people are friends with one another. For in the 'Phaedrus,' Socrates says that it is not destined for a bad person to be a friend to another bad person, nor for a good person to not be a friend to another good person.

¹⁶ This was also shown well in the 'Lysis,' that friendship cannot survive in injustice and wickedness. The Athenian stranger similarly says, "Action is a friend and follower of god and has an ancient reason, when the similar is a friend to the similar in moderation, but the extremes are not friends to each other, nor to the moderate; and god would be the measure of all things for us."

¹⁷ Then Plato adds, "For every good person is similar to another good person, and likewise, one who resembles god is a friend to every good person and to god." At this point, I remembered that at the end of the 'Timaeus,' he says that one must make the thinker similar to the thought according to the ancient nature. Once this similarity is achieved, it should lead to the best life for humans, as set by the gods, both for the present time and for the future.

¹⁸ And shortly after, he adds, "We are brothers, as we are of one god and one teacher." Plato seems to express this well, "For you all are brothers in the city, as we will say when we tell stories about them. But the god who shapes us has mixed gold into those of you who are able to rule, which is why they are the most honored; those who are helpers have silver; and iron and bronze are for the farmers and other workers."

¹⁹ Therefore, he says it is necessary to embrace and love these people based on knowledge, and those based on opinion. For perhaps he is predicting this chosen nature of knowledge, unless he is suggesting three kinds of natures and three types of government, as some have thought. He describes the Jews as having silver, the Greeks as having bronze, and the Christians, to whom the royal gold is mixed with the holy spirit.

²⁰ He describes the life of Christians in the Theaetetus, saying, "Let us speak about the highest things; for what could those who waste their time in philosophy say? These people do not know the way to the marketplace, nor to where the court or council is, or any other public gathering of the city. They neither see nor hear the laws and decrees that are said or written. They are busy with gatherings and meetings, and with flute-girls during their celebrations, and they do not even think about doing anything. Whether something good or bad has happened in the city, or what evil has come from their ancestors, is more forgotten by them than the waves of the sea. And this is not because they do not know, but because their body is only present in the city, while they themselves fly away, as Pindar says, beneath the earth and above the heavens, studying the stars and exploring all of nature."

²¹ Again, it is said that the Lord's statement should be 'yes, yes' and 'no, no'; anything beyond this is not allowed, and it is not right to allow falsehood and hide the truth. This agrees with what is said in the tenth book of the Laws: 'Let there be praise and an oath concerning everything.' The teachings of Pythagoras, Socrates, and Plato emphasize listening to the voice of God, seeing the creation of all things as carefully made by God and always connected. They have heard Moses saying, 'He spoke, and it came to be,' writing that the word of God is an action.

²² Standing on the idea that man was created from the earth, philosophers call the body earthly. However, Homer does not hesitate to place the curse in parts, saying, "You all shall become water and earth," just as Isaiah says, "and you shall trample them like clay."

²³ Callimachus clearly writes that if that one, who once spoke to the bird, the sea, and the four-footed animals, spoke like the clay of Prometheus. Again, he says, "If you say, 'Prometheus created, and you were not made from another clay.'" Hesiod also speaks about Pandora, saying, "Hephaestus ordered that the famous earth be mixed quickly, and in it to place the voice and mind of a man."

²⁴ Fire, then, is a craft, walking the path into existence; the Stoics define nature. Fire and light are symbols for God and his word in the writings. But what about this? Does not Homer, explaining the separation of water from the earth and the clear revelation of dry land from Tethys and Ocean, say, "For they have long been apart from each other in love and friendship?"

²⁵ Again, the powerful one is attributed to God by the most learned among the Greeks. Epicharmus says, "Nothing escapes the divine; you must know this: he is the overseer of all, and God is not weak in anything." The poet says, "It is possible for God to bring forth light from the black night and to cover the pure brightness of day with dark clouds." He says that this God can turn day into night.

²⁶ In the Phenomena, Aratus begins with, "Let us start from Zeus," saying, "Let us never leave the divine unspoken; all streets are full of Zeus, all marketplaces of men are full, and the sea is full, and we are all everywhere under Zeus." For we are of his kind, like creation... He himself has set signs in the sky, distinguishing the stars. He has looked at the stars for the year, which most clearly indicate the seasons for men, so that everything may grow strong. And they always honor him first and last. Hail, father, great wonder, great blessing for men. Before this, Homer speaks of the shield made by Hephaestus, saying, "He made the earth, the sky, and the sea," and "all the constellations that crown the sky." For through the poems and the arranged writings, Zeus brings forth the meaning of God.

²⁷ Now, as it is said, Democritus writes about a few men who, raising their hands here, where we now call the air, say that everything is spoken by Zeus, and that he knows everything, gives everything, and takes away everything, and he is the king of all. More mysteriously, the Boeotian Pindar, being a Pythagorean, says, "We are of one kind, both of men and of gods, and we breathe from one mother." He hands over the material world and speaks of one creator of these things, the master craftsman, who has also shaped the advancements into divinity.

²⁸ I am silent about Plato, who seems to show a father and son in his letter to Erastus and Coriscus, not knowing how he reveals this from the Hebrew writings. He urges, according to the text, to take an oath seriously, not neglecting, and to honor the divine as the cause of all things, and to honor the lord and cause as the father, whom, if you philosophize correctly, you will come to know. The speech in the Timaeus calls the creator the father, saying, "Gods of gods, of whom I am the father and creator of works."

²⁹ So when he says, "About the king of all, everything exists for his sake, and he is the cause of all good things, and then about the second and third things," I cannot help but hear it as a hint at the holy Trinity. For the holy spirit is the third, and the son is the second, through whom all things came to be according to the will of the father.

³⁰ But in the tenth book of the Republic, Plato recalls the story of Er, the Armenian, who is from the lineage of Pamphylus, and he is Zoroaster. Zoroaster himself writes, "These things were written by Zoroaster the Armenian, of the lineage of Pamphylus, who died in battle, having been judged by the gods in Hades." Plato says that this Zoroaster, lying by the fire, comes back to life. Perhaps he does not mean the resurrection, but hints at something else, as the path for souls to ascend happens through the twelve zodiac signs, and he also says that the descent into existence is the same. These ideas should be considered, and the labors of Heracles are said to be twelve, after which the soul is freed from this world. I do not overlook Empedocles either. This natural philosopher remembers the return of all things as once changing into the essence of fire.

³¹ Heraclitus of Ephesus is very clear about this belief: some worlds are eternal, while others are perishable, and he understands that they are not different in nature. He makes it clear that the eternal world, made from all existence, is not created by any gods or humans, but always has been and will be, a living fire, changing in measure and going out in measure. He also hints that it is both generated and perishable by mentioning the changes of fire: first the sea, and half of the sea is earth, while the other half is a furnace. He says that fire, under the guiding reason and god, changes everything through air into moisture, which he calls the sea; from this, the sky and earth and all that is contained in them are formed again. He clearly shows that it is taken up again and burned through these processes, saying, "The sea flows and is measured according to the same reason, as it was before or came to be." Similarly, he speaks about the other elements in the same way.

³² Similar to this, the most learned Stoics teach about both the burning up of the world and its governance, as well as the creation of the world, humans, and the continued existence of our souls. Again, Plato, in the seventh book of the Republic, calls this day a "night" because of the rulers of the cosmos, I think, of this darkness; sleep and death are the same path of the soul into the body, according to Heraclitus. And let this not be something that the spirit of the Savior foretold through David, saying, "I slept and I rested; I awoke, for the Lord will take hold of me;" for it is not only the resurrection of Christ from sleep that he speaks of, but also the descent of the Lord into the flesh is allegorized as sleep.

³³ "Immediately, the same Savior commands, 'Stay awake;' that is, 'Practice living and try to separate the soul from the body.' On the Lord's Day, in the tenth book of the Republic, Plato explains these things, saying, 'Since each of those in the meadow has seven days, after rising from there, one must go on the eighth and reach the fourth.' 'The meadow, then, should be understood as the unchanging sphere, a peaceful place, friendly, and a land of the holy; each of the seven days represents a movement of the seven, and all the working art rushes toward the end of rest; but the journey with the wandering ones leads to the sky, that is, the eighth movement and day; he says that the souls depart as fourths, indicating the journey through the four elements.'"

³⁴ But both the Hebrews and the Greeks recognize the seventh as sacred, in which the whole world is surrounded by all living and growing things. Hesiod says this about it: "First is the sacred day of the fourth and the seventh." And again, "The seventh is indeed a bright light of the sun." Homer says, "On the seventh, the sacred day came." And "the seventh was sacred." And again, "The seventh day was, and to the completed all things." And again, "On the seventh, we left the flow from Acheron at dawn." Yes, indeed, Callimachus the poet writes, "On the seventh at dawn, all things were made for him." And again, "The seventh is among the good, and the seventh is a generation." And "the seventh is among the first, and the seventh is complete." And "all seven were made in the starry heaven, appearing in circles as the years go by."

³⁵ "But the sayings of Solon greatly praise the seventh." "And is it not similar to the saying, 'Let us remove the just one from us, because he is hard to deal with,' which Plato speaks about in the second book of the Republic? He says, 'Thus the just one, in this state, will be whipped, his eyes will be cut out, and in the end, suffering all evils, he will be revealed.'" "And the Socratic Antisthenes, paraphrasing that prophetic writing, 'To whom have you likened me? says the Lord,' states that it is like no one, for no one can learn about him from an image. Similar things are said by Xenophon the Athenian, word for word, saying that he is indeed great and powerful, but his form is invisible. Nor does the all-bright sun, which seems to be, allow itself to be seen; but if someone looks at him boldly, he takes away their sight." "For who among flesh can see the heavenly and true God with immortal eyes, who dwells on earth? But neither can mortals, having been born, stand before the rays of the sun," the Sibyl foretold.

³⁶ "Indeed, even Xenophanes of Colophon teaches that God is one and incorporeal, and he is the greatest among both gods and humans, not similar in form to mortals, nor in thought. And again, 'But mortals seem to give birth to gods. They have their own clothing, voice, and form.' And again, 'But if they had hands like cows or lions, or if they could write with their hands and do the works that men do, horses would create horses like themselves, and cows would create cows like themselves, and they would depict the forms of gods and create bodies like those they themselves have.'"

³⁷ "Let us listen again to Bacchylides the poet speaking about the divine: 'The unblemished are free from shameful diseases and are blameless, not similar to humans.' And hear these lines from Cleanthes the Stoic about God: 'Do you ask me what is good? Listen then. It is ordered, just, holy, pious, self-controlled, useful, beautiful, necessary, strict, self-sufficient, always beneficial, fearless, free from sorrow, profitable, pleasing, safe, friendly, honorable, acknowledged, renowned, untroubled, careful, gentle, intense, enduring, blameless, and always remaining.'"

³⁸ "But he, in silence, reveals the idolatry of the many, saying that everyone who looks to appearances is unfree, as if they will gain something good from it. Therefore, we should no longer consider the opinion of the many about the divine; for I do not think secretly, imitating the form of a wicked man, to come to you in bed, just like a human," says Amphion to Antiope. Sophocles writes clearly, "For Zeus married this mother, not in golden form, nor adorned with a swan's feathers, as if he seduced the daughter of Pleuros, but as a complete man." Then, having approached, the adulterer quickly stood at the bridal steps. On these matters, the storyteller describes the lack of restraint of Zeus in this way: "He neither touched the feast nor the bath, but went to the bed, driven by desire, and stirred up all that joy."

³⁹ "Let these things be presented before the openings of the theaters. On the other hand, Heraclitus, who always speaks what is necessary, says that people become foolish, both before hearing and after hearing for the first time. The poet Melanippides sings, 'Listen to me, O father, wonder of mortals, you who care for the ever-living souls.' And the great Parmenides, as Plato says in the Sophist, writes something like this about the divine: 'It is truly ungenerated and indestructible, whole, unique, unchanging, and also ungenerated.' But Hesiod also says, 'For he is the king and ruler of all immortals, and no other power will take your strength away.'"

⁴⁰ "Yes, indeed, tragedy teaches us to look up to heaven, separating ourselves from the idols. For Sophocles, as Hecataeus, who wrote the histories about Abraham and the Egyptians, boldly shouts on stage, 'There is one truth, there is one god, who created both heaven and the vast earth, and the fierce waves of the sea and the rivers of life.' But many mortals, wandering in heart, have set up images of the gods made from stones, bronze, gold, or ivory. And by offering sacrifices and holding beautiful festivals for these, we think we are being pious."

⁴¹ "Euripides, on the same stage of tragedies, says, 'Do you see this infinite ether above and the earth surrounding it in a watery embrace? Consider this as Zeus, and regard this as the god.' In the drama of Pirithous, he also sings these lines: 'You, the self-born, who in the roar of the ether entangle all nature, around whom light shines, and around whom the dark night, colored by the winds, dances with countless stars.' Here, he speaks of the self-born creator, and then he arranges the rest concerning the cosmos, where there are also opposites of light and darkness. Aeschylus, the son of Euphorion, speaks very solemnly about the god: 'Zeus is the ether, Zeus is the earth, Zeus is the sky; indeed, Zeus is all things, and he is above all these.'"

⁴² "I know, and Plato also confirms Heraclitus, who writes, 'The wise one does not wish to be called one, and he desires the name of Zeus.' And again, 'Let one obey the law and the will.' If you want to bring up that saying, 'Let the one who has ears to hear, hear,' you will find it appearing like this from the Ephesian: 'Those who do not understand seem like the deaf; a voice testifies that they are absent.' But do you wish to hear one principle from the Greeks? Timaeus the Locrian, in his work on nature, will testify to me in these words: 'There is one principle of all things that is ungenerated; for if it had come into being, there would no longer be a principle, but those things from which the principle came into being.' For from there flows the true belief: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one, and you shall serve him alone.' Look, this is clear and undeniable for all, as the Sibyl says."

⁴³ "Xenocrates the Carthaginian says that the highest god is Zeus, and the youngest leaves behind both father and son. The most paradoxical thing is that he seems to understand the divine by introducing the gods with human feelings, which even Epicurus does not shy away from. He indeed says, 'Why do you, son of Peleus, chase after a god with swift feet, being mortal yourself? You have not yet recognized that I am a god.' For the divine cannot be captured by mortals, nor can it be grasped by feet, hands, eyes, or in any way by the body. 'To whom will you liken the Lord? Or what likeness will you compare him to?' says the scripture. 'Did the craftsman make an image, or did the goldsmith, melting gold, cover it?' And so on about these things."

⁴⁴ The comic poet Epicarmus clearly speaks about reason in the Republic: "Human life needs reasoning and counting very much; we live in number and reason, for these save mortals." Then he boldly adds that "reason governs humans and saves them in a certain way." If there is human reasoning, then there is also a divine reason. Reason is naturally concerned with the destruction of life. Indeed, divine reason is present in all the arts, teaching them what they should do for their benefit. For a human does not discover an art; rather, the god brings it forth. And indeed, human reason has come from divine reason.

⁴⁵ Yes, indeed, through the spirit of Isaiah crying out, "What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?" says the Lord; "I am full of burnt offerings, and the fat of lambs and the blood of bulls I do not want." And shortly after, he adds, "Wash yourselves, be clean, remove the evil from your souls." About these things, Menander the comic poet writes: "If someone brings a sacrifice, O Pamphilus, a multitude of bulls or goats, or by Zeus, other such things, or preparations, making cloaks of gold or purple, or animals made of ivory or emerald, he thinks he has made the god favorable, but he is deceived and has a light mind. For a man must be useful, not ruining virgins and committing adultery, stealing and killing for money. Do not even desire the point of a spear, Pamphilus; for the god sees you standing nearby."

⁴⁶ "I am a god who is near, and not a god far away. Will a man do something in secret, and I not see him?" says Jeremiah. And again, Menander, paraphrasing that scripture, writes: "Do not even desire the point of a spear, O dearest friend, for the god delights in just deeds and not in unjust ones. He allows the one who works hard to raise his own life, plowing the land by night and by day. But sacrifice to the god, being just, and shining in your cloaks, as in your heart. If you hear thunder, do not flee, unaware of yourself, master. For the god sees you standing nearby."

⁴⁷ "The scripture says, 'While you are still speaking, I will say, behold, I am here.' Diphilus the comic poet discusses something like this about judgment: 'Do you think, O Nicerat, that the dead, having enjoyed all pleasure in life, have escaped the divine as if they were unnoticed? There is an eye of justice that sees everything. For we believe there are two paths in Hades, one for the just and another for the wicked. And even if the earth covers the two at all times, going away, he steals and takes away; be careful, do not be misled. There is also in Hades a place that the god, the master of all, will create, whose name is fearful, and I would not even name it. He gives a long life to those who sin. If any mortal thinks that on a dark day, while doing something bad, the gods are unnoticed, he is mistaken and gets caught in his own thoughts when justice takes its time. Look, all of you who think there is no god. There is, there is. And if someone does evil, being naturally bad, let him gain time, for this time will later bring him justice."

⁴⁸ "And tragedy agrees with these things, for there will come a time in that age when the golden sky will break open, filled with the treasure of fire. The flame that has been fed will burn all the land and the sea, raging wildly. After a little while, it will spread again—when everything disappears, the entire depth of the waves will be empty, and the land will be a deserted wasteland. No winged creatures will sprout from the burned earth, and then it will restore everything that was lost before."

⁴⁹ "We will find similar things written in the Orphic texts, for having hidden everything, he brought forth light again from the sacred heart, performing wonders. If we live piously and justly, we will be blessed here and even more blessed after our release from this life. We will not have happiness for just a little while, but we will be able to rest in eternity, being companions of the immortal ones, self-sufficient and free from the brave Achaeans, as the philosopher Empedocles says in his poetry. No one among the Greeks will be so great as to surpass justice, nor so small as to escape it."

⁵⁰ "And the same Orpheus says these things, looking toward the divine word. He was attentive to it, guiding the mind's deep vessel. He stepped well on the path, but he only saw the immortal lord of the world. Again, speaking about the god, he says that he is invisible and claims that only one person from the Chaldeans knows him, whether he is speaking of Abraham or his son. Through these, if not some unique one from the Chaldeans, for he was wise in the journey of the stars. Just as the sphere moves around the earth, it is circular and equal, and beneath it is a base. With spirit, he drives around the air and the flow."

⁵¹ "Then, as if paraphrasing the saying, 'the heaven is my throne, and the earth is the footstool of my feet,' he himself is again firmly set high on the heavenly throne; the earth is placed beneath his feet. He has stretched out his right hand over the ends of the Ocean. The base of the mountains trembles within the heart, and it cannot bear the strong force. He is everywhere heavenly, and everything on earth comes to an end, holding both the beginning and the middle and the end. Otherwise, it is not right to speak of you; I tremble at your limbs in thought. He rules from the highest, and over all that is beneath him. For through these, he has made clear all those prophetic words: 'whoever opens the heaven will be seized by trembling; and from you, mountains will shake, as wax melts before the fire.' And those through Isaiah: 'who has measured the heaven with a span and all the earth with a measure?'"

⁵² "Again, when the air, Hades, the sea, and the earth are in turmoil, he who shakes the strong house of Olympus with thunder makes the demons shudder, and the crowd of gods fears him, to whom the Fates are obedient, even though they are unyielding. Immortal mother, everything trembles in your heart, you who stir the winds and cover everything with clouds, splitting the wide air with storms. Your order moves among the stars with unchanging regularity. At your fiery throne stand the hardworking angels, who care for mortals as everything is completed. Your spring shines with new purple flowers; your winter, coming with cold clouds, is when we once shared the autumn with the Bacchic revelers."

⁵³ "Then he clearly names the all-powerful god, immortal, eternal, the only one spoken of among the immortals. Come, greatest of all gods, with strong necessity, terrible, unconquered, great, immortal, whom the ether crowns. For through the mother of all, he not only revealed the birth from non-existence but also provided opportunities for those who might understand the projections of the god. He explains those prophetic writings, such as through Hosea: 'Behold, I bring a strong thunder, creating spirit, whose hands have founded the army of heaven;' and through Moses: 'See, see that I am, and there is no other god besides me. I kill, and I make alive; I strike, and I heal. And there is no one who can be rescued from my hands.' He himself plants good from good for mortals and cold war, according to Orpheus."

⁵⁴ "Such things are said by Parian Archilochus: 'O Zeus, your power is in the sky, but you see the deeds of men, both their works and their lawless acts.' Again, let Orpheus sing to us: he stretched out his right hand over the ends of the Ocean; the earth has been placed beneath his feet. These things are clearly taken from there: 'The Lord will save those who dwell in the land, and he will seize the whole inhabited world with his hand, like a nest; the Lord who made the earth with his strength,' as Jeremiah says, 'and he will restore the inhabited world with his wisdom.' Furthermore, Phocylides calls the angels demons, some of whom are good, while others are wicked. For we have also encountered some rebels, but indeed, there are demons among men, sometimes good and sometimes bad, who come to bring harm to the wicked."

⁵⁵ "Therefore, Philemon the comic poet rejects idolatry with these words: 'There is no luck from the gods for us; there is none. What happens is simply called luck, as it occurs to each person.' Sophocles the tragic poet says: 'Even the gods say that all things happen by chance, far from Zeus; for he has both the end and the beginning.' And Orpheus says: 'One power became a great spirit, the bright sky, in which everything is created, where all things are surrounded: fire, water, earth, and all that is upon them.'"

⁵⁶ "Pindar the composer boldly asks: 'What is a god? Whatever is everything, and again, a god who creates all things for mortals.' But when he says: 'Why do you hope that one man has more wisdom than another? It is hard to understand the plans of the gods with a mortal mind; for he was born of a mortal mother. From there, who has understood the mind of the lord? Or who has become his counselor?'"

⁵⁷ "But Hesiod also agrees with what has been said before: 'There is no mortal man who can know the mind of Zeus, the one who holds the aegis.' Therefore, Solon the Athenian rightly says in his elegies, following Hesiod: 'The mind of the immortals is completely hidden from humans.'"

⁵⁸ "Again, a certain poet, not unknown, writes about Moses: 'They will never stop their toil and suffering, nor will they find rest at night, being troubled. The gods will give them difficult worries.'"

⁵⁹ "Still, Homer says: 'The father stretches out golden scales.' He reveals the just god. Menander, the comic poet, interpreting the god well, says: 'A spirit stands by every man, who is born good and guides him in life; for a bad spirit should not be thought to harm a good life.' Then he adds: 'All that is good comes from the god.' Either he means that every god is good, or, more likely, that in all things the god is good."

⁶⁰ "Again, Aeschylus, the tragic poet, presenting the power of the god, does not hesitate to call him the highest, saying: 'Separate the god from mortals, and do not think that he stands like a man. You do not know him. Sometimes he appears like fire, unstoppable in force; sometimes like water, sometimes like darkness. He becomes like wild beasts, like wind, like clouds, like lightning, like thunder, and like rain. The sea serves him, and the rocks, and every spring, and all bodies of water. The mountains tremble, and the earth, and the vast depths of the sea, and the heights of the mountains, when he looks down with the fierce eye of the master; for all things are possible for the highest god.' Does it not seem to you that this explains the phrase, 'the earth trembles at the presence of the lord'?"

⁶¹ "On this matter, the most prophetic Apollo, witnessing to the glory of the god, is compelled to speak about Athena when the Medes were invading Greece, as he begged and prayed to Zeus about Attica. The oracle goes like this: 'Pallas cannot appease Zeus the Olympian, pleading with many words and clever tricks. He will give many temples of the immortals to fierce fire, where they now stand, dripping with sweat and trembling with fear,' and the rest of it."

⁶² "The philosopher Thearidas writes in his work On Nature, 'The beginning of all things is truly one. For in the beginning, there is one and only one.' No one exists apart from the great king, says Orpheus; to whom the comic poet Diphilus, following his lead, says, 'The one who is, he calls the father of all... Honor him for the end, the finder and creator of so many good things.'"

⁶³ Therefore, it is fitting that Plato teaches that the best natures reach the study, which we mentioned earlier as the greatest, to see the good and to ascend that path. This, it seems, is not just a turning of shells, but a guiding of the soul from a certain night of day to the true ascent of being, which we will indeed call true philosophy. Those who take part in this are considered to be of the golden race, so that all are truly brothers, he says; but those of the golden race are the most precise in every way.

⁶⁴ Thus, the father and creator of all things naturally and without teaching understands everything in relation to all. Inanimate things share feelings, while among living creatures, some are already immortal, and others work each day. Among mortals, some are still held in fear by their mother while in the womb, while others have free will and reasoning. All humans, both Greeks and non-Greeks, cannot live without being influenced by the belief in something greater. Therefore, every nation has its own beliefs, and all those who inhabit the lands of the West, North, and South share the same view about the established leadership, if indeed the most universal of their actions have been equally spread among all.

⁶⁵ Much more so, the busy philosophers among the Greeks, starting from the non-Greeks, have given their preference to the invisible, unique, most powerful, and most skillful cause of all things, along with the other best causes. If these ideas were not taught to us, they would not know, nor would they understand how to think about the divine. However, as we have said many times, they express it in a true way.

⁶⁶ Thus, Clement also says this. But since the philosophy according to Plato has been presented to us as being very similar to the teachings of the Hebrews (in which we also honor the man of true gratitude), it is time to examine what these things are regarding which we do not agree in the same way about him, while we prefer the commonly accepted foreign philosophy about him.

Book 13, Section 14

The words of the Hebrews are prophetic and contain divine power or human strength, referring to the true God. They believe in the promise through the predictions of what is to come, as well as through the agreements with the established laws. It is said that all of this is beyond any false understanding. Indeed, the divine words are pure, like silver that has been refined, tested on the earth, and cleansed seven times.

² But the teachings of Plato are not like this, nor are those of other wise men among humans, who, with the eyes of mortal understanding and through clever guesses and images, see dreams as if they were real. They do not reach the true nature of things but instead carry a lot of the mixture of falsehood with the truth of nature, making it impossible for them to find a pure lesson free from deception within themselves.

³ Indeed, if you are willing to let go of a little of your self-love and look at the light of true reason, you would recognize that wonderful philosopher, the one who alone among all the Greeks touched the doors of truth. He was made from perishable matter and shaped by the rough hands of craftsmen into a statue that dishonored the names of the gods. After the great height of his eloquence, through which he sought to know the father and creator of all things, he came down from the lofty heights of the heavenly realms to the lowest depths of the idolatry hated by God, crowded among the people of Athens. So that Socrates would not be turned away, he went down to the Piraeus to pray to the goddess and to see the foreign festival that the citizens were celebrating for the first time. He also offered a rooster to Asclepius while acknowledging the divine guide of the Greeks, the spirit that resides in Delphi, who speaks the truth.

⁴ Therefore, it would be reasonable to attribute the cause of superstitious deception to the unphilosophical worship of the godless. So take a small part of the argument from above, and see how the all-wise one, along with the incorporeal and eternal ideas, and with the first and second causes of the divine, and with the intelligible and immortal essences, established the universal law, saying...

⁵ Now, to talk about the other gods and to understand their origins is more than what we have discussed. We should trust what has been said before, as they claim to be descendants of the gods, and surely they know their own ancestors. Therefore, it is impossible to doubt the children of the gods, even if they speak without images or necessary proofs. But since they claim their own, we should believe them as they follow the law. So, let us discuss the origins of these gods: from Earth and Sky, Oceanus and Tethys were born. From them came Phorkys, Cronus, and Rhea, and all those who followed. From Cronus and Rhea came Zeus, Hera, and all those we know as their siblings, along with the other descendants of these.

⁶ Because of these things, the philosopher should be left to us, not in a philosophical way, nor agreeing with himself, pretending to accept the mythical genealogies of the poets. For he was to hear these things spoken in the Republic: "In the greater tales, I said, we will see myths and the lesser ones. For it is necessary that there be the same type and that both the greater and the lesser can be the same; do you not think so?" "I do," he said; "but I do not understand whom you mean by the greater ones." "Those whom Hesiod and Homer, I said, tell us about, and the other poets. For these, surely, have made up false myths for humans and both tell and speak them," the smaller ones having been placed before.

⁷ "Again, it was also his to say that we will erase these things. So I said, starting from this verse, I would like to be a helper serving another," and the following things; because of which he chooses.

⁸ "Again, we will ask Homer and the other poets not to make Achilles the son of a goddess, sometimes lying on his side and at other times on his back, along with the things that follow."

⁹ "Or Zeus, while the other gods and humans were sleeping, was the only one awake. He easily forgot all that he had planned because of his desire for pleasure. When he saw Hera, he was so amazed that he didn't even want to go into the bedroom; instead, he wanted to lie down on the ground like a helmet. He said he was overcome by desire, just like when they first came together, forgetting their parents, and neither Ares nor Aphrodite were bound by Hephaestus for such things."

¹⁰ "After saying these things, what does the voice want from him? It calls the poets the children of the gods and claims that it is impossible to disbelieve them, even though they have no proof and cannot provide evidence to create myths about the gods."

¹¹ "What does the unreasonable one fear, being threatened with punishment from the laws? And how did Uranus and Gaia, the first gods, and then their children, Oceanus and Tethys, Cronus, and all those mentioned by Homer and Hesiod as their children, siblings, and descendants, respond when he speaks these same things?"

¹² "Therefore, I said, it is necessary first and foremost to speak of Memphis, or else someone might not speak well of the gods and heroes. What does this mean? When someone wrongly imagines things about the gods and heroes, they are like a writer who writes nothing that resembles what they want to express. And again, I said, the greatest lie about the greatest matters is that the one who said it did not speak truthfully, as Uranus did what Hesiod claims he did, and that he himself was punished by Cronus, and so on."

¹³ "How can the false and untruthful poets still be called the children of the gods? But for the sake of these, this one must indeed be excluded, as he deceives the people of Athens. However, Moses should be honored, since the Hebrew writings are completely free from anything but true and straightforward piety. Indeed, there is also another matter."

Book 13, Section 15

"The Hebrews say that the middle nature of rational beings is generated, but not ungenerated. They divide this into intelligible essences and refer to the spirits, powers, angels of God, and archangels by this name. From their fall and deviation, they introduce the race of demons and all kinds of opposing and evil forces."

² "Therefore, they do not allow those who do not bring forth the good and beautiful to be considered gods. They also say that existence does not come from themselves, but is derived from the cause of all things. They attribute both existence and virtue, as well as immortality, neither to the god above all nor to those through whom all things were created."

³ "But Plato presents the incorporeal and intelligible essences as rational beings to the Hebrews. He falls into a contradiction by first claiming that they are ungenerated, just like every soul, and then saying that they exist from the overflow of the first cause. He does not want to admit that they came into being from non-being."

⁴ "Therefore, he suggests that there is a race of many gods, establishing them through some overflow and projections of the first and second cause. He claims that their nature is good and that it does not lack its own virtue, from which he believes they are considered gods."

⁵ "He considers the nature of demons to be different, as they are of a lower quality and are open to evil and a turn toward the worse. Among them, some are good, while others are bad and are named accordingly. However, he does not explain where it seems likely that demons come from, while suggesting this way of thinking among the Hebrews."

⁶ "For no one with reason would say that demons come from the material of bodies, because that is without reason. Something rational could never come from something irrational, yet demons are rational. If they come from the overflow of superior beings, then how can they not be gods themselves, equal to those who gave birth to them? And if there is a good source, how can what comes from it not be similar? Where does the growth of evil in the second beings come from, if it arises from the good root above and through good?"

⁷ "How could something bitter come from something sweet? And if the nature of evil demons is worse than all darkness and bitterness, how could it come from the overflow of superior beings? If it came from this source, it would not change from its own nature. And if it is altered, then its original nature would not be unchanging. If it were not like this, how could they be gods, who are believed to share in the fates of lesser beings?"

⁸ "But if they are neither from the overflow of superior beings nor from the material of bodies, then it makes sense to say they are of low birth and to place a third group of irrational beings alongside the lowly material of bodies in opposition to God. This would no longer allow for God to be the creator and maker of all things, nor would it agree with the idea that He creates what does not exist, as the words of the Hebrews also suggest."

⁹ "What do they teach about these things? They say that the middle nature of rational beings is neither from the material of bodies nor from the overflow of the lowly substance, which is always the same. They claim it does not exist before it has the power to act as the cause of all things."

¹⁰ "With this, they do not consider them to be gods, nor do they believe they deserve this title, because their nature is not equal to that of the one who made them, nor is the good inseparable from God. The good is opposed to the beautiful, and they would accept a disregard for the study of what is greater, which each person has shaped for themselves, guided by their own impulses and opinions. These things are also true regarding these matters. But let us move on to other topics."

Book 13, Section 16

"The Hebrews also believe that the soul is immortal and say it is similar to God. They no longer consistently claim that its essence is made up of parts, as if it were a piece taken from the indivisible and always the same causes, and a piece from the divisible nature of bodies."

² "Therefore, he says to them in the Timaeus, 'The soul is older and more noble than the body, as its master and ruler. It was formed from these things and in this way. From the indivisible and always the same essence, and from the divisible nature of bodies, a third essence was mixed in the middle, combining the nature of both. Thus, it was created from both the indivisible and the divisible. Taking these three existing things, he mixed them into one complete idea, forcing together the challenging nature of the other into the same form.'"

³ "From this, it makes sense that the passive aspect is linked to the essence itself. However, sometimes he divides the essence of the soul in this way, and at other times he adds something worse to it—this divine and heavenly quality, which is incorporeal and rational, similar to God and surpassing the heavenly spheres through virtue. He claims that it comes down from the transcendent realm to donkeys, wolves, ants, and bees, and he urges us to believe this without any proof."

⁴ "Therefore, he says in the work about the soul: 'They wander until they are bound again to a body by the desire that follows the physical form. They enter, as is likely, into habits similar to those they may have experienced and practiced in life.'"

⁵ "What kind of things are you saying, Socrates? It seems likely that those who have practiced gluttony, arrogance, and love of drink, and who do not take care, will enter into the forms of donkeys and similar beasts, don't you think? Indeed, you are quite right."

⁶ "Those who have chosen injustice, tyranny, and robbery will take on the forms of wolves, hawks, and other similar creatures; or where else would we say they go? 'Certainly,' said Kebes, 'into such forms.' 'Well then,' he said, 'it is clear that they will go into whatever matches their own habits.'"

⁷ "It is clear," he said; "how could it not be? Therefore, those who have practiced civic and political virtue, which they call moderation and justice, are the happiest and go to the best place. This virtue comes from habit and practice, without philosophy and reason; are they not the happiest? It seems likely that they will return to a gentle and social kind, like bees, wasps, or ants, or even back to the human kind."

⁸ "And in the Phaedrus, listen to what he explains: 'For the soul does not reach the same place from which it comes for countless years; it does not take flight for such a long time, except for the one who has truly philosophized or has engaged in pederasty with philosophy. These souls, in the third cycle of a thousand years, if they choose this life three times in a row, will take flight in the three-thousandth year. The others, when they finish their first life, undergo judgment; and when judged, some go to the just rewards beneath the earth, while others, having been lifted by judgment, live in some place in the sky according to how they lived in human form. In the thousandth year, both groups arrive at the lottery and choices for the second life, and each chooses whatever it desires. There, indeed, a human soul can enter the life of a beast, and from a beast, one who was once human can return to being human.'"

⁹ "And these things are in the Phaedrus; but in the Republic, listen to this: he said that a soul once became a swan, choosing the life of a swan out of hatred for the female sex because it did not want to be born as a woman due to the death caused by them. It also saw the soul of Thamyris, the nightingale, choosing its life. It saw a swan changing into a choice of human life, and other musical creatures in the same way, as is fitting."

¹⁰ "And the soul that chose the life of a lion was that of Ajax, son of Telamon, who was fleeing to become human, remembering the judgment of the arms. The one that chose the life of an eagle was also hostile to the human race because of its sufferings. In the middle, the soul of Atalanta chose, seeing the great honors of a male athlete, unable to pass by but wanting to take them. After her, it saw the soul of Epicaste, daughter of Panopaeus, going into the nature of a skilled woman. Lastly, it saw the monkey of Thersites, the jester, dressed up."

¹¹ "By chance, the soul of Odysseus chose last of all, wanting to go. Remembering its earlier labors, it sought to find a long life as a private man, someone who does not meddle in affairs, and it could hardly find one lying somewhere, neglected by others. It said, seeing that this is what it would have done if it had chosen first, and it was glad to choose. Likewise, the other souls of animals went into humans and into each other, with the unjust ones becoming wild animals and the just ones changing into tame ones, and all mixtures being mixed together."

¹² "Regarding the soul, Plato clearly uses Egyptian words; for it is not the speech of the Hebrews, since it is not even friendly to the truth. However, it is not the right time to refute this, as he himself does not provide proofs; he has relied on the problem. Yet, one could reasonably point out that it is inconsistent to say at the same time that the souls of the wicked, being released from here, must give accounts for their deeds in Hades and be punished there endlessly, while also claiming that those souls choose their lives here based on their own judgment."

¹³ "For he says that they are driven by the desire for a physical form. Those who are raised in arrogance and gluttony become donkeys, while others take on the bodies of different wild animals, based on their own judgment, but not according to justice. The unjust and greedy become wolves and vultures, willingly choosing this. Then, the soul of Orpheus wishes to be a swan; the soul of Thamyris wants to be a nightingale, and Thersites chooses the life of a monkey."

¹⁴ "Where would the judgment after this release be, which he mentions in the writing about the soul, saying, 'When those who have died arrive at the place where each soul is taken by its spirit... those who seem to have lived moderately go to Acheron, and after boarding the vessels that belong to them, they reach the lake, where they live and, after being cleansed of their wrongdoings, are released by giving accounts for what they have done wrong, while those who have done good receive honors according to their worth. But those who believe they are hopeless because of the seriousness of their sins—whether they have committed many and serious sacrileges or many unjust and illegal murders, or any other such things—these are cast by their fitting fate into Tartarus, from which they never escape.'"

¹⁵ "And this is how he spoke about the wicked. But listen to what he says about the pious: 'Those among them who are well-grounded in philosophy live completely without toil into the next time, and they reach even more beautiful homes than these, which are not easy to describe, nor is the present time enough for it.'"

¹⁶ "And in the Gorgias, pay attention to what he says: 'The one who has lived justly and piously, when he dies, goes to the islands of the blessed, living in complete happiness, free from evils. But the one who has lived unjustly and impiously goes to the prison of punishment and justice, which they call Tartarus... Those who commit the worst injustices and become hopeless because of such crimes become examples, and they themselves no longer find relief, being without hope. Others, however, find relief by seeing them suffer the greatest, most painful, and most terrifying punishments for all time, serving as clear examples hanging there in Hades' prison, for those who always arrive from the unjust, witnessing and being warned.'"

¹⁷ How could these things fit with what is said about the exchange of bodies, which they claim the soul chooses? For how could the same punishment and prison, along with such a great penalty, be endured forever after death? And again, how could someone who is freed from chains choose lives as they wish? If they are going to choose again based on pleasure, then where is the prison of punishment and justice? There are countless other points one could think about regarding this matter, but it is not the right time to go into detail.

¹⁸ And the first mistake of Plato regarding these beliefs has been revealed; the second is the way he arranged his doctrine. He defined one part of the soul as divine and rational, while another part is irrational and passive. Among those who share his views, it has been acknowledged that it is possible to learn from such ideas.

Book 13, Section 17

Regarding the soul according to Plato, which he claims is made up of an unchanging and changing substance by God, like a mixture of white and black colors, we must say that it is necessary for it to fade away over time, just as a mixture of colors does, separating into the individual parts from which it was formed in nature. If this is true, then we declare the soul to be perishable, but not immortal.

² For if this is accepted, nothing that exists in nature can be without its opposite. The things in the world are arranged by God from the nature of opposites, creating a bond and connection between them, like the dry with the wet, the hot with the cold, the heavy with the light, the white with the black, the sweet with the bitter, and the hard with the soft. All such pairs have a mutual relationship. The unchanging substance relates to the changing one, and the things that are mixed can be separated from each other over time. The soul, having come from both the unchanging and changing substances, must necessarily fade away over time, just like a mixed color, as the opposites in its composition push towards their own nature.

³ For we do not see a heavy object being lifted up, even if it is made lighter by us or by some external natural cause; it is still pushed down towards its own nature. Similarly, a light object, when brought down by similar external causes, is also pushed up towards what is higher. It is impossible for two opposites to exist together in the same thing without the presence of a third substance that always exists between them.

⁴ But the soul is not a third thing made up of two opposites; it is simple and has the same nature, being unchanging and immaterial. Therefore, Plato and his followers said that it is immortal.

⁵ Since a human being is made up of both soul and body, it is said that the feelings within us, whether they happen willingly or unwillingly, belong to the soul. Many people, reasoning from this, claim that the essence of the soul is changeable, saying that it is mortal and has a physical nature, but not immaterial.

⁶ But Plato, being by nature unchanging, was led to say that the essence of the soul is changeable. To show that neither claim is true, based on what each has said, we will try to reason through it, presenting the active powers within us to support our argument.

⁷ Let these things be taken from Severus the Platonist's work On the Soul. Also, think about this regarding the heavens and the stars within them.

Book 13, Section 18

Agreeing with the Hebrews, he explains the heavens and the visible stars, saying that created things share in both a physical and perishable essence, being made from the cause of all things. The Hebrews do not worship them in the same way, nor do they see them as gods, as he states here in the Epinomis.

² "What kind of god am I talking about, O Megillus and Cleinias? Almost the entire heaven, which is also the most just, is honored and prayed to differently by all the other gods and spirits. And we would all agree that he is the cause of all good things."

³ Then, adding to this, he says, "As for the visible gods, the greatest and most honored, who see everything most clearly, we must first talk about the nature of the stars and of all that we perceive after them. Following them, there are also spirits, a kind of air, which have a third and middle place, being the cause of interpretation. It is necessary to honor them with prayers for a safe journey."

⁴ By saying that the gods are those revealed about their first nature, he explains this in the Timaeus: "Just as fire is to air, so air is to water, and just as air is to water, so water is to earth. These combined and formed the visible and tangible heaven. Because of these, the body of the universe was created from such things, and they agreed on the number four. There was a bond of friendship among them, so that they came together into one, being inseparable from each other except by the one that brought them together."

⁵ Then he adds, "Placing the soul at its center, he stretched it throughout and covered the body from the outside with it. Thus, he established one single heaven, turning in a circular motion."

⁶ And again, he goes on to say, "From the reasoning and thought of such a god, time came into being. The sun and the moon, along with five other stars, which are called wandering ones, were created to measure and keep track of time. The god made each of their bodies and set them in their orbits, which the other period followed."

⁷ And he adds, "Having bound living bodies with ties, the creatures learned what was commanded."

⁸ And in the tenth of the Laws, it is stated about every soul, saying this: "Indeed, all things that share in the soul change, having within themselves the cause of change. As they change, they move according to the order and law of fate. Those that change less move downward less according to the surface of the land, while those that change more and are more unjust fall deeper."

⁹ If indeed all things that share in the soul change, having within themselves the cause of change, then the heavens, the sun, and the moon are also shares in the soul according to Plato. Therefore, these would also change, having within themselves the cause of change according to his reasoning. How then can he say that they are eternal and for this reason gods, even though they exist in a perishable body and can be destroyed?

¹⁰ And he says again in the Timaeus: "Since all those who wander about in visible forms and all who appear as long as they wish are gods, this one who created everything says to them: 'Gods of gods, of whom I am the creator and father of works, unbreakable if I do not wish otherwise.' Therefore, everything that is bound can also be unbound. What is well put together and has a good structure wishes to be free from evil. Because of this, even though you have come into being, you are not immortal, nor are you entirely unbreakable. Indeed, you will not be broken, nor will you meet the fate of death, holding a bond greater and more powerful than my will, which you received when you came into being together."

¹¹ These are Plato's words. It is fitting that Moses and the Hebrew writings forbid the worship of these and consider them as gods, leading up to the all-ruling God, who is indeed the creator of the sun, the moon, and all the stars of the entire sky and universe. They say that he alone is to be considered God, and to him alone they give the honored title of lawgiver, saying that one should not look at the sun, the moon, or all the stars, and that one should not be misled into worshiping them.

¹² Philo, who was educated in the Hebrew tradition, explains these things in detail, saying: "Some believed that the sun, the moon, and the other stars were powerful gods, to whom they assigned the causes of all things that come into being. But Moses thought that the world was created and that it was a great city with rulers and subjects. The rulers are all those in the sky, such as the wandering and fixed stars; the subjects are those that follow the moon in the air and the surrounding nature."

¹³ The rulers mentioned are not independent but exist under one father of all. They do not gain their authority by imitating it, but by following the guidance of the one who governs according to justice and law. Each of the things that come into being is directed by him, while those who do not see the driver in control are misled into thinking they are the creators of the things that happen in the world. The most sacred lawgiver turns their ignorance into knowledge, saying: "Do not be misled into worshiping the sun, the moon, the stars, and all the things in the sky."

¹⁴ Very wisely and well, he spoke about the acceptance of those mentioned as gods. For those who see the sun's rising and setting, which mark the yearly hours, notice that the births of animals, plants, and fruits happen in specific periods of time. The moon serves as a helper and successor to the sun, taking care of and protecting what the sun oversees during the day. The other stars, based on their relationship to the earth, are many and active in the workings of the whole universe. Misled, they thought these were the only gods.

¹⁵ But if they had tried to walk the straightforward path, and if they had quickly realized that just as perception is a helper of the mind, in the same way, all things that can be sensed are helpers of the things that can be understood.

¹⁶ And he urges, saying, "Therefore, let us rise above all visible things and seek the honor of the eternal, invisible, and only mind. This mind is not only a god of the things that can be understood and sensed, but also the creator of all things. But if anyone gives the care of the eternal and the creator to something younger and created, let them be considered insane and guilty of the greatest impiety."

¹⁷ We have honored these teachings of the Hebrews as truly pure and divine before the confused philosophy. Why should I go on and bring to light the other ideas of Plato when I can now draw conclusions from these that I have kept silent about? Indeed, I do not say these things out of slander, since I greatly admire the man, and I consider him a friend and honor him more than all the Greeks, especially regarding what is dear and related to me, even if not exactly the same. I have pointed out the shortcomings of his understanding in the writings of Moses and the prophets among the Hebrews.

¹⁸ And yet, there were many things ready to be criticized, like the serious and wise ideas he arranged about women in the Republic, or the serious discussions about love in the Phaedrus. But if you want to hear any of these, read his words as they are.

Book 13, Section 19

"Perhaps," I said, "many things about what is being said now would seem ridiculous if they happen as described." "Indeed," he replied. "What do you see as the most ridiculous of them?" "Is it not clear that women are being trained naked in the wrestling schools with the men, not only the young ones but even the older ones, just like the old men in the gymnasiums, even when they are not pleasant to look at but still enjoy exercising?"

² And he continues, "The man who laughs at women training naked for the best reason, as if he is reaping the fruit of foolish wisdom, does not even realize, it seems, what he is laughing at."

³ He also says in the seventh book of the Laws, "Therefore, it will be necessary for boys and girls to learn to dance and to exercise naked. The boys will be dancers, and the girls will also be dancers, equally suited for hard work." He adds, "But the girl and mistress among us, delighted by the education of dance, did not think it necessary to be empty-handed. Instead, fully equipped, she completes the dance, which would certainly be fitting to imitate for both boys and girls."

⁴ And about women in war, the lawgiver says this: "In these matters, for those living as foreigners, it is necessary to teach everything related to war and music. This should not depend on whether the father wants them to learn or not, but all men and children should be allowed to learn as much as they can. They belong more to the city than to their parents, and they must be educated out of necessity."

⁵ These things about women, my law would say everything, just as it does about men; it is necessary to train women equally. And I would not be afraid to say this: neither horseback riding nor gymnastics would be fitting for men, but they would not be fitting for women either.

⁶ And again, he continues, "Let us establish exercises and everything related to war, including training for archery and all forms of throwing, as well as for light-armed fighting and all types of combat, tactics, and all movements of camps and encampments, and everything that involves horseback riding. For all these things, there must be common teachers who receive pay from the city, and the students should include the children and men in the city, as well as girls and women, all of whom should be knowledgeable. The girls should be trained in dancing and preparing for battle while in armor, and the women in tactics, positions, and handling weapons."

⁷ But the words of the Hebrews do not agree with this; instead, they speak the opposite. They do not even consider men, nor do they say that women are responsible for success in wars. Rather, they attribute everything to God and the alliance from Him. It says, "If the lord does not build the house, the builders labor in vain. If the lord does not guard the city, the watchman stays awake in vain."

⁸ But the wonderful philosopher includes women in the gymnastic competition, saying this: "For women, girls who are not yet married should compete in running, in the double flute, in horseback riding, and in the long race, while competing in the same events. As for those who are between thirteen and twenty years old, they should not be in the community longer than twenty years or less than eighteen. These girls should come to the competition in proper attire for these events."

⁹ Let the events related to running be for both men and women. But for strength, instead of wrestling and other heavy events, there should be fighting in armor, with one person against one and two against two.

¹⁰ After saying this, "Indeed, those who are skilled in fighting with armor should be encouraged to create laws," he adds, "Let the same rules also be made for women who are not yet married."

¹¹ Then again, after discussing the use of shields, pankration, throwing stones by hand and with a sling, and horse competitions, he brings up the women once more, saying, "Women should not be forced into these laws and rules. However, if their nature allows them to participate in these earlier trainings without difficulty, they should be permitted to do so and not criticized."

¹² So far are Plato's thoughts about women. This same remarkable law states: "If someone leaves behind female children, returning through brothers and nephews, let them be judged first among the males and later among the females. The judge should consider the balance and imbalance of the time of marriage, looking at the males as naked and the females as naked from the navel down." He also says that during the festivals, they should dance naked, as mentioned in the sixth book of the Laws.

¹³ Therefore, for the sake of such seriousness, it is necessary to have the children dance, both boys and girls, while also watching them and being watched. This should happen with some appropriate discussion and age-related reasons, while they are naked up to the point of modesty for each individual.

¹⁴ Listen to all these things and also to what is said in the Republic about women being shared under the law. "To this," I said, "there follows a law that is similar to the previous ones, as I believe. What is it? All these women of these men should be shared, and no one should live with any of them privately. The children should also be shared, so that neither parent knows their own child nor child knows their own parent."

¹⁵ And next he adds, "It is likely," he said. "So you, then," I said, "the lawgiver, just as he chose the men, should also choose the women to be shared among them as much as possible. Those who have common households and common meals, having nothing privately, will be together. Mixing in the gymnasiums and in other forms of nourishment, out of necessity, I think, will naturally lead to them coming together. Or do you not think it is necessary to say this? Not by geometric needs, but by romantic needs, which are likely to be stronger in persuading and attracting the common people."

¹⁶ But perhaps someone will explain the meaning of this speech differently, without suggesting what is commonly thought. For it should not be said without distinction that all women are shared, as if anyone were allowed to act immorally with them. Rather, the sharing of them should be under the authority of the rulers. In this way, they are shared, just as someone might say that public funds are shared, which should be distributed among those appointed to manage them. And indeed, let it be so.

¹⁷ What would you say if you learned that it is also ordered not to reveal what is conceived, saying this: "For a woman, from the age of twenty until forty, should bear children for the city; but for a man, once he has passed his prime, he should father children for the city until he is fifty-five years old."

¹⁸ To those he chooses, he says, "When both women and men reach the age for having children, I think we will allow them to come together freely as they wish." And he adds, "Having instructed them to be very eager not to reveal any conception, if it happens; but if someone is forced, then to handle it in such a way that there is no food for that child." And these are the matters concerning the upbringing of women. As for the matters about love, listen to what follows.

Book 13, Section 20

When this goes on for a long time and approaches the act of touching in both gymnasiums and other gatherings, then indeed the source of that flow, which Zeus called desire for Ganymede, carries much toward the lover. One part enters him, while the other flows out, having been rejected. Just like a breeze or an echo bouncing back from smooth and solid surfaces, the flow of beauty returns to the beautiful through the gaze, as it naturally seeks to reach the soul. It arrives and opens the pathways of the wings, both nourishing and urging it to take flight, filling the soul of the beloved with love. Therefore, the one who loves does not know what he lacks, nor does he understand what has happened to him, nor can he express it. Instead, like someone who has been blinded by another's gaze, he cannot find a reason to speak.

² And he adds next, "He desires to see, touch, kiss, and lie down with him in a similar way, but with less intensity. Indeed, as is likely, he quickly does these things afterward. In the shared bed, the reckless horse has something to say to the charioteer and expects to enjoy a little in exchange for much pain. But the young one has nothing to say, and feeling weak and confused, he embraces the lover and kisses him, as if warmly welcoming him. When they lie down together, he cannot refuse to share his part with the one who loves him, if he happens to be asked…"

³ If he indeed wins over the better part of the mind to a well-ordered life and philosophy, they will live a blessed and harmonious life here, being self-controlled and orderly.

⁴ Then he adds, "If they follow a more indulgent and ambitious lifestyle, they might quickly find themselves in drunkenness or some other carelessness, taking on the reckless burden of their souls and bringing them together as one. They may choose and pursue the blessed way of life praised by many; and from then on, they use it, but rarely, since they do not act according to all that is accepted by the mind."

⁵ Therefore, they love each other, but less than those others. Through love and their outside lives, they live together, valuing the greatest trusts given and received between them, which it is not right to break and turn into hatred.

⁶ In the end, those without wings, driven to fly out of the body, carry a great burden of passionate madness. For it is not lawful for those already freed from the earthly journey to enter into darkness and the way beneath the earth. Instead, they lead a visible life, finding happiness as they travel together, for the sake of mutual love. These things, my child, will be given to you as a divine gift from the love of a suitor.

⁷ Such are the views of Plato, but not those of Moses, who clearly legislates against these things, loudly stating the punishment for male lovers. He says, "Whoever lies with a male as with a woman, both have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; they are guilty." And, "Cursed is anyone who lies with a male as with a woman." What need is there to refute this, since the wisest one did not even consider a death penalty for male lovers in the Laws? He commands a death penalty for a servant who does not reveal a treasure found by someone else. But listen to this, and do not think that I am slandering you.

Book Fourteen

Whatever the god takes away concerning property and the one who caused it, let the city follow the oracles of the god. If the informer is free, let him gain a reputation for virtue, not for revealing wrongdoing. But if he is a slave, the city should treat the informer well, giving honor to the master. If he does not inform, let him be punished with death.

² And here, the one who is punished with death is not the one who encouraged any of the forbidden acts, but the one who did not report another's wrongdoing. Moreover, it shows that a master is innocent if he kills his own slave in anger. He says, "If someone kills his own slave, let him be purified; but if he kills someone else's slave in anger, let the harm be doubled for the owner."

³ And listen to this from the laws about murder: "If someone kills a free person in anger without planning, let him suffer the same as if he had killed without anger; but let him flee for two years, punishing his own anger."

⁴ And he adds another law like this: "If someone kills in anger but with planning, let him suffer the same as before, but let him flee for three years, being punished more for the greater anger."

⁵ Then he makes a law about the second murderer like this: "If someone comes down again and, being overcome by anger, does the same thing, let him not come down again after fleeing."

⁶ And again he says: "If a father or mother, very rarely, kills a son or daughter out of anger, either by hitting them or in some violent way, let them be purified like the others and spend three years apart. And when those who killed return, let the woman be separated from the man and the man from the woman, and let them never have children together again."

⁷ And he adds: "If a man kills his wife out of anger, or if a woman does the same to her husband, let them be purified with the same purifications and spend three years apart. And when someone does such a thing, let them not share in sacred things with their own children, nor let them ever sit at the same table with them."

⁸ And if a brother kills a brother, or a sister kills a brother or sister out of anger, let the same purifications and years apart be required, just as it was said for the parents and their children. And let it be stated that those who have lost brothers and parents should never sit at the same table with them, nor share in sacred things.

⁹ And if a brother kills a brother in a fight, or in a similar way while defending himself against an attacker, let him be considered pure, just as if he had killed an enemy. And if a citizen kills another citizen, or a foreigner kills another foreigner, the same rule applies. If a citizen kills a foreigner, or a foreigner kills a citizen while defending himself, let him also be considered pure. And if a slave kills another slave, the same rule applies. But if a slave kills a free person while defending himself, let him be held responsible by the same laws as someone who has killed a father.

¹⁰ Whoever kills someone from their own people with premeditation and unjustly should be barred from all public places, including markets, temples, harbors, or any other common gatherings, unless someone allows them to do so. For the law forbids it. And whoever does not go to the necessary places or does not announce their actions should be barred from family gatherings. The second person should be held responsible to anyone who wants to take revenge for the one who has died. And if a woman wounds her husband with the intent to kill, or if a man wounds his wife, let them always be in exile.

¹¹ These are the laws of the philosopher. But if we need to compare them with those of Moses, listen to what is said about murder: "If someone kills another, let them be put to death. But if it is not done willingly, and God has allowed it to happen, I will give you a place where the killer can flee. If someone tries to kill their neighbor by deceit and escapes, let them be taken from my altar to be put to death. Whoever strikes their father or mother shall be put to death. If two men are arguing and one strikes the other with a stone or a fist, and he does not die but falls into bed, if he gets up and walks outside with a staff, the one who struck him shall be innocent, but he must pay for his laziness and for the medical care. If someone strikes their child or their servant with a rod and the child dies from it, they shall be punished by law. But if the child lives for one or two days, they shall not be punished, for the child is their property. If someone strikes out the eye of a slave or the eye of a servant and blinds them, they shall set them free in place of their eye.

¹² These are also the laws of Moses. Again, Plato explains how and with what kinds of blows a servant should be treated. Listen: "When someone wants to gather the noble grapes or the noble figs, if they take from their own, they may gather as they wish whenever they want. But if they take from others, following the rule that they should not take what is not theirs, let them always be punished. If a slave does not obey the master regarding the fields, let them be beaten with equal blows of grapes and figs."

¹³ Such things are not worthy of Plato's greatness. But if you listen to what is serious and kind from Moses, you will hear this: "If you enter your neighbor's vineyard and eat enough grapes to satisfy your hunger, you shall not put any in your basket." And again, "If you enter your neighbor's grain field and pick some heads of grain with your hands, you shall not use a sickle on your neighbor's grain." And again, "If you forget a sheaf in your field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the poor, the foreigner, the orphan, and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands." And if you harvest olives, you shall not go back to pick up what is left behind; it shall be for the foreigner, the orphan, and the widow. And if you gather grapes from your vineyard, you shall not go back to gather what is left; it shall be for the foreigner and the widow.

¹⁴ And these are the things from Moses. Clearly, in Plato's works, you would find countless ideas that are not overlooked, especially those that are serious and most important, which we say are far from those who do not think this way. But now that we have discussed these matters, and the reason we do not know how to philosophize according to Plato has been set aside, it is time to bring the rest of the discussion to a close and to examine the other schools of Greek philosophy.

Book 14, Section 1

Introduction. Regarding what has been said and heard about Plato's philosophy and its agreement with the Hebrew writings, which leaves us in awe of the man, and also about the disagreement with them, which no one who thinks clearly could accept, having covered what came before this, I will now turn to the other schools of philosophy that have been discussed among the Greeks.

² And again, I will not share my own opinion about the fall from the truth of these matters, but instead, through the testimony of their own Greek voices, I will present this to those who come across them. Truly, I do not harbor any hatred toward certain men, of whom I acknowledge there is great wonder, when I compare them to others, just like any other human beings.

³ But when it comes to the Hebrew theologians and prophets, and to God who has made predictions and displays of wonders through them and what is to come, as well as to the teachings of pious sciences and true doctrines that have been established, I do not believe it is fair to blame anyone, if we honor God above humans and truth itself above mortal thoughts and speculations.

⁴ This is what the whole purpose of this preparation is eager to show me, as a response and defense to what will indeed be asked: what is beautiful or noble that we see in the writings of the barbarians, in the ancestral and noble philosophy, meaning that of the Greeks, we have decided to choose. But truly, let the proof come to us through actions.

Book 14, Section 2

I believe we should first start from the very beginning with the first teachings of the philosophers among the Greeks. We need to learn about those who were called natural philosophers before Plato, who they were, and what kind of philosophy they followed. Then we should move on to the succession of Plato and look at who they were and what their arguments were with each other. We should also examine the differences among other schools and the changes in their beliefs, where the noble and ambitious thinkers, like actors on a stage, compete with one another.

² Let us immediately see how Plato mocked those who came before him and how others treated Plato's own followers and successors. Again, let us see how Plato's companions challenged the many ideas of Aristotle. Also, let us observe how Aristotle and the Peripatetics claimed that those who opposed them were presenting nothing real.

³ And the terrible and precise details of the Stoics will again be seen as a source of laughter by others. Meanwhile, those nearby are bravely standing in battle and struggle, as if through hands and tongues, or rather through pen and ink, they are fortifying their conflict against each other, only throwing and being thrown at with the spears and armor of words.

⁴ In this contest of truth, we find ourselves surrounded by those who oppose the dogmatic philosophers, like those around Pyrrho, who claim that nothing can be truly known among humans. There are also those who follow Aristippus, saying that only pleasures are knowable, and again those who follow Metrodorus and Protagoras, insisting that we should only trust the senses of the body.

⁵ On the other hand, we will also remove those around Xenophanes and Parmenides, who take the opposite side and reject the senses.

⁶ We will not overlook the champions of pleasure, but we will also include their best, Epicurus, along with those already mentioned. Against all of them, we will present an argument that challenges their beliefs.

⁷ I will bring to light the disagreements of all the natural philosophers and the uselessness of their studies, not as someone who hates Greeks or spreads slander—far from it—but as one who clears away the blame for such slander. This is because we have valued the words of the Hebrews much more than those of Greek education.

Book 14, Section 3

The Hebrews, for a long time and from the very beginning of human creation, have sought true piety and genuine philosophy. They have kept this pure and preserved it for those who came after them, receiving and guarding a treasure of true words from their ancestors. This ensures that no one would dare to add or take away anything from what has been hidden once.

² Therefore, the all-wise Moses, who is the oldest of all the Greeks mentioned earlier and the youngest in age among the earlier Hebrews, did not think to change or alter anything from the beliefs of his ancestors about theology. Instead, he aimed to establish a way of life suitable for the people under him and to create a form of government.

³ Neither did the prophets who came after him, shining forth in countless years later, dare to speak anything different, either to themselves or about the teachings of Moses and those ancient ones who were beloved by God.

⁴ But neither does our teaching, which comes from somewhere else and fills all of Greece and the barbarians through divine power, contain anything different from what was included before. Unless someone claims that it not only teaches the doctrines of theology but also passes down the same way of life to the God-beloved Hebrews before Moses.

⁵ And our teachings are such that they are confirmed by the first, the middle, and the last with one mind and one voice, sealing the truth of piety and philosophy with all votes. They fill the whole world, which is now young and blooming, as if it has just reached its first peak. Neither the arrangements of laws nor the plots of enemies nor the many sharpened swords of warriors have shown a power greater than the virtue of the words we have embraced.

⁶ But let us now consider what strength the philosophy of the Greeks once showed when it was challenged. First of all, they called the natural philosophers to the contest. Those who came before, or who were said to shine like Plato, argued among themselves to learn from him. He, in turn, examined those around Protagoras, Heraclitus, and the debate with Parmenides, along with those who argued about him.

⁷ For Protagoras, who was a companion of Democritus, he gained a reputation as an atheist. It is said that he used the following words in his writing "On the Gods": "About the gods, I do not know whether they exist or not, nor what they are like." But Democritus said that the beginnings of everything are the empty and the full; he described the full as something solid and real, while the empty is not real. Therefore, he also claimed that nothing is more real than what is not real, because from eternity, real things move continuously and sharply in the empty.

⁸ Heraclitus said that the beginning of everything is fire, from which all things come and into which they return. Everything is in a state of change, and time is marked by the process of everything returning to fire and the generation that comes from it.

⁹ These thinkers claimed that everything is in motion; however, Parmenides, who was from Elea, argued that everything is one, ungenerated, and unmoving, existing in a spherical form. Melissus, a companion of Parmenides, shared the same beliefs. Regarding these ideas, listen to what Plato discusses in the Theaetetus.

Book 14, Section 4

"From the combination of motion, movement, and mixture, everything we say exists comes into being, though we do not name them correctly. For nothing ever is, but everything always becomes. About this, all the wise men agree, except for Parmenides: Protagoras, Heraclitus, and Empedocles, along with the poets, such as Epicharmus for comedy and Homer for tragedy, who said, 'Of Ocean and the mother Tethys, he spoke of all things as born from flow and movement.' Does this not seem to be what he is saying?"

² "To me, who could still argue against such a great army and general like Homer without being laughed at?" Then, continuing with the argument, he adds, saying...

³ "Therefore, we should come closer, as the argument about Protagoras suggests, and examine this being that is being discussed, whether it speaks of something healthy or something rotten. The debate over this is not trivial and has involved more than just a few people. It must be important, especially concerning the Ionian. For the followers of Heraclitus strongly support this argument. So, my friend Theodorus, we should think more carefully and start from the beginning, just as they themselves recommend."

⁴ "Absolutely. And indeed, Socrates, regarding these Heraclitean ideas, or as you say, the Homeric and even older ones, those around Ephesus who claim to be experienced are no more able to discuss than those who are stung by wasps. They are swept along by the writings, but to stay on a topic and to answer and ask questions calmly and in turn is less in them than nothing. In fact, they go beyond the idea of nothingness in their lack of calmness. If someone asks a question, they shoot out puzzling phrases like arrows from a quiver. If you try to understand what has been said, you will be hit by something newly named, and you will never reach anything with any of them, nor will they with each other. They hold nothing firmly, whether in their words or in their own souls, believing, as it seems to me, that it is a state of conflict. They are completely at war with this, and as much as they can, they push it away from everywhere."

⁵ "Perhaps, Theodorus, you have seen men fighting, but they do not make peace, for they are not your companions. I think such things are explained to the students in a relaxed manner, whom they want to make similar to themselves. What kind of students, dear friend? No one of this kind becomes a student of another; instead, they arise spontaneously, each one inspired from wherever they happen to be. The other thinks nothing of the other. So, whatever one may desire, you will never receive an answer, whether they want to give one or not; rather, they must be treated as a problem to be examined."

⁶ "And you speak reasonably. The problem we are discussing is different from what the ancients presented, as many hid their poetry, claiming that the origin of all things is Ocean and Tethys, which flows and does not stand still. However, the later thinkers, being wiser, clearly show that even the shoemakers among them can learn wisdom by listening and stop foolishly believing that some things stand still while others move. Once they learn that everything is in motion, do they honor them? I almost forgot, dear Theodorus, that others have declared the opposite of these views, saying that the unmoving is what everything is named. Many others, like Melissus and Parmenides, argue against all these ideas, claiming that everything is one and that it stands in itself, having no space in which it moves."

⁷ "Therefore, my friend, what should we do about these things? We have moved a little forward and have fallen into the middle of both sides. If we do not somehow defend ourselves and escape, we will face the consequences just like those who play in the wrestling arena when they are caught by both sides and pulled in opposite directions."

⁸ "These ideas are found in the Theaetetus. Moving on to the Sophist, he speaks again about the earlier natural philosophers: 'It seems easy to me that Parmenides has chosen us, and anyone who has ever encouraged us to judge what exists and how many kinds there are. Each one seems to tell a certain story, as if to children. One says there are three kinds of being, and they sometimes fight against each other, but at other times they come together in marriage, give birth, and provide nourishment for their offspring. Another says there are two kinds, wet and dry or hot and cold, and combines them. The Eleatic school, starting from Xenophanes and even earlier, argues that everything is called one being. Some Ionians and Sicilian thinkers later agreed that it is safer to combine both views and to say that being is both many and one, connected by enmity and friendship. They say that what differs always comes together, claiming that the Muses are more harmonious; but the softer ones have relaxed this view, saying that these things always hold this way. At times, they say that the whole is one and is loved by Aphrodite, while at other times, they say it is many and hostile to itself through some conflict. If any of these ideas were truly said or not, it is difficult and unfair to blame such great and famous ancient thinkers.'"

⁹ "And after a short while, he adds, 'Therefore, we have not fully examined those who argue about what exists and what does not exist, but let that be enough. As for those who speak differently, we should observe them, so that we can see that saying what is not being is no easier than saying what is. Therefore, we must also approach these people. Indeed, it seems that there is a kind of battle among them because of their disagreements about being with one another.'"

¹⁰ "How? Some pull everything down from the sky and the unseen, grabbing rocks and trees with their hands without any skill. By touching such things, they insist that this is the only thing that provides support and contact, defining it as the same body and essence. But if anyone says that there is something without a body, they completely dismiss it and do not want to hear anything else. You have mentioned terrible men; for I too have already come across more of them."

¹¹ "Therefore, those who argue against them are very careful to defend themselves from above, insisting that some invisible and immaterial forms are the true essence. However, they break down the bodies of those people and their so-called truth into small parts in their arguments, calling something that is carried a generation instead of essence. In the midst of this, there is always a great battle between both sides, oh Theaetetus, that continues on."

¹² "Because of this, Plato has discredited the natural philosophers who came before him. The view he presented about the topics we discussed is different from those before him, as we show that he agrees with the teachings of the Hebrews and aligns with Moses in his ideas about being."

¹³ "And let us consider the successors of Plato in his teachings. It is said that Plato established the school in the Academy, which was first called the Academic, and that he created what is known as Academic philosophy. After Plato, Speusippus, who was Plato's nephew, took over, then came Xenocrates, and afterward Polemon continued the school."

¹⁴ "Starting from these, it is said that those who came after him immediately distort the Platonic teachings, twisting the ideas revealed by the teacher with foreign doctrines. So, do not expect for a long time that the strength of those wonderful dialogues will fade away, especially with the death of the man and the end of the succession of teachings. From here, a battle and conflict began, which has never stopped until now. Those who embrace the same ideas as him are rarely found, except for maybe one or two throughout all of history, or a few others who briefly add to the number, and they themselves are completely foreign to the false wisdom. For even those who came before Plato are discredited in this way."

¹⁵ "For they say that Polemon succeeded Arcesilaus, who set aside the teachings of Plato and, as they say, established a second Academy. He claimed that one must have opinions about everything, for everything is incomprehensible, and the arguments on each side are equally strong against each other. He also believed that the senses are untrustworthy and that all reasoning is uncertain. He praised the saying of Hesiod: 'For the gods have hidden their thoughts from humans.' He also tried to renew some paradoxical ideas."

¹⁶ "After Arcesilaus, it is said that those around Carneades and Clitomachus turned away from the earlier beliefs and became the founders of the third Academy. Some even add a fourth Academy, which is associated with those around Philon and Charmides. Others mention a fifth Academy related to Antiochus. This is how the succession from Plato unfolded. If you want to learn about how these people came to be, read the writings of Numenius the Pythagorean, titled 'On the Disagreement of the Academics with Plato.'"

Book 14, Section 5

"During the time of Speusippus, who was Plato's nephew, and Xenocrates, who succeeded Speusippus, Polemon took over the school from Xenocrates. The character of the teachings remained almost the same, partly because of the ongoing influence of those famous ideas and perhaps also due to some other similar factors. While they were breaking down many things and twisting others, they did not stay true to the original succession. From that point, they quickly and slowly diverged, either by choice or by ignorance, and for some other reason that was not without its own significance."

² "And I do not want to say anything trivial about Xenocrates; instead, I want to speak in favor of Plato. It pains me that not everything he experienced and taught has been preserved for Plato in every way and in every agreement. And yet, Plato was worthy of respect; he was not inferior to the great Pythagoras, but perhaps he was not even less significant than him. Those who followed him and spoke of him became highly respected because of their connection to Pythagoras."

³ "However, the Epicureans did not benefit from this, as they were never seen opposing Epicurus in any way. They agreed that they were connected to a wise man, and for this reason, they enjoyed a good reputation without question. No later Epicurean would dare to speak against one another or against Epicurus on any matter, nor even mention it. This was seen as worthy, but rather as a wrongdoing, and it was condemned as something new. Because of this, no one even dares to speak out, and in great peace, their teachings remain calm due to their constant agreement with each other. The way of Epicurus seems to be a true form of community, very stable, with a common understanding and a single opinion; from which they were, are, and as it seems, will be devoted followers."

⁴ "The Stoics, on the other hand, have become divided, starting with their leaders and still not coming to an end, even now. They are facing harsh criticism from an unfriendly judgment; some still hold on to their beliefs, while others have already changed their views. Therefore, the first group gives in to those who are more oligarchic, and they, having separated, have become the cause of much criticism from both earlier and later groups. There are even other Stoics who differ from one another; and the more they seem focused on technical matters, the more they appear to be petty. For these individuals, by surpassing others in their busy involvement, were quicker to criticize the details."

⁵ "Indeed, many of these people experienced the same things before, having drawn different ideas from Socrates. Individually, there was Aristippus, and separately, Antisthenes. In other places, there were the Megarians and the Eretrians, or perhaps there were others after them."

⁶ "The reason is that, while Socrates was presenting three gods and discussing them in the proper rhythms for each, those who heard him did not understand. They thought he was speaking randomly and by chance, as if he were just blowing air."

⁷ "But Plato, influenced by Pythagoras, understood that Socrates would not express the same ideas from anywhere or for the same reasons. Therefore, he arranged the matters in this way, neither in the usual manner nor clearly. He examined each topic where he thought it belonged, concealing in the middle what was clear and what was not. He wrote it down carefully, but he himself provided the reasoning for his position and the way he presented the ideas, not out of envy or difficulty in understanding. However, I do not wish to speak words that are not suitable for older men."

⁸ "We must learn to express our opinion there more strongly, and just as we previously distinguished Aristotle and Zeno from the beginning, so now, if the god helps, we will allow him to stand alone as a Pythagorean. Now, he suffers more wildly than Pentheus, being torn apart in pieces, but as a whole, he changes and exchanges himself in no way."

⁹ "Therefore, as a man balancing between Pythagoras and Socrates, he brought the serious side of the former to a more friendly level, and he raised the clever and playful side of the latter from irony to significance and depth. By blending these two, he made Socrates seem more ordinary and Pythagoras appear more serious."

¹⁰ "But I am not going to discuss these things now that my inquiry is focused on this. As for what was previously agreed upon, I will go there, or I think I might run away for nothing, so that we do not get pushed off the path that leads us."

¹¹ "Among the followers of Polemon, Arcesilaus and Zeno became well-known. I will mention them again at the end. I remember Zeno talking about Xenocrates, then going to Polemon, and later hunting with Cratylus. But for now, let it be noted that Stilpo also took part in the discussions about Heraclitus."

¹² "When they were living together with Polemon, they became competitive with each other. They engaged in debates: Heraclitus and Stilpo along with Cratylus. Stilpo was a fighter, Heraclitus was strict, and Cratylus was cynical. Arcesilaus studied under Theophrastus, Crantor the Platonist, and Diodorus, and then Pyrrho. Under Crantor, he was persuasive; under Diodorus, he was a sophist; and under Pyrrho, he became diverse and uncertain."

¹³ "It was said about him that he sang some kind of creative and insulting verse: 'In front is Plato, behind is Pyrrho, and in the middle is Diodorus.' Timon also claims that he was trained in argumentation by Menedemus, if he indeed says that Menedemus will cover him with lead under his chest, or that Pyrrho will cover him with all the meat, or that Diodorus will do so."

¹⁴ "Therefore, since Diodorus was a dialectician, he mixed the arguments of Pyrrho with skeptical ideas, decorating them with a cleverness that resembled Plato's nonsense. He would speak and respond, rolling back and forth from one side to the other, wherever he happened to be, being contradictory, hard to understand, and confusing. He claimed to know nothing, yet he acted bravely. Then, somehow, he would emerge like those who know, appearing in different ways under the shadow of words."

Book 14, Section 6

"When it came to the Homeric Tydeus, whether he was speaking to the Trojans or even to the Achaeans, Arcesilaus remained unknown. He could not express the same idea in one argument, nor did he believe it was fitting for a man to do such a thing at all. Therefore, he was called a terrible sophist, a butcher of the untrained."

² "For just as those skilled in the illusions of words would prepare and practice, he would enchant others, knowing nothing himself and not allowing others to know either. He would be frightened and cause a commotion, and when accused of tricks and stealing words, he would cling to the first things with shame. He was greatly arrogant because he did not know what was shameful or beautiful, nor what was good or bad. But whenever he spoke about what might touch the souls, he would change and overturn it more than he had prepared."

³ "He was like a hydra, cutting himself and being cut by himself, with both sides hard to tell apart and without considering what was needed. Yet to those who listened, he was pleasing, appearing friendly to the audience. Therefore, he was most enjoyable to hear and see, as they were persuaded to accept his words coming from a beautiful face and mouth, not without the kindness in his eyes."

⁴ "It is important to hear these things not just simply, but to understand them from the beginning. For he came together with Theophrastus, a gentle man who was knowledgeable about matters of love, because he was beautiful and still in his prime. After meeting the lover Crantor from the Academy, he approached him, easily using his nature and being warm-hearted due to rivalry. He took part in the clever arguments that had been crafted and associated with Pyrrho. (Pyrrho was inspired by Democritus, no matter where he came from.) This man, having been shaped by these experiences, stayed with Pyrrho, as he was involved in the rejection of all things."

⁵ "Indeed, Menaseas, Philomelus, and Timon call him a skeptic, just as they were, rejecting both what is true and what is false, as well as what seems plausible."

⁶ "Therefore, being called a Pyrrhonian because of the Pyrrhonians, he modestly accepted being called an Academic as well. So, he was indeed a Pyrrhonian, except for the name; he was not an Academic, aside from being called one. I do not believe that Diocles of Knidos, in his titled Discourses, claimed that Arcesilaus was afraid of Theodorus and Bion the Sophist when they approached the philosophers and were not hesitant to challenge everything. I think Diocles was cautious so that he wouldn't face any problems, showing no doctrine, just like the blackness of the cuttlefish appearing before it. Therefore, I do not believe this."

⁷ "So, those who were inspired from there, both Arcesilaus and Zeno, with the help of such supporters, were engaged in a battle of words. They forgot the beginning from which they were driven by Polemon. After separating and preparing themselves, they charged in with their shields and spears, standing like men in bronze armor. The shields with their central bosses clashed against each other, and a great uproar arose. A shield pressed against a shield, a helmet against a helmet, and a man against a man as they fought fiercely. Then, there arose both wailing and prayers from the men who were falling and perishing, the Stoics."

⁸ "The Academics were not attacked by them, as they were unaware of where they could be more easily defeated. They were trying to see if, when their foundation was shaken, they could neither find a starting point nor a reason to fight. The starting point was that they would not allow themselves to be refuted for speaking in a Platonic way. However, they had no reason at all, as they only shifted away from the definition concerning what can be grasped, removing it."

⁹ "Now, it is not the right time for me to reveal this, but I will remember it again when the moment is most fitting. So, they stood apart and attacked each other, not both of them, but Arcesilaus attacked Zeno. For Zeno had something serious and weighty in the fight, and he was not worse than Cephisodorus the orator. Cephisodorus, when he saw his teacher Isocrates being attacked by Aristotle, thought that Aristotle was ignorant and inexperienced, while he recognized the famous ideas of Plato. Believing that Aristotle was following Plato's philosophy, he waged war against Aristotle but attacked Plato instead, starting his accusations from the ideas and moving on to other matters that he did not even understand himself, merely hinting at what was commonly believed about them."

¹⁰ "But this one, while not fighting against the one he was at war with, was battling against the one who did not want to fight. Zeno, on the other hand, since he was giving up on Arcesilaus, if he was not waging war against Plato, was indeed philosophizing in a way that I believe is most valuable, for the sake of this peace. However, if he was perhaps unaware of Arcesilaus's ideas but ignorant of Plato's, as he seems to have copied from them, he acted against himself, neither striking the one he knew nor treating the one he should not have insulted in the most disgraceful way. This was much worse than what a dog would deserve."

¹¹ "But he certainly showed great pride by distancing himself from Arcesilaus. For either through ignorance of his ideas or lacking the Stoics, he turned away from the great threat of war toward Plato. As for Zeno, I will speak again about Plato, since nothing was changed in a good and respectful way. If I ever lead a study of philosophy, let it not be for this reason, unless it is due to childishness."

¹² Therefore, Arcesilaus, seeing Zeno as a rival and a worthy opponent, criticized the arguments coming from him without any hesitation.

¹³ And about the other things he argued against him, I might not have anything to say, whether I did or not, and there is no need to mention them now. But this doctrine, first discovered by him, and seeing the name itself honored in Athens, he used every means to support the understanding of the imagination. However, being weaker and living in peace, unable to be wronged, he let go of Arcesilaus, even though he had much to say, but he did not want to. Perhaps he did this for another reason, and he argued against Plato, who was no longer alive, and he disrupted the entire procession coming from the chariot, saying that he would not be able to defend Plato, nor would he care to harm him in any way. Whether he would take care of Arcesilaus, he thought he would gain by turning Arcesilaus away from himself. I also knew about Agathocles the Syracusan, who made a clever argument against the Carthaginians.

¹⁴ The Stoics were stunned and listened. For their muse was neither a scholar nor a creator of graces at that time, by whom Arcesilaus would either applaud some things or cut others down, making them seem foolish and convincing. Therefore, against those he argued with, they were defeated, while in the cases where he spoke, they were left speechless, somehow showing that there was nothing at that time that could be called a saying, a feeling, or an action in brief, nor anything useless that could ever appear, unless it seemed to Arcesilaus to come from the Pitanian. To him, nothing seemed to be anything more than these little phrases and fears.

Book 14, Section 7

I want to share something nice about Lacidus. If Lacidus is indeed a bit slippery and is considered economical, this man is well-regarded by many. He opens the treasury and closes it himself. He also chooses what he needs and does all these things through his own efforts, not praising self-sufficiency anywhere, nor using poverty in any way, nor needing slaves, as he had as many slaves as he wanted. The reason for this can be guessed.

² But I will share the nice thing that I promised. As the treasurer, he did not think it necessary to keep the key on him. After locking it, he would place it in a hollow writing box. Then, signaling with his finger, he would roll the ring inside through the keyhole into the house. Later, when he returned, he would be able to open it with the key, lift out the ring, lock it again, signal once more, and then throw the ring back inside through the keyhole.

³ So, the clever slaves, noticing this, would open it themselves when Lacidus went out for a walk or somewhere else. Then, as they pleased, they would eat some of the food, drink some of the drink, and take other things from around. They would lock it again and signal to each other, and after laughing a lot about the ring, they would throw it back inside through the keyhole.

⁴ So, Lacidus, leaving everything full, found the things empty and was puzzled by what was happening. When he heard that Arkesilaus was discussing the nature of things, he thought this was happening to him regarding the treasury. From that point on, he began to philosophize with Arkesilaus, seeing and hearing nothing clear or healthy. Sometimes, he would pull one of those talking to him into the house and insist strongly, as it seemed, about the situation. He said, "This I can tell you without a doubt, having learned it from myself, not having been tested by anyone else."

⁵ Then, starting from there, he began to think about all the experiences related to the treasury. "So, what," he said, "would Zeno say about such a widely accepted idea of the nature of things? I locked it with my own hands, I signaled myself, I left the ring inside, and then, when I came back, I opened it and saw the ring inside, but not the other things. How could I not justly distrust what was outside? I would not dare to say that someone came in and stole these things while the ring was still inside."

⁶ And he, hearing this—since he was a mocker—took it all in as it was said, barely holding back his laughter. He burst out laughing loudly, and while still laughing and scoffing, he revealed his vanity. So, from then on, Lacidus no longer put the ring inside, nor did he rely on the idea of the nature of the treasury. Instead, he accepted the things that were given up, and he philosophized in vain.

⁷ But indeed, those boys were thieves, and they were not caught in any other way. They were like comic actors and the Getae and Dacians, who, having learned to speak in a strange way from the Dacian language, when they heard the teachings of the Stoics, or learned in some other way, immediately thought of the boldness of their actions. They would break his seal, sometimes putting another in its place, and sometimes not even replacing it, because they believed it would be incomprehensible to him, and they did this in other ways as well.

⁸ But he, having entered, was observing. Seeing the document as insignificant or marked with a different seal, he became angry. When they claimed it had been marked, he insisted that they look for his own seal. Those who were defeated by the evidence would say that if there was any seal, it might have been overlooked and not noticed. Indeed, he himself said that he would remember what was marked, and he would show it. He continued with his argument and argued fiercely with them, thinking they were joking, and he swore an oath.

⁹ But they, having taken up his challenges, thought he was joking with them, since it was believed that Lacidus was so foolish that he was also forgetful. After all, memory is a kind of opinion. They even claimed that they had heard these things from him in front of his friends not long ago.

¹⁰ As he turned their arguments around and said they were not Academic, they went to learn something from the Stoics and began to argue back. They were clever thieves in the Academic style. But he called them Stoics. Those boys dismissed the accusations against him because of their confusion, not without using some tricks.

¹¹ So there were discussions of all kinds there, including words and arguments. Nothing at all was left out, neither a container nor anything placed inside a container, nor anything else needed for building houses.

¹² And Lacidus, at first, was confused, not seeing any benefit for himself in the support of his own beliefs. He wondered if everything would be turned upside down if he was not refuted. Falling into a desperate situation, he cried out to the neighbors and the gods, saying, "Oh no, oh no," and "By the gods" and "By the goddesses," along with all the other unskilled beliefs that are talked about in times of doubt. All these things were said loudly and urgently.

¹³ Finally, when he was having a debate at the house, he was surely acting like a Stoic toward the children, while the children insisted on Academic ideas, hoping to avoid any more issues, as if a housekeeper or a friend of the treasury were sitting there. Not helping at all, he pretended to be wise, but he revealed the truth. "In another way," he said, "these things, oh children, are said to us in discussions, but we live differently."

¹⁴ These things are about Lacidus. Many stories are told about him, one of which is about the clear thinker, Aristippus from Cyrene. Among all his followers, Euandros and those with him carried on his teachings.

¹⁵ With him, Carneades welcomed the third discussion and established the Academy. He used the guidance of words just as Arcesilaus did; for he practiced examining both sides and looked closely at everything said by others. However, he differed mainly in the discussion about suspension of judgment, claiming it is impossible for a person to hold an opinion about everything. He pointed out that there is a difference between what is unclear and what is incomprehensible, stating that while everything can be incomprehensible, not everything is unclear. He also took part in Stoic arguments, standing against them and growing in strength, seeming convincing to many, but not seeking the truth; as a result, he caused much annoyance to the Stoics. Numenius also writes about him.

Book 14, Section 8

Carneades, having received from Hegesinus the task of guarding what is motionless and what is in motion, focused on this. As for Arcesilaus, whether he was better or worse, he brought back the argument after a long time and renewed the debate.

² And then he also took the lead, presenting arguments and subtle twists, mixing them into the debate. He both denied and affirmed, being argumentative from both sides. If at any point there was something remarkable in the arguments, he would surge forth like a raging river, filling everything around, and he would rush in and sweep away the listeners with his noise.

³ Therefore, while leading the others away, he himself remained undeceived, which was not true for Arcesilaus. For Arcesilaus, wandering about with his tricks, first deceived himself without realizing it, and he was convinced that what he said was true by completely rejecting everything.

⁴ But it would be unfortunate if something bad rested upon something bad, as Carneades was to Arcesilaus, without having broken anything minor, which would leave them helpless. This was based on the arguments presented to him, both affirming and denying, about whether this thing is a living being or not.

⁵ Therefore, having approached this, just like wild beasts that, when cornered, rush more violently and fiercely into the spears, he himself would come upon them with greater force. And if he were to be supported and have good fortune, at that moment he would already be there, not having expected it willingly and not remembering it.

⁶ For both truth and falsehood to exist in matters, allowing them to work together in the pursuit of knowledge, he would grasp the ancient difficult problem from there. According to the balance of what is probable, neither one would be firmly caught by the other. Indeed, he would be like a clever thief and a sorcerer.

⁷ For he took truth to be similar to falsehood, and he presented a comparable idea that could be understood. When he brought them to equality, he did not allow either the truth to be true or the falsehood to be false. He did not favor one over the other; instead, he treated them both equally based on what seemed probable.

⁸ If dreams are instead of dreams, it is because the false ones look similar to the true ones, like a wax egg compared to a real egg.

⁹ So, bad things happened and even more. Indeed, while he spoke, Carneades was charming and would captivate others. He was hidden while stealing but appeared as a robber, taking by trickery and force from those who were very well prepared.

¹⁰ Certainly, every thought of Carneades prevailed, and no other thought was stronger, since even those he argued against were said to be weaker.

¹¹ Certainly, Antipater, who came after him, intended to write something, but he never published the speeches that were brought daily from Carneades. He did not speak in discussions, nor during walks, and no one heard him, they say, nor did he write anything. Instead, he was preparing copies and took a corner, leaving behind books he had written for those who came later. These were neither possible to find now, nor were they strong enough at that time against such a man who appeared very great and was well-known to the people of that era, Carneades.

¹² However, even though he himself was caught up in the open conflict with the Stoics, he openly admitted and spoke honestly to his own companions about things that others who had failed would not.

¹³ Then he continues, "Carneades first became known through Mentor, but he was not a successor. While Carneades was still alive, he found a mistress, not swayed by a convincing idea, nor did he seem to be caught. Instead, believing strongly in what he saw and having understood, he avoided the discussion. The one who left, however, became a clever debater and was skilled at opposing him, challenging the unclear arguments in his speeches."

¹⁴ And again he adds, saying, "But Carneades, like a philosopher turned upside down, dressed himself in lies and hid the truths beneath them. So, he used curtains of falsehoods and spoke truthfully while remaining hidden, more like a petty dealer. He experienced the fate of beans, where the empty ones float on the water and overflow, while the good ones sink and remain unseen."

¹⁵ These things are also said about Carneades. The successor of his school is Clitomachus, along with whom Philo is mentioned by Numenius.

Book 14, Section 9

But this Philo, having received the teaching with joy, was amazed and gave thanks as he honored it. He also supported Clitomachus in his teachings and adorned the Stoics with a bronze crown.

² As time went on, and because of the habits of his time, he did not think about the same things for himself. However, the nature of his feelings turned him around with clarity and agreement. Having a strong sense already, he desired more, knowing well that he might be caught by those who challenged him. He did not want it to seem like he was running away willingly, having turned his back.

³ Antiochus became a student of Philo, starting a new Academy. He indeed studied under Menedemus, the Stoic, and opposed Philo, the teacher, bringing many foreign ideas to the Academy.

⁴ Many things similar to these are mentioned regarding Plato's succession. Therefore, it is time to take up the discussion of the natural philosophers, examining both their false beliefs and opposing views. Those who wandered over much of the earth, thinking they had found the truth, engaged with all the ancient beliefs. They also clarified the precise ideas of the Phoenicians and Egyptians, long before the Greeks, in theology. They sought to discover what valuable insights they could gain from them, so that we might learn if anything divine was passed down to them from the elders.

⁵ For a long time, polytheistic superstition held sway among the nations, and temples, sacred places, and mysteries of the gods were commonly preserved in all cities and regions. Therefore, there was no need for human philosophy if the wisdom of theology had been accepted. There was also no need for the wise to innovate if the beliefs of their ancestors were well established. Nor was there a reason for noble philosophers to be in conflict or to differ if the traditional views about the gods were found to be consistent and true.

⁶ What was the need to fight against each other and struggle, or to wander up and down the long road, getting lost and stealing from the barbarians? Shouldn't they have stayed at home and learned from the gods, if indeed there were any? Or from the true and unchanging words of the theologians about the things sought in philosophy, about which many had toiled and suffered, missing the truth by a long way?

⁷ What need was there to boldly seek new ideas about the gods, or to be in conflict and argue with each other, if there was already a safe and certain understanding of the gods? True piety was found in the rituals and mysteries of the ancient theology, which was already established and agreed upon.

⁸ But if these people showed that they had learned nothing true about the gods from their predecessors, and instead relied on their own ideas about nature, examining it more through guesses than through understanding, why should they not agree with the ancient theology of the nations and hold nothing more than what was passed down in the earlier writings of history?

⁹ Indeed, the philosophy that came from the Greeks was based on human guesses, much argument, and confusion, but not on any precise understanding. You could learn this from the letter of Porphyry to Anubis the Egyptian, where he himself admits it.

Book 14, Section 10

I will begin my friendship with you by discussing the good gods and spirits related to these philosophical ideas. Many things have been said about them by the Greek philosophers, but most of it comes from guesses that form the basis of belief.

² And stepping down, he continues to say, "For among us, there is much argument, as it comes from human reasoning about the supposed good. But if this part is set aside for examination, the wisdom they have practiced is in vain."

³ But even in what he wrote to Boethius about the soul, he himself admits here, saying that the ideas and the history clearly show that the soul is immortal. However, the arguments brought by the philosophers seem to be easily overturned because of the clever reasoning found in all the debates. For which argument in philosophy is not disputed by those with different beliefs, especially when it seems to some that even the clear ideas are uncertain?

⁴ And in what he wrote, "About Philosophy from Reason," he clearly admits that the Greeks have been misled, confirming this by his own god, as it was also said by Apollo through oracles. He shows that the discovery of truth was more confirmed by non-Greeks than by Greeks, and he even mentions the Hebrews in the testimonies.

⁵ After mentioning the oracle, he then uses these words: "You have heard how much effort is needed for someone to offer sacrifices for the body, but is it not to find the salvation of the soul? For the way to the gods is difficult and steep, and many paths have been discovered by non-Greeks, while the Greeks have been misled, and those in power have already destroyed it. But the god has testified to the discovery among the Egyptians, Phoenicians, and Chaldeans, who are the Assyrians, as well as the Lydians and Hebrews."

⁶ These things are said by the philosopher, or rather by his god. Is it then right for us to complain after this, that we have chosen the Hebrews, leaving behind the misled Greeks, of whom the truths have been testified?

⁷ What is there to learn from philosophers? What hope is there for benefit from them, if what they say mostly comes from guesses and assumptions that have little foundation in faith? And what is the result of their arguments, if all the words of the philosophers can be easily overturned because of their endless reasoning? For these things were not recently said by us, but were heard from them.

⁸ Therefore, it seems good to me, and after careful consideration, not without reason, to look down on such things, but to love what comes from the Hebrews. This is not because it has been testified by a spirit, but because it demonstrates a share in divine virtue and power.

⁹ Now, if you learn about the arguments of the great philosophers regarding their works, I will later explain to you their views on the origins, the gods, and the structure of the universe.

¹⁰ First, since they wander around discussing various subjects, it is necessary for those who claim they will understand the truth to study astronomy, arithmetic, geometry, and music, which have indeed been shown to come from the barbarians. For without these, one cannot become a reasonable person or philosopher, nor grasp the truth of what exists, unless these are impressed upon the soul of knowledge. Then, they think that by focusing solely on the study of these things, they can rise into the air, believing that they are carrying the divine itself in numbers. They consider us to be no different from cattle because we do not seek the same things, and they say that through this, we cannot know either God or anything sacred. Therefore, let us first correct this misunderstanding by comparing the true word to their light.

¹¹ But among countless Greeks and countless races of barbarians, those who study the subjects mentioned will not show knowledge of either God or a wise life, nor anything at all that is best and most beneficial. In contrast, those who are outside of these studies have become the most pious and philosophical. Indeed, Socrates, who sang praises among them all, once seemed to believe about these matters, as you can learn from Xenophon, who writes about this in his Memorabilia.

Book 14, Section 11

He taught that until someone needs to be experienced in each matter, they must first learn geometry. He said that one should study it until they become capable, in case they ever need to measure land correctly, whether to take it, give it, or divide it, or to demonstrate a task. This is easy to learn, so that anyone focusing their mind on measurement can know how much land there is and how it is measured.

² But he rejected learning geometry concerning the difficult shapes. He said that he did not see how these would be useful. Yet, he was not completely inexperienced in them. He claimed that they are enough to waste a person's life and to prevent them from many other useful studies.

³ He also urged that one should become experienced in astronomy and understand it in relation to the times of night, the month, and the year, for the sake of travel, sailing, and safety. To have evidence for whatever happens at night, in the month, or in the year, one should be able to recognize the hours of these events. This knowledge is easy to learn from night hunters, sailors, and many others who take care to understand these things.

⁴ But he strongly discouraged learning astronomy beyond this point, including understanding the stars that do not move in the same way, the wandering stars, and the unstable stars, as well as their distances from the earth, their orbits, and the reasons for their movements. He claimed he saw no benefit in these matters. Yet, he was not completely ignorant of them. He also stated that this knowledge is enough to waste a person's life and to prevent them from many other useful studies.

⁵ Overall, he discouraged becoming a thinker about the heavens and how each thing is created by the gods. He believed that these matters are neither discoverable by humans nor would the gods grant knowledge to someone seeking them, since they did not wish to make these things clear. He warned that one could risk going mad by worrying about these topics, just as Anaxagoras did, who thought he was wise for explaining the workings of the gods.

⁶ For he, claiming that fire and the sun are the same, did not understand that people can easily see fire, but they cannot look directly at the sun. When illuminated by the sun, colors appear darker, but they do not under fire. He also did not realize that nothing growing from the earth can thrive well without the light of the sun, while everything heated by fire is destroyed. He claimed that the sun is a burning stone, and he did not understand that a stone in fire neither shines nor lasts long, while the sun, being the brightest of all, remains bright all the time.

⁷ "He also urged them to learn reasoning and similarly advised them to avoid useless pursuits until they reach what is truly useful. He himself examined and discussed everything with those present." These words are written by Xenophon in his Memorabilia. In a letter to Aeschines about Plato and those boasting about the nature of everything, he writes similar things.

Book 14, Section 12

"For it is clear that the divine is above us all; it is necessary to honor those who are stronger than us. They are such that it is neither easy to find them nor right to seek them. For it is not fitting for slaves to know the nature or actions of their masters beyond their service. The greatest burden is that, as much as one must care for human affairs, they are weighed down by many pointless and empty opinions. For when, O Aeschines, has anyone heard Socrates speaking about heavenly matters? Or advising others to learn lines for correction? We know him to be a musician, reaching the ears; but he always spoke to them about what is beautiful, what is courage, justice, and other virtues. He called these things good for humans, but he said that the other things are either impossible for humans to grasp or are myths related to the tricks of sophists. He did not say these things, nor did he act on them. I have written down what has happened, knowing that it will not be unpleasant, but it takes time, and I have also written from elsewhere. Therefore, let those being criticized stop, or let them go to what is reasonable, to those whom Socrates did not please, to whom the god testified wisdom while those who killed him found no cleansing from regret. Indeed, they were enamored with the beauty of Egypt and the monstrous wisdom of Pythagoras, whose excess and impermanence Socrates exposed through the tyranny of love, and instead of a simple diet, they had a table of unmeasured Sicilian feasting." These things Xenophon hints at regarding Plato. And indeed, Plato in his Republic recounts these about Socrates concerning gymnastics and music.

Book 14, Section 13

What then would it be, O speaker, a lesson of the soul from what is becoming to what is being? This is what I mean to say at the same time: we said that it is necessary for these to be young warriors, didn't we? We did say that. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to this lesson we seek in relation to that. What kind? That it should not be useless for warrior men.

² "It is necessary," he said, "if indeed you think so. They educated us in gymnastics and music before." "That is true," he said. "And gymnastics is indeed concerned with what is becoming and perishing; for it oversees the growth and decline of the body." "That seems to be the case." "But this would not be the lesson we are seeking." "No, it would not. But what about music, as much as we discussed before?"

³ "But that was indeed the opposite of gymnastics," he said, "if you remember, educating the guardians with certain arrangements of harmony, not knowledge, and with rhythmical order. In the words, it had other customs that were similar to these, some that were more mythical and others that were more true. But a lesson leading to such a thing, like what you are seeking now, was not in it at all."

⁴ "Very true," I said, "you remind me; for in reality, it had nothing like that. But, oh, dear Glaucon, what could such a thing be? For all the arts seemed to be worthless. How could they not?"

⁵ "Then, moving on from there, he said, 'Let them not attempt anything incomplete with us, those whom we raise, and they should not always come from there, as I say all must belong, just like we talked about astronomy. Or do you not know that they also create another similar thing about harmony? For they measure the sounds and notes that are heard against each other, just as the astronomers do.'"

⁶ "By the gods," he said, "and it's funny too! They name some sounds and compare them with the ears, as if they are hunting for a voice from the neighbors. Some say they can still hear a certain echo in the middle, and this distance is very small to measure, while others argue that it is already similar to the sounds being made, with both groups focusing their ears on the mind."

⁷ "You," I said, "are talking about those good people who provide and test things with the strings, twisting them at the joints. But to avoid making the picture longer, since there are strikes made with the plectrum, along with accusations, denials, and the arrogance of the strings, I will stop here. I am not referring to these, but to those we mentioned earlier who should be discussed in relation to harmony."

⁸ "For they do the same thing as those in astronomy. Those who study these harmonies seek numbers, but they do not raise problems. Instead, they look to see which numbers are harmonious and which are not, and why each one is so."

⁹ "But let these things rest before us as we explain that we did not overlook the difference between correct thinking and the useless knowledge of such matters. Let us now consider the opposing views of the natural philosophers mentioned earlier. Plutarch wrote about all the Platonic and Pythagorean philosophers, both the older natural philosophers and the newer Peripatetics, Stoics, and Epicureans, gathering their beliefs in a work titled 'On What Pleases Natural Philosophers.' From this work, I will present these ideas."

Book 14, Section 14

"Thales of Miletus, one of the seven wise men, declared that the beginning of all things is water. This man seems to be the first philosopher, and from him, the Ionian school got its name; many successors followed him. After studying in Egypt, he returned to Miletus as an elder. He says that everything comes from water and returns to water.

First, he believes that the origin of all living things is moisture; therefore, it is likely that everything has its beginning in the wet. Second, he states that all plants are nourished and bear fruit from moisture, but they dry up when they lack it. Third, he claims that even fire, from the sun and stars, is fed by the vapors of water, as is the world itself.

For this reason, Homer also suggests this idea about water, saying that Ocean is the source of all things." Thus spoke Thales.

² "Anaximander of Miletus says that the beginning of all things is the infinite. From this, everything comes into being, and to this, everything is destroyed; thus, countless worlds are born and again perish into the source from which they come. He claims that because it is infinite, nothing is lacking, and the existing generation is maintained.

However, he makes a mistake by not explaining what the infinite is—whether it is air, water, earth, or some other substance. He fails to define the material cause while denying the efficient cause. The infinite is nothing other than matter; matter cannot be active unless the efficient cause is assumed."

³ "Anaximenes of Miletus declared that the beginning of all things is air. From this, everything comes into being and returns to it. He says that our soul is air because it holds us together. The whole world is filled with breath and air, and they are considered to be the same.

However, he also makes a mistake by thinking that living things are made only from simple, uniform air and breath. It is impossible for a single material cause to support all beings; the efficient cause must also be taken into account. For example, silver alone is not enough to make a cup unless there is a maker, that is, the silversmith. The same applies to bronze, wood, and other materials."

⁴ "Heraclitus and Hippasus of Metapontum say that the beginning of all things is fire. From fire, everything comes into being, and to fire, everything ends. When this fire goes out, everything is created anew. First, the densest part of it condenses into earth. Then, when the earth is heated by fire, it becomes water, and the steam turns into air. Again, the world and all bodies are consumed by fire in a great conflagration. Therefore, fire is the beginning because everything comes from it, and the end because everything returns to it."

⁵ "Democritus, whom Epicurus followed the most, said that the beginnings of things are atoms, which can be understood through reason. They are indivisible, empty, ungenerated, eternal, and imperishable. They cannot be broken or shaped from parts, nor can they change. They exist as things that can be understood through reason, but they move in the void and through the void. The void itself is infinite, and the bodies are infinite as well.

Three things happen to bodies: shape, size, and weight. However, Democritus said there are only two: size and shape, while Epicurus added a third, weight. He says it is necessary for bodies to move because of the force of weight; otherwise, they will not move. The shapes of the atoms are finite, not infinite; they cannot be hooked, triangular, or ring-shaped. These shapes are fragile, but the atoms are unfeeling and unbreakable; they have their own shapes that can be understood through reason.

It is said that an atom is not the smallest thing, but that it cannot be cut, being unfeeling and indivisible from the void. So, when one says 'atom,' it means unbreakable, unfeeling, and indivisible from the void. What an atom is, is clear; for it is the elements and living things that are empty and the unit."

⁶ "Empedocles of Acragas said that there are four elements: fire, air, water, and earth, along with two principles or forces, love and strife, where one is unifying and the other is separating. He says this: 'First, listen to the four roots of everything: Zeus the bright, Persephone, Hades, and the Nymph, who moistens the mortal world with tears.' He calls the bright one the ether and the air, Hades he calls the earth, and the Nymph represents the moisture, like the seed and the water."

⁷ "Such is the disagreement among the early natural philosophers, and such is their belief about the principles: they do not accept a god, a creator, or any cause of everything. They also do not acknowledge gods, incorporeal powers, intellectual natures, rational substances, or anything beyond the senses in their principles."

⁸ "Only Anaxagoras is remembered among the Greeks as the first to declare that mind is the cause of everything. It is said that he admired natural philosophy more than those before him. He made his own region known for this, and he was the first among the Greeks to organize the discussion about the principles. He did not only speak about the essence of everything, like those before him, but also about the cause that moves it."

⁹ "For he says, 'In the beginning, all things were mixed together, and mind entered in and brought them from disorder into order.' It is remarkable that he was the first among the Greeks to express this way of thinking about the divine. The Athenians considered him an atheist because he did not worship the sun, but rather the creator of the sun. He was not well understood and eventually died."

¹⁰ "It is said that he did not manage to preserve his teachings. He was able to understand mind in all things, but he could no longer explain natural philosophy using mind and reason. So, pay attention to how Socrates, in Plato's 'On the Soul,' questions the man about these matters."

Book 14, Section 15

"But once, I heard from some book, as he said, while Anaxagoras was reading and stating that mind is the one who organizes and is the cause of all things. I was pleased by this idea and thought that it makes sense for mind to be the cause of everything. I believed that if this is true, then mind, by organizing everything, places each thing where it is best."

² "If someone wants to find the cause of each thing, whether it comes into being, disappears, or exists, they must discover what is best for it, whether that means being, experiencing, or doing something else. From this reasoning, a person should focus on nothing else, both for themselves and for others, except for what is best and most excellent. It is also necessary to understand both what is good and what is worse; for the knowledge about them is the same."

³ "Thinking about these things, I was happy to believe that I had found a teacher for myself, Anaxagoras, who could explain the causes of things according to reason. I wanted him to first explain whether the earth is flat or round. After he explained that, I hoped he would go on to discuss the cause and necessity, saying what is better and that it was better for it to be that way. If he said it was in the middle, I expected him to explain why it was better for it to be in the middle. If he could show me these things, I would be ready to no longer desire to know about any other kind of cause."

⁴ "So I also got ready to ask about the sun, the moon, and the other stars, eager to know how each of them is best and what they do and experience. I never thought he would say they were arranged by reason and give them any other cause than that it is best for them to be as they are."

⁵ "I thought that if he explained the cause for each of them and also told everyone what is best for each, he would share the common good for all. I would not give up my hopes, so I eagerly took the books and read them as quickly as I could, wanting to know what is best and what is worse. I was filled with a wonderful hope, my friend. But as I continued reading, I saw a man who, using his reason, did not blame anything for arranging things. Instead, he blamed air, ether, water, and many other strange things."

⁶ "It seemed to me very much like an experience, as if someone were to say that Socrates does everything with his reason. Then, trying to explain the causes of each thing he does, he would first say that I am sitting here now because my body is made up of bones and nerves. The bones are solid and separate from each other, while the nerves stretch and relax, surrounding the bones along with the flesh and skin, which hold everything together."

⁷ "So, just as the bones are held together in their connections and the nerves stretch and bend, it seems that my limbs are like this now, and because of this cause, I am sitting here. Again, when I speak to you, I could mention other causes like sounds, air, and hearing, blaming many such things while neglecting to discuss the true causes. For when the Athenians thought it was better to vote against me, it was also considered better for me to sit here and justly accept the trial that they command."

⁸ "By the dog, as I believe, these nerves and bones were either around Megara or around the Boeotians, influenced by the idea of what is best. Unless I thought it was more just and better to accept the trial that the city assigns rather than to flee and escape."

⁹ "But it is quite strange to call such things causes. If someone says that without having these bones and nerves and all the other things I possess, they would not be able to do what seems right to me, they would be speaking the truth. However, I do what I do and act this way, but not because of the choice of what is best; it would be a long and lazy argument."

¹⁰ "Then he concludes that some, by spinning the earth, make it stay under the sky, while others, like a broad base of a heart, hold up the air above. But they do not seek or believe that there is any power capable of arranging these things in the best way. Instead, they think that at some point they will find a stronger and more immortal Atlas to hold everything together, and they do not believe that truly good and necessary things can be connected and held together."

¹¹ "Socrates spoke a lot about the ideas of Anaxagoras. Anaxagoras had a successor named Archelaus, who shared both his teachings and his ideas, and Socrates is said to have been a student of Archelaus. However, other natural philosophers, like Xenophanes and Pythagoras, who thrived alongside Anaxagoras, discussed the immortality of the soul and the incorruptibility of the divine. From these thinkers and those who followed them, different schools of thought in Greek philosophy emerged, some continuing these ideas while others developed their own beliefs. Again, Plutarch writes about the views of these same philosophers concerning the gods in this way."

Book 14, Section 16

"Some philosophers, like Diagoras of Melos, Theodorus of Cyrene, and Euhemerus of Tegaea, claim that there are no gods at all. Callimachus hints at Euhemerus in his iambics. Euripides, the tragic poet, did not want to reveal this directly, fearing the anger of Ares, but he suggested it in this way: he introduced Sisyphus as a supporter of this belief and agreed with his view."

² "On this topic, he again brings up Anaxagoras, first stating that he thought correctly about the divine. He says: 'Anaxagoras claims that in the beginning, the bodies were set in place, and the mind arranged them, creating the generations of all things. But Plato did not suggest that the first bodies were set in place; instead, he said they were moving chaotically. Therefore, he argues, the god, realizing that order is better than chaos, arranged them.'"

³ "To this, he adds, 'Both are wrong because they made the god turn away from human matters and, for this reason, create the world. The blessed and immortal being, filled with all good things and not accepting any evil, is completely focused on its own happiness and immortality, and does not turn back to human affairs. It would be unfortunate if it were like a worker or a craftsman burdened with worries about creating the world.'"

⁴ "And again, the god they mention either did not exist in the past age when the bodies were motionless, or when they were moving chaotically, or was asleep, or was awake, or neither of these. The first option cannot be accepted; for every god is eternal. The second option also cannot be accepted; if the god were asleep from eternity, he would be dead, since eternal sleep is death. But the god is certainly not subject to sleep; for the immortal being is far removed from it."

⁵ If the god was awake, then either he lacked happiness or he was filled with bliss. The god is not happy in the first case; for lacking happiness is not blissful. He is also not happy in the second case; for if he lacks nothing, he would not need to take action. But how can it be that if the god exists and manages human affairs, the fortunate suffer while the unfortunate thrive? For Agamemnon, both a good king and a strong warrior, was killed by an adulterer and his mistress. And his relative Heracles, despite his many heroic deeds, was killed by the poison of Deianira.

⁶ Thales believed that the cosmos is the god. Anaximander saw the heavenly stars as gods. Democritus thought that the soul of the cosmos is a spherical god made of fire. Pythagoras considered the one to be the god of the principles, and the good, which is the nature of the one, is the mind itself. The indefinite two is a demon and represents evil, which relates to the material multitude. The world is also visible.

⁷ After these, the young thinkers believed the following: "Socrates and Plato thought that there is one unique and self-existent being, the one true good. All these names rush into the mind. Therefore, the god is a separate form, which means it is pure and not mixed with any matter or anything that can be affected."

⁸ Aristotle described the highest god as a separate form, connected to the sphere of the whole, which he called an etheric body, or the fifth element. He believed that while this is divided into spheres, each sphere is connected by nature but separated by reason. He thought that each of the spheres is a living being made up of body and soul, where the body is etheric and moves in a circular motion, while the soul is reason, which is unmoving and the cause of motion in action.

⁹ The Stoics declare a rational god, a creative fire, moving along the path of the world's creation and containing all the seed-like reasons, through which everything happens according to fate. A spirit flows through the entire universe, sharing its names throughout all matter, through which it has spread. They see god in the cosmos, in the stars, and in the earth, with the highest of all being reason in the ether.

¹⁰ Epicurus saw all the gods as human-like, but he believed they could be understood through the details of the nature of images. He also identified four other kinds of unchanging things: atoms, the void, the infinite, and similarities, which are called homoeomeries, as well as the elements.

¹¹ Such are the views and criticisms of the natural philosophers about god, among whom the first are those who connect the mind and god to the cosmos, like Pythagoras, Anaxagoras, Plato, and Socrates. These thinkers are seen as the children of their times, during which the most recent events of Hebrew history are recorded.

¹² There was indeed no older belief among all Greeks and those before them than the polytheistic superstition, which was introduced by the Phoenicians and Egyptians. The knowledge of the one god of all things was first brought forth by Anaxagoras and those around him. Truly, the superstition of many gods prevailed among all nations; however, it seems that it did not contain the true theology, but rather the one that the Egyptians and Phoenicians were the first to establish.

¹³ This belief does not recognize gods at all, nor any divine powers, but instead considers men who have long been dead as gods, as the ancient truth has already shown. So let us take up the discussion again. Some of the natural philosophers based everything on the senses, while others opposed them, like Xenophanes of Colophon and Parmenides of Elea, who denied the senses and claimed that nothing can be understood through them. Therefore, we must only trust reason, and we will examine the arguments against them.

Book 14, Section 17

Others, leaving behind these ideas, believe that the senses and imaginations should be rejected, and that only reason should be trusted. Such views were expressed earlier by Xenophanes, Parmenides, Zeno, and Melissus, and later by those around Stilpon and the Megarians. Therefore, they claimed that being is one, that nothing else exists, and that nothing can be created, destroyed, or moved at all.

² Now, we will engage more with these ideas as philosophers. However, we should say that our reasoning is the most divine. Yet, we must also consider the senses, just as we do with the body. It is clear that the senses can reveal the truth; for it is impossible for someone who senses not to feel something. And by feeling, they come to know the experience. So, what is knowledge, and what is sensation?

³ But if sensing means to feel something, then everything that is felt must be felt by someone. This means that the one who feels and the one who is felt must be completely different. Therefore, what is being said would be different. For example, color and sound are different. Furthermore, being cannot be one; in fact, it cannot even be unchanging, because sensation is a kind of movement.

⁴ Everyone wants to have their senses in a natural way, believing, I think, that healthy senses are better than sick ones. It makes sense that a strong desire for them has been placed in us. After all, no one would willingly choose to lose even one sense, hoping that by doing so, all the other good things would come to them.

⁵ Those who slander them should be convinced that they have them for no reason, echoing what Pindar says about Homer's own bows: "Immediately, a foreign light would take away my head, unless I set these bright bows in the fire, breaking them with my hands, for the wind follows me." After this, they would destroy all their senses, because in this way, someone might believe that their actions teach that none of them are necessary.

⁶ But now this is the strangest thing: they claim that they are useless with their words, while they use them the most in their actions.

⁷ Indeed, Melissus wants to show that nothing is truly real among the things that appear. He argues that if there is water, air, fire, iron, and gold, and if there is the living and the dead, and black and white, and all the other things that people say are real, and we see and hear correctly, then what is real should be exactly as it first seemed to us. It should not change or become something else, but remain the same as it is. However, we now say that we see, hear, and understand correctly; yet it seems to us that the hot becomes cold, the cold becomes hot, the hard becomes soft, and the soft becomes hard.

⁸ While he was saying these things and many other similar ones, someone might reasonably ask, "So, if what is now hot later becomes cold, did you not realize this?" The same applies to other things. For what I said would turn out to be nothing more than denying the senses and proving them wrong, even though they trust them the most.

⁹ But indeed, such arguments have already provided enough reasons; they have become so weak that it seems they have not even been examined at all. Yet now, let us confidently say that we should think correctly, considering both the senses and reason for understanding the nature of things.

¹⁰ Such are those around Xenophanes, who is said to have flourished alongside Pythagoras and Anaxagoras. Parmenides became a student of Xenophanes; from him came Melissus, from him Zeno, from him Leucippus, from him Democritus, and from him Protagoras and Nessa. Nessa was the teacher of Metrodorus, from whom came Diogenes, and from him Anaxarchus. Anaxarchus became known for Pyrrho, from whom the school of Skeptics got its name. They claimed that nothing at all can be understood, neither through sensation nor through reason, but they believed that everything is uncertain, so that those who oppose them can learn from the written work that has been presented in this way.

Book 14, Section 18

It is necessary to first think about our own knowledge; for if we have not come to know anything at all, then there is no need to consider anything else.

² Some of the ancient thinkers left behind this view, which Aristotle opposed. However, Pyrrho of Elis also spoke strongly about these ideas; yet he himself left nothing in writing. His student Timon says that a person who wants to be happy in the future should consider these three things: first, what things are like by nature; second, how we should relate to them; and finally, what will happen to those who are in such a state.

³ He says that things are equal, indistinguishable, and unmeasurable, which is why neither our senses nor our beliefs can be true or false. Therefore, we should not trust them, but instead remain without opinions, unyielding, and steady. We should say about each thing that it is neither more nor less than it is, or that it both exists and does not exist, or that it is neither existing nor not existing.

⁴ Timon says that those who are in such a state will first experience silence, then peace of mind, while Aenesidemus says they will find pleasure.

⁵ These are the main points of what is said; let us consider if they are correct. Since they claim that all things are equal and indistinguishable, and for this reason they urge us not to add anything or to have opinions, I think someone might ask them: are those who believe things are different mistaken or not? If they are mistaken, then they are not thinking correctly. Therefore, it is necessary to say that there are some who hold false opinions about what exists; thus, those who speak the truth would be right. In this way, there would be something true and something false. But if we are not mistaken in thinking that things are different, why do they challenge us with such claims? For they would be mistaken if they expect things not to differ.

⁶ And indeed, if we were to grant them that all things are equal and indistinguishable, it is clear that they would not differ from most people either. So what would their wisdom be? And why is Timon criticized by everyone else, but only praises Pyrrho?

⁷ Moreover, if all things are equal and indistinguishable, and for this reason we should not have any opinions, then these things would not differ either. I mean the difference or lack of difference, and having opinions or not having opinions. For what is more than this: whether something is or is not? Or, as Timon says, why yes and why no, and even the very question of why? It is clear that seeking is being canceled; therefore, they should stop bothering us. For now, they have stayed far from the truth, urging us not to have opinions while at the same time telling us to do just that. They say it is necessary to make statements about nothing, and then they make statements themselves. They demand that no one agree with them, but they urge us to follow them; then they claim that everyone knows nothing while insisting they know everything.

⁸ It is necessary for those who say that everything is unclear to either be silent or to say something. If they were to keep quiet, it is clear that no one would talk to such people. But if they were to make statements, they would either say that something exists or does not exist, just as they now claim that everything is unknown and accepted by everyone.

⁹ Now, if nothing here shows what is true and whether it can be understood, then if it does not show anything, no one would have a conversation with such a person. But if it does indicate something, it would either say infinite things or finite things. If it says infinite things, then there would still be no conversation with it, because there is no knowledge of the infinite. But if the things being indicated are finite, then whoever speaks this defines and judges something. How then could everything be unknown and unexamined? If it claims that something both is and is not, then first it would be both true and false, and then it would say something and not say something, using reason to deny reason. Furthermore, while agreeing, it would claim to believe that it must lie to itself.

¹⁰ It is worth asking where those who say that everything is unclear learned this. They must first know what is clear. Only then could they say that things are not like that. First, they need to understand affirmation, and then denial. But if they do not know what is clear, they would not know what is unclear either.

¹¹ Whenever Aenesidemus explains the nine ways in his outline (for he tries to show that things are unclear in this many ways), do we see him saying this with knowledge or without knowledge? He says that living beings differ, as do we ourselves, cities, ways of life, customs, and laws. He also mentions that our senses are weak, and many outside things harm our knowledge, like distances, sizes, and movements. Furthermore, he points out that young and old, awake and asleep, healthy and sick do not experience things in the same way. None of us can grasp anything simply and clearly.

¹² For everything is mixed up and said in relation to something. I say that if someone were to ask him about these things, they would want to know whether he speaks with understanding of why things are this way or without understanding. For if he does not know, how could we trust him? But if he does know, it would be foolish to claim that everything is unclear while also saying so many things.

¹³ And whenever they explain such things, they say nothing but some kind of induction, showing what the appearances are and what each thing is. This kind of reasoning is called belief. If they agree with it, it is clear that they hold opinions. But if they do not believe, then we would not want to pay attention to them either.

¹⁴ Indeed, Timon tells a long story in the Pytho about how he might have met Pyrrho while walking near the sanctuary of Amphiaraus and what they might have talked about. So, wouldn't it be reasonable for someone to stand by him as he writes this and say, "Why, you wicked one, do you trouble yourself by writing this and telling things you do not know? For what more did you experience with him than not experiencing him, and did you talk with him or not?"

¹⁵ Did that amazing Pyrrho really know why he was walking to see the Pythia? Or was he wandering along the road as if he were lost? And when he began to criticize people and their ignorance, should we say he was speaking the truth or not? Did Timon feel something and agree with his words, or did he not pay attention? For if he was not convinced, how did he become a philosopher instead of a dancer, and how did he keep wondering about Pyrrho? But if he agreed with what was said, it would be strange for him to be a philosopher while stopping us.

¹⁶ One might simply be amazed at Timon's silliness and the insults against all people, as well as the long arguments of Aenesidemos, and wonder what this crowd of words really wants. For if they think they have written better things than we have, and for this reason believe everyone should be challenged so that we stop talking nonsense, they clearly want us to know the truth and to understand that things are as Pyrrho claims. So if we were convinced by them, we would become better than we are, judging the worst things and accepting those who speak better.

¹⁷ How then could things be equal, indifferent, and unchallenged? And how could we become disagreeable and dishonorable? If none of the words are useful, why do they bother us? Or why does Timon say that no other person would argue with Pyrrho? For no one would be more amazed by Pyrrho than by that Coroebus or Meletides, who seem to carry foolishness.

¹⁸ One must think about these things. What kind of citizen, judge, advisor, or friend could someone like that be? And what kind of evil would someone who truly believes that nothing is bad, shameful, just, or unjust dare to face? No one would say that such people fear the laws and punishments. How could they be indifferent and untroubled, as they claim to be?

¹⁹ Indeed, Timon says these things about Pyrrho: "But I saw him like the blind and unbreakable one, among all those who dominate both the silent and the spoken, the light-hearted nations of people, weighed down here and there by experiences, opinions, and the laws of chance."

²⁰ Whenever they say that wisdom is this: that one must live according to nature and customs, and not agree with anyone, some people are very simple-minded. For if one should not agree with anyone else, then at least they must agree with themselves and believe that this is how things are. But what more should one follow according to nature and customs than not knowing anything or having anything to judge?

²¹ For that is completely foolish. When they say that just as purifying medicines separate themselves from waste, in the same way, the one who values everything also removes themselves along with others. For if they were to examine themselves, they would be wasting their time with this. Therefore, it is better for them to stay quiet and not even open their mouths.

²² But indeed, the purifying medicine and their argument are not the same at all. For the medicine separates and does not remain in the bodies, but the argument must always exist in the souls as the same and believed. For this alone would be what keeps them from agreeing with others.

²³ That they do not think a person can be without reputation is how someone learns. For it is impossible for a being that feels not to feel. And to feel is to know something. It is clear that they also believe in all their senses; for wanting to see more clearly, they closed their eyes and moved closer to look more closely.

²⁴ And indeed, we know both pleasure and pain; for it is not possible for someone who is being burned or cut to be unaware. But who would not say that memories and reminders come with understanding? Regarding common ideas, like the fact that such a person is human, and also about knowledge and skills, what could anyone say? There would be nothing of these if we did not naturally come to understand. But I will leave the rest to those being spoken about; whether we believe them or not, it is necessary to have opinions in every way and about everything.

²⁵ That it is impossible to philosophize in this way is clear; we would also see things that go against nature and the laws like this. For if things were truly as they say, what else would there be but to live as if in a dream, aimlessly and confusedly? So the lawmakers, generals, and those who deceive would be talking nonsense. But it seems to me that all other people live according to nature, while only they are blinded, and instead have become mad by saying these things.

²⁶ Indeed, one could learn this very well from there. Antigonus of Karystos, writing about the same time, says that Pyrrho, being chased by a dog, escaped up a tree, and those present mocked him, saying that it is difficult for a person to take off their clothes. His sister, Philistia, was making a sacrifice, and then one of the friends promised to help with the sacrifice but did not follow through. Meanwhile, Pyrrho was annoyed and upset because the friend said he would not act according to the words, nor was he worthy of calmness, saying that one should not prove this with a woman. And yet, the friend could rightly say, "Oh foolish one, whether with a woman, a dog, or anything else, if there is any benefit to you from these words."

²⁷ It is important to learn who admired him and who he rejected. Pyrrho became a student of Anaxarchus, who was first a painter but not very successful. Later, he came across the books of Democritus, but he found nothing good nor wrote anything useful. Instead, he spoke poorly of everyone, both gods and humans. However, later on, he himself, being surrounded by this blindness, left nothing in writing that was clear or good.

²⁸ His student was Timon of Phlius, who at first performed in theaters. Later, he met Pyrrho and wrote mocking parodies and buffooneries, in which he insulted all who had ever studied philosophy. He was the one who wrote the verses saying, "Wretched humans, full of bad arguments, like bellies alone, you are made from quarrels and groans," and "humans are full of empty opinions."

²⁹ With none of them turning back, as if they had never existed at all, yesterday and the day before in Alexandria, Egypt, a certain Ainsisimus began to rekindle this movement. And almost those who seemed to be the best among those following this path are these.

³⁰ Therefore, no one who thinks clearly would say that such a thing, whether it is a school or a way of speaking, or however someone wants to call it, is correct. For I do not even think it should be called philosophy, since it clearly removes the foundations of studying philosophy.

³¹ These things are about those who are thought to be following Pyrrho. They would also relate to the arguments against those who follow Aristippus of Cyrene, who claimed that only pleasures are understandable. Aristippus was a companion of Socrates and founded the so-called Cyrenaic school, from which Epicurus took his ideas about the goal of life. Aristippus lived a very indulgent life and loved pleasure; however, he did not discuss the goal openly. Instead, he said that the essence of happiness lies in pleasures. He always made arguments about pleasure, leading those who approached him to believe that the goal is to live pleasantly.

³² Among others, his daughter Arete became a listener to him. She gave birth to a child and named him Aristippus, who, being introduced to discussions of philosophy by her without formal teaching, was called so. He clearly defined the goal as living pleasantly, placing pleasure in movement. He said there are three states regarding our condition: one in which we feel pain, similar to a storm at sea; another in which we feel pleasure, resembling a calm wave; for pleasure is a smooth movement, like a favorable wind; and the third state is a middle condition, in which we neither feel pain nor pleasure, being similar to calmness. Therefore, he said that we have sensation only of these feelings, which are the subject of these arguments.

Book 14, Section 19

Next, those who say that only the understandable things exist would be like this; some from Cyrene said this. These people believed that, just like someone pressed down by a weight, they knew nothing at all unless someone stood by them and struck or pricked them. For when they were burned or cut, they would realize that they were experiencing something; but whether the thing that burns is fire or the thing that cuts is iron, they could not say.

² Someone might immediately ask those who say these things if they at least know this themselves, since they suffer and feel. If they do not know, they would not be able to say that they only know the feeling. But if they do recognize it, then it would not be true that only feelings are understandable. For saying, "I am being burned" is a statement and not just a feeling.

³ But indeed, it is necessary for these three things to exist together: the feeling itself, the one causing it, and the one suffering. Therefore, the person experiencing the feeling would certainly feel both the feeling and the suffering. For it is not the case that if someone happens to be warmed, they would know whether it is themselves or their neighbor who is causing it; they would be unaware. And whether it is now or last year, in Athens or in Egypt, whether alive or dead, or even if they are a person or a stone.

⁴ So, they will know who is causing their suffering. For they recognize each other, as well as roads, cities, and their food. The craftsmen know their tools, and the doctors and sailors can predict what will happen. Among animals, dogs can find the tracks of wild beasts.

⁵ Moreover, the one suffering certainly understands something, either as related to something familiar or as a feeling from something foreign. So, how can they say that this is pleasure and that is pain? Or do they suffer when they taste, see, or hear something? For they taste with their tongue, see with their eyes, and hear with their ears. Or how do they know that they should choose this and avoid that? If they do not know any of these things, they will have no desire or impulse, and thus they would not even be considered living beings. It is silly to say that these things have happened to them, yet they do not know how or in what way. Such people would not even be human, nor would they be alive, and they would not be able to speak.

⁶ So, what kind of argument can be made against such people? It would be surprising if they do not know whether they are on the earth or in the sky. But it is even more amazing if they do not know this and still claim to be philosophers. Are four greater than three, and how many are one and two? They cannot even say how many fingers they have on their hands, nor whether each one is singular or plural.

⁷ So, they would not even know their own name, their homeland, or Aristippus. Therefore, they would not know whom they love or hate, nor what they desire. Even if they laughed or cried, they would not be able to say that this is funny and that is sad. It is clear that they do not understand what we are saying now. Such people would not be any different from ants or flies, and yet those creatures know what is natural and what is beyond nature.

⁸ To those who are in such a state, even if they can say countless things, these are enough. Next, we should also examine those who walk in the opposite direction, and we must believe everything based on the senses of the body. Among these are Metrodorus the Chian and Protagoras the Abderite.

⁹ They say that Metrodorus heard from Democritus and explained the principles of the full and the empty; that is, what is being and what is not being. When it comes to writing about nature, no one among us knows anything about this, nor do we know whether we know it or not. This inquiry gave poor reasons to Pyrrho, who came after them. He claims that everything exists, whatever someone may think.

¹⁰ Protagoras is said to have been called an atheist. He himself wrote about the gods in this way: "As for the gods, I do not know whether they exist or what they are like; for many things prevent me from knowing any of them." The Athenians, punishing him with exile, burned his books publicly in the middle of the marketplace. Since these people claimed that one must only believe in what the senses perceive, let us look at the objections against them.

Book 14, Section 20

Some people believe that one should trust only the senses and the imagination. However, some say that Homer hints at this by stating that the Ocean is the beginning of all things, as if everything flows from it. It seems that Metrodorus the Chian says the same thing, but on the other hand, Protagoras the Abderite disagrees.

² For he said that the measure of all things is man: of what is, that it is, and of what is not, that it is not. For whatever appears to each person is how things are; and about other things, we cannot say anything.

³ To these points, someone might say what Plato says in the Theaetetus: first, why do they claim that man is the measure of truth, if such things exist? Is it man or a creature with the head of a dog? Then, how can they say they are wise if everyone is the measure of truth for themselves? Or how do they argue against others if what seems true to each person is indeed true? We often do not know something, even though we frequently notice it, just like when we hear the words of foreigners.

⁴ For when he sees something and then remembers it, he knows it, but he no longer senses it. And if one eye is closed while the other sees, it is clear that he will both know and not know the same thing.

⁵ In addition to this, if what seems true to each person is indeed true, then what those people say does not seem true to us, and it would be true that man is not the measure of all things.

⁶ And indeed, those skilled in their crafts are different from those who are unskilled, and the experienced are different from the inexperienced. For this reason, the pilot, the doctor, and the general are better at predicting what will happen in the future.

⁷ These people simply remove the ideas of more and less, necessary and possible, natural and unnatural. Thus, what is and what is not could be seen as the same. Nothing stops something from seeming the same to some people while appearing different to others. A person and a piece of wood could be considered the same; sometimes a person seems the same as this piece of wood, and at other times, they seem different.

⁸ Every true statement could also be false for this reason. Those who think and judge would not be able to do anything. The most terrible part is that they would be both serious and wicked at the same time, and the same thing could be seen as both vice and virtue. There are many other similar ideas that one could mention. But there is no need for more words for those who do not think or reason.

⁹ Next, "Since there are still some who claim that every single perception is true, let's talk a little about these ideas. These people seem to be afraid that if they say some perceptions are false, they would lose a firm standard or rule. They do not realize that they would not be able to find the truth while insisting that all opinions are true. Indeed, we have become used to judging many things. Yet, they still believe that some perceptions are true and others are false."

¹⁰ Next, if someone looks closely, they would see that none of the other standards are always and completely true, like a scale or a plane, or anything similar. Each of them can be correct in one way and wrong in another. Using one might lead to the truth, while using another might lead to falsehood. If every perception were true, they would not differ so much. Some perceptions are close, while others are far away; some come from those who are sick, while others come from those who are healthy; some are from skilled people, while others are from unskilled ones; some are from wise individuals, while others are from foolish ones. It would be completely unreasonable to say that the perceptions of those who are confused are true, as well as those of those who misperceive or misunderstand. It would be silly to claim that someone who misperceives either sees or does not see; someone might say they see, but not correctly.

¹¹ Whenever they claim that perception is irrational and adds nothing or takes nothing away, they do not see the obstacles. For in the case of the oar in the water, and in many other images, it is perception that deceives. That is why we all criticize such things, not our reason, but our imagination. Reason itself shows that it considers every perception to be completely true. However, our perception, through which we do not believe everything is like that, proves to be completely false. Therefore, it turns out that they say every perception is both true and false.

¹² In general, they are wrong to think that things are as they seem to us. On the contrary, things appear as they naturally are, and we do not make them that way; instead, we are somehow influenced by those things. It would be silly if we believed, like painters and sculptors, that dogs or chimeras should be considered real right away, and because of this, we imagine them as if they are easily present.

¹³ Therefore, it is clear that those who say that all perception and all imagination are true are not speaking correctly. Even with these things being the case, those who follow Epicurus from the teachings of Aristippus insist that everything comes from pleasure and sensation, defining pleasure as the only true good and the only goal of life.

¹⁴ It is said that Epicurus has not heard anything from anyone, but he has come across the writings of the ancients. Some say that he learned from Xenocrates, and later from Nausiphanes, who became a follower of Pyrrho. So, let us look at the arguments that have been made against him.

Book 14, Section 21

Since knowledge is twofold—one about things and the other about what we choose and avoid—some say that we have a standard and a criterion for our choices: pleasure and pain. Indeed, even now, those who follow Epicurus say such things. Therefore, it is necessary to think about this too.

² Therefore, I say that feeling is the beginning and standard of good and bad, so it seems to me that this itself needs a way to be judged. For it shows itself, but it needs someone else to decide what it is. If perception says something is familiar or strange, then reason decides whether it should be chosen or avoided.

³ They say that not every pleasure should be embraced and not every pain should be avoided. This makes sense and seems very reasonable. For the criteria show both themselves and what is being judged, but feeling shows only itself. They prove that this is the case. Although they claim that every pleasure is good and every pain is bad, they do not always say that one should choose every pleasure and avoid every pain. They measure them by how much there is, not by what kind they are.

⁴ It is clear, then, that only reason judges the amount. For it is better to endure some pains so that we can enjoy greater pleasures, and it is wise to avoid certain pleasures so that we do not suffer worse pains. In every case, it is reason that makes the judgment.

⁵ Now, perception and imagination seem to be like mirrors and images of things. However, feelings, pleasures, and pains are changes and shifts within ourselves. In this way, while we perceive and imagine, we look outward, but when we feel pleasure or pain, we turn our attention back to ourselves. Our senses are shaped by what is outside, and whatever those things are, they create similar images in our imagination. But feelings are about what happens to us and how we experience them.

⁶ Therefore, sometimes these things seem pleasant and sometimes unpleasant, and there are times when they seem more so and times when they seem less so. If we want to look into this, we will find that those who present the best ideas about knowledge also consider the senses and the mind.

⁷ "Perception is like nets and traps for catching animals, while the mind and reason are like dogs that chase and move them. However, it is better to think deeply about these things without relying on the senses or accepting feelings as they come, in order to reach true understanding. It would be terrible for people to let themselves be ruled by irrational pleasures and pains, ignoring the highest judge, which is the mind." These ideas come from Aristotle.

Book 14, Section 22

Now, let us examine each of the three in relation to pleasure and the mind. We need to find out which of them is more closely connected. Are you referring to beauty, truth, and moderation? Yes. First, focus on truth, O Protarche, and after thinking about the three—mind, truth, and pleasure—take your time to reflect and answer for yourself whether pleasure is more closely related to truth or to the mind.

² What need is there for time? I believe it makes a significant difference. Pleasure is the most boastful of all; as for reason, even in pleasures related to desires, which seem to be the greatest, it has been forgiven by the gods for its excess, just like children who are enjoying themselves have very little understanding. But reason is either the same as truth or is the most similar and the truest of all.

³ Therefore, after this, think about moderation in the same way: is pleasure a form of understanding, or does understanding contain more pleasure? You have raised a clear question about this. For I believe that nothing is more excessive by nature than pleasure and joy, while nothing is more moderate than reason and knowledge.

⁴ You have spoken well. But still, tell me about the third. Does reason have more beauty than pleasure, so that reason is more beautiful than pleasure, or is it the other way around? Surely, Socrates, no one has ever thought that either existence or dreams are ugly in any way, whether they are coming into being, existing, or going to be? That is correct.

⁵ Indeed, when we see someone enjoying pleasures, especially the greatest ones, or when we see something ridiculous related to them, we feel ashamed and try to hide it as much as we can. At night, we keep all such things hidden, as if it is not right to see them in the light.

⁶ Indeed, you will say, O Protagoras, that angels send messages and show that pleasure is not a possession, neither first nor second. But first, it is about moderation, the moderate, the timely, and all such things that one must consider as part of the eternal nature. It seems clear from what has been said.

⁷ Secondly, it is about the harmonious, the beautiful, the perfect, the sufficient, and all such things that belong to this existence. It seems so.

⁸ So then, thirdly, as my insight suggests, if you focus on reason and understanding, you would not stray far from the truth. Perhaps.

⁹ Are not then the fourth things, which I have set for the soul itself, the knowledge, skills, and correct opinions that have been mentioned? These are the four alongside the three, if indeed they are more connected to the good than to pleasure. Surely.

¹⁰ Then for the fifth, we have defined certain pleasures as chains, linking them to the pure knowledge of the soul itself, while following the senses. Perhaps.

¹¹ In the sixth generation, Orpheus says, "Stop the world of song," but our speech is also at risk of being halted in the sixth judgment. After this, there is nothing left for us except to summarize what has been said. Therefore, it is necessary.

¹² Come now, let us move on to the third point, affirming the same argument to the savior. What is it then? Philebus has defined pleasure as the good for us, completely and entirely. The third point, oh Socrates, as it seems to you, is that we should rightly repeat the argument from the beginning.

¹³ Yes. But let us listen to what comes next. For I have indeed seen the things I have just explained, and I have often said that the argument of Philebus is not only difficult, but that many others are often countless as well. I said that the understanding of pleasure is far better and more beneficial for human life. That is what I meant.

¹⁴ I suspected that there were many other things, saying that if something among them seemed better for both, I would stand with pleasure against the lesser things, but pleasure would be lacking without the lesser things. For you said this. And after that, neither of these appeared sufficient for all. Truly.

¹⁵ Is it not true that in this argument both the mind and pleasure are completely separate, and that the good itself is not enough for either when they lack self-sufficiency and the power of what is adequate and complete? Absolutely correct. But if something else appears better than these, then the mind is much more familiar and closer to pleasure now in the idea of the victor. How could it not be?

¹⁶ Therefore, according to the judgment, as the argument has now declared, the power of pleasure would come in fifth. It seems so. First of all, not even all the cows, horses, and other wild animals pursue joy; those who believe in them, like seers with birds, often judge that pleasures are the strongest for living well. They think that the loves of wild animals are more reliable witnesses than the words spoken by philosophers in music. Truly, Socrates, we all say that you are right now.

¹⁷ These things are from Plato. But I will briefly present to you the writings about nature from the man who oversees philosophy according to Christ, in response to Epicurus. You should take and read his words as they are.

Book 14, Section 23

Is everything connected, as it seems to us and to the wisest of the Greeks, like Plato, Pythagoras, those from the Stoa, and Heraclitus? Or is it two, as someone might have thought? Or is it many and endless, as it has seemed to others? These others have tried to break down the essence of all things into many confusing and varied names, suggesting that it is infinite, ungenerated, and without thought.

² They say that there are countless tiny and indestructible bodies called atoms, and that there is an infinite empty space. They claim that these atoms move randomly in this empty space, colliding with each other and intertwining because of their many shapes. In this way, they create the universe and the countless worlds within it.

³ From this belief, Epicurus and Democritus emerged. They disagreed in that one thought all atoms were very small and therefore imperceptible, while Democritus believed that some atoms could be quite large. Both agree that atoms exist and are named because of their unbreakable solidity.

⁴ They say that the atoms, which they have renamed, are indivisible bodies, parts of the whole, from which everything is made and into which everything breaks down. They claim that Diodorus created the name for these indivisible parts. They also say that another person, Heraclides, called them "masses," and that the physician Asclepiades inherited this name. After saying this, he goes on to challenge the belief with many arguments, including these.

Book 14, Section 24

How can we accept that they say wise things are just combinations and therefore beautiful creations? Each one, having come into being on its own, was seen by the creator as good, and all together were seen the same way. For, they say, the god saw everything that he made, and look, it was very good.

² But neither from the small, ordinary things nor from the examples given do they learn that useful work is not done carelessly or by chance. Instead, it is crafted for a proper purpose. When it becomes useless and unhelpful, it falls apart randomly and scatters as it may, since wisdom no longer uses or arranges it, which was meant to bring it together.

³ For a garment is not woven without the threads being arranged by the weaver, nor does the yarn get tangled by itself. If it wears down, the woven threads fall apart into rags. A house is built, and a city does not simply accept some stones that leave their foundations while others jump to the tops. Instead, the builder places the straight ones in their proper places. When they fall, each one comes down as it may.

⁴ And when a ship is being built, one does not just place it in any way, nor does the mast stand up by itself in the middle. Each of the other pieces of wood does not just take whatever position it finds. Nor do the hundred pieces of wood for the wagon simply fit together wherever there is an empty space; instead, the carpenter carefully joins each one. If the ship were to break apart while at sea, or if the wagon were to be carried on land, the pieces would scatter—some by the waves and others by the strong current.

⁵ Thus, one could say to them that the atoms, which are slow, unmade, and useless, are carried about randomly. For they should see the unseen things there and understand the foolish ones, not like that person who, when revealed to himself by the god, admits that he has seen your unformed shape, as my eyes have.

⁶ But when they say that fine fabrics are made from atoms, they claim that these are produced foolishly and without any awareness. Who would tolerate hearing about the atoms, when even the spider is wiser than the craftsmen in making them from itself?

Book 14, Section 25

⁷ Or is this great house, made from heaven and earth, called the world because of its size and the abundance of wisdom that shines in it, decorated and created by atoms that are carried along with nothing else, and has it become a world of chaos?

⁸ How can movements and orderly paths come from chaotic forces? And how can the perfect harmony of the heavenly dance come together with unmusical and disordered instruments?

⁹ In what way, when there is one and the same substance and the same unchanging nature, except for sizes and shapes, as they say, are some bodies divine, unblemished, and eternal, as they themselves would claim, or even long-lasting according to the name given? The visible ones include the sun, moon, and stars, as well as earth and water; the invisible ones include gods, demons, and souls. For these cannot refuse to exist, even if they do not wish to.

¹⁰ But the longest-lived are animals and plants. Among animals, as they say, there are eagles, crows, and phoenixes; on land, there are deer, elephants, and dragons; and in the water, there are sea creatures. Among trees, there are palm trees, oaks, and pear trees. Some of these trees are evergreen, and someone has counted them and said there are fourteen; others bloom in season and shed their leaves. Most of the living things, both growing and born, are short-lived and brief, including humans, as someone has said in a holy writing: "a mortal born of a woman has a short life."

¹¹ But they will say that the bonds of atoms change because of the differences in their arrangement. Some of them are said to be compacted and tightly bound, making them completely inseparable masses; while others have a looser connection, either less or more, allowing them to separate either more quickly or not long after they join. Some are formed in this way and that way, while others mix together differently.

¹² Who then is the one who arranges these things, both gathering and separating, placing some in such a way that they become the sun, and others in this way so that they become the moon, with each one contributing according to its own nature to each star? For neither do those that are solar, nor those of this kind or that kind, come together to form the work of the moon, nor has the sun ever been made from lunar atoms. But neither does the bright star, if it is bright, ever have atoms of the morning star, nor do the Pleiades belong to Orion. For Paul rightly distinguished, saying, "There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars;" for a star differs in glory from another star.

¹³ And if their coming together happened without awareness, as if they were lifeless, then a knowledgeable creator must have been behind it. But if the joining was unintentional and forced, like irrational beings, then a wise leader must have guided them. If, however, they came together willingly to create, then a marvelous architect must have been their master. Just as a well-organized general does not allow the army to be confused and mixed up, but arranges the cavalry in one part, the infantry separately, the spearmen by themselves, and the archers apart, where it is necessary to organize them, so that those of the same kind may support one another.

¹⁴ But if they think this example is silly because it compares large bodies to the smallest ones, we will move on to the tiniest things.

¹⁵ Then, it follows that if neither speech, nor selection, nor arrangement were guided by a ruler, but they themselves, from the great flow of chaos, directed themselves and managed the loud noise of their coming together, similar ones would not be led by the god, as the poet says. Instead, they would rush together and gather, knowing their relatives. Truly, the democracy of atoms is wonderful, as they welcome each other as friends and intertwine, hurrying to settle in one community. Some of them, formed into great solar bodies, create the day, while others may ignite many pyramids of stars to crown the sky as one whole. Those that are arranged will firmly arch like the ether to the foundation of the lights, choosing for themselves the unions of the common atoms as single units, and assigning the sky into their own houses and stations.

¹⁶ Then he says next, "But these people do not even see the obvious things, while they greatly need to see the hidden ones. For they seem not to notice the arranged sunrises and sunsets, nor the other things, nor the most splendid aspects of the sun. They do not use the gifts given to humans through them for help, as the day opens up for work and the night comes for rest. For a person will go out," he says, "to do his work and to his tasks until evening."

¹⁷ But they do not even notice the other cycle of it, in which certain hours, times, and seasons are fixed and unchanging, guided by the atoms from which it is made. Even if the unfortunate ones do not want to, the righteous believe that the great master who created it has hastened its course through his words.

¹⁸ For the atoms bring you, oh blind ones, both rain and the earth that provides food for you and for all the living things on it. They bring summer so that you may also enjoy the fruits from the trees. And why do you not worship the atoms and offer sacrifices to those that bear fruit? You are ungrateful, not even dedicating a small portion of the many gifts you have received from them.

¹⁹ And shortly after, the diverse and mixed crowd of stars, which the wandering and always scattered atoms have formed, assigned themselves regions according to agreements, as if they were establishing a colony or a community, with no founder or master in charge. They guard their neighboring boundaries together and peacefully, not exceeding the limits they have held from the beginning, just as if they were governed by the laws of the royal atoms.

²⁰ But they do not rule over those things; for how could they? Instead, listen to the divine words: "In the judgment of the master, all things are his." From the beginning and from their creation, he divided their portions, adorned his works for eternity, and established their beginnings for their generations.

²¹ And shortly after, he asks, "Who has so orderly crossed the plain of the earth, with no one leading, no one turning away, no one blocking the way, and no one left behind among those lined up, as they always advance equally and in formation, the continuous and unbroken, untroubled and unhindered army of the stars?"

²² But some of them become hidden trophies through turns and sideways movements. Indeed, they always lie in wait and foresee the lands, from where each one knows they have joined these. So let the divisions of the atoms, the parts of the indivisible, and the gatherings of the uncombined tell us where the circulation of the heavens and the cycle come from, not from a single, similarly thrown mass of atoms, but from such a circular dance moving in rhythm, equally advancing and revolving, from where countless, disordered, unintentional, and unknown traders have gathered together. The prophet rightly placed the stranger among the weak and unguarded, even if two should run together: "If two are to go to the same place, will they not know themselves?"

²³ After saying these things and bringing in many other matters, he then prepares the problem further using the various elements of the whole, the many kinds of animals within them, and indeed also from human nature. From these, I will shortly add to what has been said and conclude the present discussion.

Book 14, Section 26

And they see neither themselves nor the things around them. For if one of the leaders of this impious doctrine were to think about who he is and where he came from, he would understand what he has been thinking about himself, and he would say not to the atoms, but to his father and creator, "Your hands made me and formed me." And he would have found a way to marvel at the wonder of his own creation: "Just as you milked me like milk, did you not make me equal to cheese? You clothed me with skin and flesh, and you gave me bones and tendons. You gave me life and mercy, and your watchfulness preserved my spirit."

² For how many atoms did the father of Epicurus bring forth from himself when he was creating Epicurus? And how did they come together in his mother's womb, being formed, shaped, set in motion, and growing? And many atoms of Epicurus, having been called by a brief sprinkle, some were clothed with skin and flesh, others were made into bones, and others were joined together with tendons?

³ And many other parts, like limbs, organs, entrails, and senses, some were fitted from within and some from outside, through which the body was brought to life. None of these were added in vain or without purpose, since not even the least important things, like hairs or nails, were unnecessary; everything contributes, some for the benefit of the structure and others for the beauty of appearance.

⁴ For it is not only for necessity but also for beauty that care is taken. The hair serves as protection and covering for the head, while the beard enhances the appearance of the philosopher. It has arranged the nature of the whole human body from all the necessary parts, and it has connected each limb to one another while measuring the support from the whole.

⁵ Of these, some are complete and clear to those who have experience. The head is the leader, and around the brain, like a ruler in the acropolis, are the senses that serve. Sight comes forward, while hearing announces, taste acts like a tax collector, smell investigates and explores, and touch organizes everything that is under its control.

⁶ For now, we are only touching on a few of the works of all-wise care. Soon, with the help of the divine, we will explore them more closely when we aim toward what seems more reasonable.

⁷ The service of the hands allows for all kinds of work and clever crafts to be completed, joined together in one cooperation. The shoulders carry burdens, while the fingers hold and grasp, bending the elbows both inward toward the body and outward away from it, able to pull and push. The service of the feet lets us walk on solid ground, float on the sea, cross rivers, and interact with everything around us. The stomach is a storehouse of food, distributing nourishment to all the connected parts in measured amounts and presenting what is extra. Everything else is clearly managed for human living, which wise people understand, unlike those who are foolish.

⁸ Some believe that the most scientific understanding of everything and the most beneficial to themselves comes from the management of a higher and divine thought and power. Others, however, attribute the most wonderful development to the chance and coincidence of atoms coming together without any purpose.

⁹ The doctors, having carefully examined the most active parts and the arrangement of the insides, were amazed and revealed their nature. But we will consider it as best as we can later on, even if only in a superficial way.

¹⁰ But who created this entire body, tall, upright, well-proportioned, sensitive, mobile, useful, and capable of all work? They say it is the mindless crowd of atoms. Yet, even if they came together, they could not shape a clay figure, carve a stone statue, or create a silver or golden image.

¹¹ But these arts and crafts are discovered by human body workers. If their shapes and outlines could not exist without skill, how did the true and original forms come about by chance?

¹² But where did the soul, mind, and reason come from for the philosopher? Did they come from lifeless, senseless, and mindless atoms, and did those atoms inspire him with any thoughts or beliefs?

¹³ And just as Hesiod's myth says that Pandora was created by the gods, so wisdom was formed by the atoms. The Greeks will no longer say that all poetry, all music, astronomy, geometry, and the other sciences are discoveries and teachings of the gods. Instead, they will claim that only the experienced and wise atoms are the muses of all.

¹⁴ For Epicurus's theology, which comes from the atoms, is a result of the infinite worlds, and it has escaped into the infinite chaos.

Book Fifteen

To work, to manage, and to care for such things may seem burdensome to the lazy, foolish, weak, and wicked, like those whom Epicurus criticized for their views about the gods. But for the serious, strong, wise, and moderate people—who philosophers should be—how much more so for the gods? These tasks are not unpleasant or opposing; instead, they are very delightful and most welcome to those who see neglect and procrastination in doing good as shameful. Just as the poet advises, they should not put things off until tomorrow. He warns that the man who always delays will struggle with misfortune.

² A prophet teaches us with greater seriousness, saying that truly divine works are those related to virtue. But the one who neglects these is most wretched. For he says, "the one who does the works of the lord carelessly."

³ For the ignorant, practicing any skill is difficult due to their lack of experience and the hard work involved. But those who make progress, especially the skilled ones, easily succeed in what they attempt. They would rather achieve and complete the usual tasks than have all the good things that exist among humans.

⁴ Democritus, or so they say, claimed it was better to find one explanation than for the Persian kingdom to exist. He did this in vain and without reason, as if starting from a false beginning and misguided assumption. He did not see the root and the common necessity of the nature of things, but believed that the greatest wisdom was understanding foolish and stupid events. He placed luck as the overall ruler and queen of divine matters, saying that everything happens because of it. However, he rejected luck in human life and criticized those who supported it as ignorant.

⁵ Starting from the Hypotheses, he says, "Humans have created an image of luck as an excuse for their own foolishness." By nature, reason fights against luck; they claimed that this very thing has power over the worst minds. Instead, they completely remove and hide reason and replace it with luck. For they do not praise reason as fortunate, but they praise luck as more reasonable.

⁶ Those who are masters of useful works rejoice in the help they provide to their own kind. They seek praise and honor for their efforts, whether they are caregivers, guides, healers, or those involved in politics. However, philosophers, who work hard to educate people, feel very frustrated.

⁷ Will Epicurus or Democritus dare to say that they are troubled by philosophy? But they wouldn't even suggest another reason for it. For even if they believe that the good is pleasure, they would still feel embarrassed to say that engaging in philosophy is more pleasant for them.

⁸ About the gods, some poets sing that they are givers of gifts, while philosophers speak of them with respect, saying they are the source of all good things, without gifts and without involvement. But how do they prove that the gods exist? They do not see them present and acting, like those who, amazed by the sun, moon, and stars, claim these celestial bodies are gods because of their movement. They do not expect any creation or structure from them, so that by their actions they might make them into gods. For the only true god is the creator and poet of all things. They do not show any governance, judgment, or favor from the gods to humans, so that we might worship them out of fear or honor.

⁹ Either Epicurus, peering into the universe and going beyond the heavenly sphere, or having come out through some hidden gates that only he knows, saw the gods in the void and praised their great pleasure. From there, becoming eager for pleasure and a follower of the lifestyle in the void, he invites everyone to share in the happiness of those gods—a joyful feast. This feast is not like what the poets describe about heaven or Olympus, but instead, it is about the void, offering them ambrosia made from atoms and pouring them nectar from those.

¹⁰ And indeed, even about those who have nothing to do with us, he writes countless oaths and swears by his own books, constantly saying "by Zeus" and "I swear by Zeus" to those he meets and with whom he speaks "in the name of the gods." He does this not out of fear of breaking his oaths, but because it is empty, false, useless, and meaningless, adding it as an extra part to his words, as if he were to spit, turn his face, and move his hand. For such was the foolish and vain pretense of naming the gods.

¹¹ But this is clear: after the death of Socrates, he approached the Athenians so that it would not seem that he was an atheist, drawing pictures of empty gods without any support. He neither looked up to heaven with his mind's eye nor heard a clear voice from above, which a careful observer would testify to, saying, "the heavens declare the glory, and the work of his hands shows the firmament." He did not see the earth with his thoughts, for he would have learned that "the earth is full of the Lord's mercy, and that the Lord is the earth and its fullness." He also says, "the Lord looked upon the earth and filled it with his good things. He covered the face of every living creature."

¹² But if they are not blind, let them examine the great variety of living creatures: the land animals, the birds, and the water creatures. Let them understand how true the testimony of their master has become in the judgment of all, and that everything has been declared good according to his command.

¹³ These things have been gathered from many sources about Epicurus and the teachings of Dionysius, who is our guide. Now it is time to turn to those around Aristotle and the school of the Stoic philosophers, and to examine the rest of the remarkable natural philosophers. This way, we can also provide an account of our own retreat from these ideas to those who enjoy debating.

Book 15, Section 1

Introduction. Long ago, I set out to challenge the many false beliefs of all the nations in the early stages of the Gospel Preparation. I focused on the structure and defense of our retreat from these beliefs, which we have made for good reasons. I will not only address the myths that the followers of their theologians and poets have mocked about their own gods, but also their serious and hidden natural philosophies, which have been elevated to the heavens and the parts of the universe, in relation to noble philosophy. First of all, I examined these in the first three writings, even though there is nothing in them that needs to be taken seriously according to those theologians.

² Indeed, it should be noted that the oldest among their theologians know nothing beyond history, and they have only given witness to their myths. Therefore, it makes sense that in all cities and towns, the rituals and mysteries of the gods have been passed down according to ancient stories. Even now, there are celebrations of weddings and childbirths of the gods, along with mourning and drunkenness. Some myths are about deceivers, others about love, some about anger, and others about various misfortunes and situations. All of these follow the accounts mentioned by the ancients, according to the rituals, in the hymns, and in the songs made for the gods themselves.

³ However, I have also revealed the boastful claims of those who are overly confident in their natural explanations, as well as the arguments of the sophists and philosophers. I have exposed the sayings about the oracles of cattle and the widely spread false belief about fate. In the next three writings, after the first ones, I have stripped away these claims, not only using arguments from our own sources but also by drawing on the voices of their philosophers among the Greeks to challenge them.

⁴ Then, moving on to the writings of the Hebrews, I looked into the reasoning behind their doctrinal theology found in these texts, as well as the complete history related to them. I presented this in an equal number of arguments once more.

⁵ Then, I examined the Greek way of reasoning, showing how they benefited from the barbarians and how they offer no serious teachings from their own sources. I also compared the times when the Greeks and the Hebrew prophets lived, bringing this to light. Again, in the next three writings, I pointed out the agreement between the respected philosophers among the Greeks and the beliefs of the Hebrews, using their own voices as evidence.

⁶ However, I also presented the views of those Greek philosophers who disagree with us, not only in relation to us but also in relation to their own people, as they have been challenged by knowledgeable individuals in the previous writings. Through all of this, I aimed to show an unbiased standard of our opinion to those who encounter it, providing evidence through actions, so to speak, and through their own matters, to prove that we are not without reason. I also aimed to restore the ancient and true philosophy and piety of the Hebrews alongside that of the Greeks, which I established through the comparison of Greek voices.

⁷ Now, as we reach the final part of this work, which is the fifteenth of the writings at hand, we will present what remains for those who have been discussed. We are still highlighting the important aspects of noble Greek philosophy, revealing to everyone the useless knowledge within it. We aim to show that we have not overlooked the admiration for their teachings, nor have we neglected the pointless studies among them. Instead, we have focused on the practices of the better philosophers, dedicating our minds to them.

⁸ Therefore, with the help of truth, I will describe here the parts of the Preparation. Then, moving on to the more complete argument of the Gospel Proof, I will connect the beginning of the second writing to what is left of our discussion.

⁹ If this is being criticized, that we have preferred the words of the Hebrew ancestors and have not sought a life similar to that of the Jews, then, after completing this discussion, with the help of truth, I will try to respond. For I believe that in this way, the first ideas are connected like a single thought, creating a complete understanding of the whole argument.

¹⁰ Now, since it has been shown in the previous writings that the philosophy of Plato sometimes agrees with the words of the Hebrews and sometimes stands apart from them, being both challenged and disagreeing with the same ideas; as for the other philosophers called naturalists, including those who followed Plato and those like Xenophanes, Parmenides, and also Pyrrho, as well as all the others mentioned, whose opinions have been previously refuted, these stand in opposition to both the beliefs of the Hebrews and the teachings of Plato, not only in truth but also in the arguments made against them.

¹¹ It is time to also look at the other blindness of the philosophers from Aristotle and the Stoics, as if from a stage, and to see the rest of the natural philosophy of those who raise their brows, so that we may learn about the serious matters they discuss, as well as the arguments brought against them by their own followers.

¹² For this reason, the hidden part of their retreat, which we have, would free us from all accusations that we are not ignorant of the serious matters among them, but rather have examined and tested the truth and piety of all the Greeks, which we have valued more than the customs of the so-called barbarians.

¹³ I will begin with Aristotle. Others have indeed spoken poorly of his life, but some philosophers were not completely unknown either. However, I do not like to hear him being spoken of badly by his own followers. Therefore, I will present more of the defenses about him from Aristocles the Peripatetic, who writes the following about him in the seventh book on philosophy.

Book 15, Section 2

For how is it possible, as Epicurus says in his letter about pursuits, for a young man to waste his family's wealth, then to join the army, and while doing poorly in these things, to turn to being a pharmacist, and then to compare him to Plato, who was entirely different?

² Or how could someone accept what Timaeus of Tauromenium says in his histories about closing the door of a doctor's office when he has a bad reputation and is of old age?

³ Who would be convinced by what Aristoxenus the musician says in the life of Plato? For in his travels, he claims that some foreign Peripatetics came to help him rebuild. Therefore, some think he is talking about Aristotle, even though Aristoxenus always speaks well of him.

⁴ It would be reasonable for someone to laugh at the arguments in the writings of Alexinus the contentious. For he portrays Alexander as a child talking with his father Philip, and while he rejects the words of Aristotle, he accepts those of Nicagoras, who was called Hermin.

⁵ And Eubulides clearly lies in his book about him. First, he brings up cold poems, claiming that others have written about the marriage and the closeness to Hermes. Then he says that he criticized Philip, that he did not come to Plato as he was dying, and that he destroyed his books.

⁶ What should one say about the accusation of Democharis against the philosophers? For he has spoken poorly not only of Aristotle but also of the others. Moreover, if one examines the very slanders, they might say he is just talking nonsense. He claims that the letters of Aristotle were captured by the city of Athens and that he betrayed his homeland, Stagira, to the Macedonians. He also says that after the destruction of Olynthus, he informed Philip about the wealthiest of the Olynthians.

⁷ And Cephisodorus, the student of Isocrates, has also slandered him as foolish, saying that he is delicate and soft, along with other similar things.

⁸ Everything said by Lycon is overshadowed by foolishness, as he claims to be a Pythagorean himself. He says that Aristotle offered a sacrifice to his wife, similar to what the Athenians do for Demeter, and that he was bathing in warm olive oil while doing this. When he was leaving for Chalcis, he found seventy-four bronze coins on the ship.

⁹ I believe that the first people to slander Aristotle have become quite numerous. Some of them lived at the same time, while others came a little later. All of them are sophists, debaters, and speakers, whose names and books have mostly disappeared. Those who came after them and spoke about what the earlier ones had said, if they should be happy at all, especially those who have not even seen their books but are just making things up, are like those who claim he had three hundred bronze coins. For no one would find anything said about him from that time except for Lycon. However, as I mentioned, he claimed that seventy-five bronze coins were found.

¹⁰ Not only can one find evidence from the times and from those who have slandered that everything said is false, but also from the fact that not everyone slanders the same things; each person speaks about something specific. If there had been even one true statement, it surely would not have been lost to him at the hands of those from that time.

¹¹ It is clear that, just like many others, Aristotle also faced envy from the sophists of his time because of his friendships with the kings and his skill in speaking. Those who think wisely should not only pay attention to those who slander him, but also to those who praise and admire him; for there would surely be many more and better supporters.

¹² Other matters are clearly intertwined, but these two seem to be believed by some who criticize him: one is that he married a sister of Hermes by birth and a daughter of Pythiada by adoption, flattering him; (Indeed, Theocritus of Chios wrote an epigram like this: "This empty monument was set up by Aristotle, the foolish one, for his beloved servant Hermes and Euboulos; who, because of his insatiable appetite, chose to live not in the Academy, but in the sewers.") The other is that he was ungrateful to Plato.

¹³ Many others have written about Hermes and Aristotle's friendship with him, including Apellicon, who, in his writings, will cease to speak ill of them.

¹⁴ Regarding the marriage to Pythiada, he has clearly explained it in his letters to Antipater. After Hermes died, he married her out of goodwill towards him. She was otherwise a wise and good woman, but unfortunately, she had faced misfortunes because of her brother.

¹⁵ Then, after the death of Pythiada, Aristotle married Erpyllida from Stagira, and they had a son named Nicomachus. It is said that he was raised as an orphan by Theophrastus and that he died young in battle.

¹⁶ But let these things be taken from the writings of Aristocles that have been explained. It is now time to look at the dogmatic philosophy of Aristotle.

Book 15, Section 3

The teachings of Moses and the prophets among the Hebrews conclude that living happily comes from knowing and loving the God of all, which is achieved through piety. True piety is taught by those who show that pleasing God is connected to all virtues, as this is the source of good things. Everything depends on God, and all good things are given by him to those who love him. Plato defines happiness as the goal of virtue, while Aristotle, taking a different approach, states that one cannot be truly happy without the well-being of the body and external possessions, which do not support virtue on their own. To address this, those familiar with Plato's ideas can learn from these teachings.

Book 15, Section 4

For all philosophy, which promises human happiness, is divided into three parts based on the distribution of the creator of all things. In this context, the Peripatetic (Aristotle) will seem to lack much in teaching something from Plato, so that, among many who differ from Plato, he appears to be the most opposed to him.

² First, he made a shift from the common, greatest, and most important view of Plato, not maintaining the standard of happiness, nor allowing virtue to be sufficient on its own. Instead, he strayed from the strength of virtue, believing that it needs assistance from fortune in order to achieve happiness. However, if happiness were seen as depending solely on itself, he argued that it was impossible and unattainable.

³ Therefore, the lowly and mistaken opinion shows that, in this and other matters, it is not the right time to demonstrate what is present. However, I believe it is clear that the goals and happiness are not the same according to Plato and Aristotle. One says that the happiest person is the most just, while the other does not allow happiness to follow virtue unless one also has good fortune, beauty, and wealth. Just as someone with gold goes to war like a girl, it is necessary, because of the difference in their goals and the philosophies that lead to them, to have different views.

⁴ For if someone walks along one path, which naturally leads to something small and low, it is not possible to reach the greater and higher things. Do you see where that high rock is, rough and steep, where he sits, easing your struggle?

⁵ It is impossible for that fierce and cunning beast to climb up this high rock. To reach the same place as the offspring of the eagle, a fox must either fall to the ground by using some trick or by chance, when its own kind has perished, or it must create something it is not meant to produce, flapping its swift wings to circle around, and thus, lifted from the ground, fly up to the high rock. As long as each remains in its own order, there is no sharing between the things of the earth and the things of the sky.

⁶ And with other matters, since these are the conditions, while Plato is trying to draw the souls of the young upward toward the divine and connecting them to virtue and beauty, but persuading all the others to be overly proud, tell us, O Peripatetic, how will you teach these things? How will you guide the lovers of Plato toward them?

⁷ Where do you find such a high level of words in your choice, that you can understand the mindset of the Aloadae and seek the way to heaven, which they believed they could reach by climbing, but which was actually beyond human efforts, as Plato says?

⁸ What then is your help for the young in these matters? And where is the speech of a competitor in virtue? From which writings of Aristotle? From which of his works? For I give you this, even if you want to deceive, just something youthful. But you have neither the ability to speak, nor would any of the leaders of your choice allow you to do so.

⁹ Indeed, the writings of Aristotle on these matters, including those by Eudemos, Nicomachus, and the Great Ethics, speak of virtue in a way that is simple, humble, and accessible, so much so that even an ordinary person, uneducated, a young boy, or a woman could understand. For the crown, so to speak, and the royal scepter, which virtue holds as a gift from Zeus, cannot be taken back whenever someone gives a nod with their head; yet they dare to take it away from her.

¹⁰ For they do not allow her to make anyone happy, but they equate her with wealth, reputation, lineage, health, and beauty, along with all the other common things associated with wickedness. For without virtue, none of these things can truly make someone happy, and virtue alone, without these, is not enough to make someone who possesses it happy.

¹¹ How then is the value of virtue not taken away and cast aside? Yes; but they say that virtue is much greater than other goods. What does this mean? It means that health is better than wealth; however, none of these things alone is enough for happiness, which is true for everyone.

¹² When someone teaches from these beliefs and this choice that the whole human good is found within the soul, he says that a happy person does not rise to the wheel of fortune, nor can someone who is caught up in the misfortunes of Priam be happy and blessed.

¹³ It is not unreasonable for someone who has virtue to fall into such situations. It follows that happiness does not always accompany those who have virtue, nor does it stay with them forever, even if it could. Just as some leaves are blown down by the wind while others grow from the thriving trees, so the lives of men sometimes flourish and sometimes fade away.

¹⁴ Still, the example is small and timid, poet. Spring comes as a season. There is a long time in between, and it does not always come. If you want to clearly show the fleeting and fragile nature of human life, compare it to Aristotle's idea of happiness. This is easier than leaves; it both grows and falls without waiting for the turning of the year or the season, but it happens and disappears in the same day, at the same hour.

¹⁵ Many things are lost, and everything comes from chance. There are many misfortunes of the body, like poverty and disgrace, and all such things. The virtues of a friend are not enough to help against these; they are not strong enough to prevent misfortune or to preserve happiness.

¹⁶ Therefore, someone who is influenced by these things and who agrees with these words, how will they connect with Plato, or how will they ever support others in this? There is no way that someone starting from these can accept the teachings of Heracles and those divine doctrines as something strong and beautiful like virtue, which is never lacking for happiness nor ever taken away from it. Even if there is poverty, illness, disgrace, suffering, or even death, when everything from tragedy comes together, the just person remains happy and blessed.

¹⁷ Under the herald, indeed, the loudest one is proclaiming, just like a victorious athlete, that the just person is the happiest, as they are reaping the fruit of happiness from justice itself. So, if you want, divide and arrange the good things in three, four, or many ways; for none of this matters to the main point. Surely, you will not bring us closer to Plato through these.

¹⁸ For what if you say that among the good things, some are honorable, like the gods, some are praiseworthy, like the virtues, some are powerful, like wealth and strength, and some are useful, like services? What if, while dividing these good things in a simpler way, you say that some are ends and others are not ends? You might call some things ends for the sake of the others, while the things taken for the sake of the others are not ends.

¹⁹ But what if someone learns that some good things are simply good, while others are not for everyone? Or that some good things belong to the soul, some to the body, and others are external? Or again, that among the good things, some are powers, some are states and qualities, others are activities, some are ends, some are materials, and some are tools? Even if someone learns from you to divide the good into ten categories, what do these have to do with Plato's teachings?

²⁰ For as long as you, whether speaking in the same way or however you wish, consider the good things of virtue as necessary for happiness, while ignoring the essential part of virtue, Plato looks for what is extra for happiness from the abundance of other things, while still holding that it comes from virtue itself. There would be nothing in common for you in this matter; you need different arguments than those of Plato.

²¹ For just as there are no trustworthy oaths among lions and men, and wolves and sheep do not share the same spirit, there is no friendship between Plato and Aristotle regarding the highest and most important teaching about happiness. Clearly, if they do not think badly of each other, they seem to be saying opposite things about what differs in this matter.

Book 15, Section 5

Again, both Moses and the prophets among the Hebrews, as well as Plato in these matters, clearly present the discussion about the providence of all things. Aristotle, having established the divine up to the moon, describes the other parts of the world in relation to God's governance. On these points, he also argues against what has been said, proceeding in this manner.

² Since there is indeed the greatest and most important factor contributing to happiness, which is the discussion about providence that especially corrects human life, we should not be ignorant of whether it rises by just means or by crooked deceptions among the human race on earth. Plato connects everything to God and from God. He says that God has the beginning, middle, and end of all things, and that He completes everything in a straightforward manner. He also states that God is good, and that no one is envious of the good. Everything outside of this being, he claims, does the most good, bringing order out of disorder. He takes care of all things and arranges everything according to its nature.

³ And shortly after, this is how Plato is. But the one who creates this kind of demonic nature, cuts off the hope of the soul, and removes the concern for what is stronger in the present—what kind of connection does he have with Plato? Or how could he call upon Plato and trust what has been said?

⁴ For everything is the opposite; this one would indeed seem like a helper and competitor of those who wish to do wrong. For any person, being human and shaped by human desires, if they disregard the gods and think nothing of them for themselves, being far removed from them in life, would be ready, when dead and no longer existing, to please their desires.

⁵ For it is not impossible to trust in doing wrong secretly, especially if people need to stay hidden. However, it is not necessary to try to hide from everything, where someone who is revealed can be strong. Therefore, a certain readiness for wrongdoing comes from a rejection of providence.

⁶ For that person is indeed very good, who presents pleasure to us as something good and provides the absence of the gods, believing that he is also finding a way not to do wrong. He acts like a doctor, offering help while the sick person is still alive, but after death, he tries to create some means for the salvation of the dead.

⁷ In a similar way, the Peripatetic school is also like this. The concern about pleasure is not the same as the concern for the divine, since disbelief strengthens wrongdoing. So, someone might ask, do you place Aristotle and Epicurus in the same category? Indeed, yes, as far as the matter at hand.

⁸ For what difference does it make to us whether the divine of the world is established and leaves us with no connection to it, or whether the gods in the world have withdrawn from earthly matters? In both cases, there is a lack of care from the gods towards humans, and the absence of the gods is the same for those who do wrong. While the gods remain in the heavens, we enjoy something good that is shared by both irrational beings and lifeless things. Yet, in this way, even according to Epicurus, benefits for humans come from the gods.

⁹ They say that better outcomes for those who take part in great goods come from their absence. But neither this nor that is fair to count in terms of providence. For if, according to Epicurus, the idea of providence is absent, even though the gods provide all care for the salvation of their own goods, then the same would be true according to Aristotle about providence, even if the things in the heavens are organized in some order and system.

¹⁰ For we seek a providence that is different for us, one that does not involve either spirits or heroes, nor can it apply to souls that have completely departed.

¹¹ But that seems to me to be more shameful and unjust according to Epicurus. For just as he believes that the gods can withdraw from caring for humans, he makes it seem as if they have settled in a foreign land, far away from the world, avoiding the inhumanity of their separation and their complete lack of connection to everything.

¹² But this extra part of nature, which discovers and understands divine matters precisely, has allowed human affairs to be neglected and thoughtless, governed by nature and not by the reasoning of a god. Therefore, it would be reasonable to say that he himself would not escape that accusation, which some claim according to Epicurus, that it is not by intention, but because of fear of humans, that we have assigned the gods a place in everything, just like in a theater.

¹³ They provide evidence of the man's opinion that he has taken away their action toward us, from which alone the existence of the gods would have justly earned our faith. For Aristotle does the same thing. He has turned away and, by relying only on sight, judges faith to be weak when it seems to him that the gods might be said to exist from such a distance.

¹⁴ For he did not leave the gods outside of the world, nor did he bring them down to those on earth. He was forced to either admit that he was completely godless or to save the belief that the gods exist by claiming they are somehow settled here. By rejecting the strength of the better arguments, he seems to cleverly disbelieve in the gods by mixing things up. These points are made by the Athenian against Aristotle, who is struggling in his argument about providence. He also adds these points to what has been said, aiming for the same conclusion that he does not want the world to be created.

Book 15, Section 6

Again, Moses defined the world as created, with God being both a maker and a craftsman of everything. Plato also shared similar ideas to Moses. In contrast, Aristotle, having taken a different path, is challenged by the writings of the stated author, as he writes against this claim.

² First, while thinking about the creation of the world and believing it necessary to explore this important and helpful idea about providence, he reasoned that for what has not been created, there is no need for a maker or caretaker to bring it into existence properly. Therefore, he excluded the uncreated from the world of providence.

³ We now ask that we are not hindered by those from the same source, who agree with Plato that the world is uncreated. It is fair for us to receive understanding if we believe in what seems true to Plato, who, being a Greek himself, spoke clearly and openly to us Greeks.

⁴ For he says that God, having taken everything that was visible, did not lead it in peace, but moved it in a disordered and chaotic way, bringing it into order from chaos, believing that this was much better. Furthermore, he did not accept the creation through riddles, nor did he need clarity about it, as the Father of all spoke to him about this after the creation of everything.

⁵ For he says, since you have come into being, (he speaks to the gods) you are not immortal, nor are you entirely unchangeable, but you will certainly not be free from my will.

⁶ But, as I said, to those among us who speak softly, being friends, we could separate ourselves with kindness and calmness. For it seems that Aristotle also wants to change these ideas, unable to resist the challenge of the doctrine, but not wanting to dismiss Plato's opinion as false.

⁷ According to our understanding, Plato claims that the world is the most beautiful work created by the most beautiful of creators. He gives the creator of everything the power to make the world even from what did not exist before. After creating it, he always wants to keep it whole. And in this way, since the world is generated and unchanging according to him, who among us Peripatetics can confirm these ideas?

⁸ It is important to reassure the competitor in these matters that not everything that has come to be must necessarily perish. Likewise, if something will not perish, it does not have to be ungenerated. For we should not allow one cause to be accepted for the unchanging to come from the ungenerated, nor should we leave the change of what has come to be without support toward destruction.

⁹ So where shall we seek help from Aristotle in these matters, when a man does not complete the argument about these things on his own, but rather from a correct position that opposes Plato? Both the created thing, which is surrounded by the necessity of perishing, and the thing that does not perish, which is said to be strong only because it did not come to be, should not leave any power concerning the god, by which he could do something good. For what has not yet come to be, he says, could not come to be.

¹⁰ Thus, it is important to show how much support there is for Plato's argument. Some of those who studied Plato, frightened by what he said, turned away from the doctrine. They could not see that, according to the nature of things, it is impossible to think of either the created thing as unchanging or the unperishing thing as generated without the will and power of a god.

¹¹ When someone recognizes the best cause as coming from a god, this cause must lead all things, showing no other cause to be lesser. It is absurd to think that because something has come to be, it must perish; but if the god wants it not to perish, then it will not. And because something is ungenerated, it has the power not to perish, yet it still needs the will of the god to keep something of the created things unchanging.

¹² The builder, even if he does not have a house, can still construct one. Someone can create a statue from something that did not exist before, and another craftsman can build a ship from raw materials for those in need. Each of the other craftsmen who practice the creative arts has the power to bring something that does not exist into being. However, the all-ruler and master craftsman will not share even a bit of human skill and will be completely without any generation from us. No, if we can consider even a small divine cause.

¹³ But is it possible to create beautiful things and also desire them (for a good person feels no jealousy about anything good), yet not be able to preserve and protect what has come to be? Indeed, the other craftsmen are skilled in both ways. The builder and the shipwright not only create new ships and houses, but they can also help with those that are being worn down over time, replacing them with other crafted things.

¹⁴ So it is necessary to allow even the god this much. For if someone can create the whole, how could they be unable to create a part? Therefore, something new must come into being if someone is truly a creator, and the beautiful work should be completely preserved; for wanting to destroy what has come to be is a sign of evil.

¹⁵ But there is no greater bond for the salvation of what has come to be than the will of the god. For those who share in human effort and intention, many nations, cities, and works can last for an impossible time as long as the one who wished for them is no longer present. But what has come to be through the will of the god, both by him and for him, will surely fade away when the creator is present and will not remain.

¹⁶ What cause has forced the will of the god? Is it from the necessity of what has come to be? But it has indeed been acknowledged that being subject to the arrangement from the god is weaker. Is there any cause that competes with the god? Yet there is neither anything nor any situation in which the god, having taken control and arranged things, is still diminished by something, unless we are completely unaware while discussing the greatest and most divine power.

¹⁷ But indeed, we seem eager to speak about the truth. It is clear that those who do not even leave out the beginning of the world's creation could not be teachers about it. Furthermore, we should also mention the fifth essence of bodies, which was introduced by Aristotle.

Book 15, Section 7

About the so-called elements, from which the first bodies were formed, Plato, following the clarity about them just like those before him, said that there are four commonly agreed upon: fire, earth, air, and water. He claimed that all other things are generated from these. However, Aristotle, wanting to appear more insightful, added a fifth essence to the four visible bodies. He used nature very brilliantly and generously, but he did not realize that one should not create laws about what is natural; instead, one should explain nature itself.

² Therefore, to prove that the first natures of bodies are four, which the Platonists indeed need, the Peripatetic not only would not agree, but would almost completely oppose this view. When we say that every body is either hot or cold, wet or dry, soft or hard, light or heavy, or rare or dense, we find that there would be nothing different from these four. (If it is hot, it is either fire or air; if cold, it is water or earth; if dry, it is fire or earth; if wet, it is water or air; if soft, it is air or fire; if hard, it is water or earth; if light and rare, it is like fire and air; but if heavy and dense, it is water and earth.) When we consider all the other simple qualities, we see that there would not be any other body besides these. This one alone stands against this, claiming that there can be a body that is none of these. But a body cannot be heavy, light, soft, hard, wet, or dry, yet he only says that a body is not a body. He has left the name to it but has taken away all the qualities through which a body could come to be.

³ Either he will convince us to abandon Plato's opinion, or he will stray from what he believes to be true about Plato. Therefore, he is of no use to Plato's ideas at all.

⁴ Moreover, Plato believes that all bodies, viewed as made from one similar substance, should change and transform into one another. However, he sees the essence of other things as unchanging, imperishable, and unalterable, so it does not appear to be the source of something that can be easily dismissed. He argues that nothing is unnecessary or unique, while he misapplies what Plato observed in other things to those that do not fit, much like some later sculptors.

⁵ For they, having copied the head of one man, the chest of another, and the belt of yet another, sometimes put together things that do not belong together and convinced themselves that they had created something unique. Indeed, the whole piece, which someone might criticize for being mismatched, belongs to them, but the parts combined in it, which have some beauty, do not truly belong to them.

⁶ Likewise, Aristotle, hearing Plato say that there is an essence that is intelligible, without body, colorless, and unchanging—neither coming into being, nor being destroyed, nor changing, nor transforming, but always remaining the same—again, upon hearing about heavenly things, which are said to be divine, imperishable, and unchanging bodies, combined and glued together things that do not fit. For from some, he took the idea of body, and from others, the idea of being unchanging, and he created a body that is unchanging.

⁷ Now, concerning the statues, even if one made from different parts is not beautiful, it is certainly not impossible to create. Indeed, Homer teaches such things, for he says, "the eyes are like those of charming Zeus, the belt like that of Ares, and the chest like that of Poseidon." But a body that is unchanging could never come into being. For being connected to a nature that is affected and changeable must necessarily share in whatever it is joined to. If something were unchanging, it must be separate and free from what is affected; thus, it would be apart from matter, which, when separated, would necessarily be said to be without body. Let us also consider how Aristotle differs from Plato in these matters.

Book 15, Section 8

Then, following these points, there are many ways in which they differ. One says that the highest idea of the heavens comes from fire, while the other says that fire does not participate at all in heavenly things. One claims that the god ignites light in the second circle towards the earth, so that it shines most brightly throughout the whole sky, referring to something like the sun. The other, not wanting to say that the sun is fire, knowing that light is pure fire or something like fire, does not allow light to be kindled around it.

² Moreover, one says that, by nature, the imperishable is given to all things in the heavens, and that there are some separations and some equal additions among them. They compel him to say these things: the separations are the rays of the sun and the heat that comes from its outpouring; the additions are the equality of its size, for he would not want anything to appear equal if it did not take anything away.

³ But Aristotle wants everything to remain in the same essence, neither separating from it nor adding to it.

⁴ Moreover, one says that all the stars, both fixed and wandering, move in a common motion, bound within spheres. He gives them another motion, which happens to be the most beautiful and best suited to the nature of their bodies. Since they are spherical, it makes sense that each one moves in a circular motion. But he takes away this motion from them, which they have as living beings, and leaves only the motion caused by others, as happens to non-living things.

⁵ And indeed, he says that the imagination we have from the stars, as if they are moving, is a feeling of our sight that is unable to see clearly and seems to be shaking, and it is not the truth. Just like Plato, who accepts this belief about motion, but not from the teaching that it is necessary for each living being, having a soul and a body, to move in its own way. For every body that is moved from outside is non-living, while that which moves from within and from itself is living. And being moved, as a divine being, it moves in the most beautiful way. Since circular motion is the most beautiful, it moves in that way.

⁶ But the senses would testify that it is true, yet they did not provide a belief in motion. Regarding the motion of the whole, since it does not occur in a circle, he could not argue against Plato. However, he did offer a distinction with this beautiful discovery about the body.

⁷ For Plato, with four bodies that all naturally move in a simple and straight motion—fire moving outward, earth moving toward the center, and the others moving in between—he assigned circular motion to the soul. But he, just as he gave a different motion to another body, also assigned circular motion, as if it were some kind of physical body, to the fifth body, easily deceiving himself.

⁸ For those moving in a straight line, heaviness and lightness provided the source of motion. However, the fifth body, having neither heaviness nor lightness, was more about stillness.

⁹ It is not the shape of circular motion that explains the reason for motion to those moving in a straight line, but rather the inclination. A body placed in the middle of something similar will not have a reason to tilt, but a body placed in a circle will not have a reason to tilt in any direction—whether toward the dawn and the sun, to the left, or forward or backward.

¹⁰ Moreover, for the other bodies that are pushed away from their own places, their return to motion comes from their connection to those places. But for that fifth body, which never leaves its own place, it is appropriate for it to remain.

¹¹ And regarding the other bodies, excluding the fifth, it seems that Aristotle argues differently from Plato. When Plato asked whether there is a body that is heavy by nature or light by nature, and since these ideas seemed to relate to up and down, he examined whether there is anything that is naturally below or above, or not. He clearly showed that according to the relationship of bodies to their own places, what is below is called so for each body based on where it is carried, while what is above is what is foreign from which they move away. In the same way, he categorized heavy and light, showing that neither the middle nor the surrounding areas can reasonably be called up or down.

¹² He opposes this by saying that one must consider everything from all sides. He claims that what is carried toward the middle is called heavy, while what is carried toward the surrounding area is called light. He states that the place in the middle is below, and the surrounding place is above.

¹³ But concerning the universe, and from what it comes, and the things in the heavens, they are so far apart from each other. These are the points. But regarding Moses and the words of the Hebrews, this does not interfere at all. And rightly so, because it was believed that it would not be helpful for those who are focused on these matters to improve their lives.

Book 15, Section 9

But what shall we say about the soul? It is clear that these ideas are not only for philosophers, but almost for all ordinary people as well. Plato claims that the soul is immortal, and he has made many arguments for this, showing in various ways and from many angles that the soul is indeed immortal.

² But there has been much ambition among those who study Plato, competing with both his teachings and with Plato himself. For almost all a person's beliefs are connected by this.

³ For the foundation of ethical teachings is based on the immortality of the soul, which brings forth the greatness and brilliance of virtue, since the divine nature of the soul can be preserved. All matters of nature are organized according to the guidance of the soul, which can be managed well.

⁴ For the soul, he says, takes care of everything that is lifeless, and it moves through the entire sky, changing into different forms at different times. Moreover, both knowledge and wisdom are linked to the immortality of the soul according to Plato. For all learning is a form of remembering, and it is thought that one cannot be saved or seek knowledge and understanding in any other way, from which knowledge arises.

⁵ But if the soul is not immortal, then there is no remembering. And if there is no remembering, then there is no learning. Therefore, all of Plato's teachings are clearly linked and depend on the divine nature and immortality of the soul. Anyone who does not accept this completely overturns the entire philosophy of Plato.

⁶ Who was the first to try to argue against this and to deny the immortality and all other powers of the soul? And who came before Aristotle? Some of the others allowed the soul to continue existing, while others, if not this, assigned some power to the soul in the body, along with some movement, actions, and functions.

⁷ But he, just as Plato honored the nature of the soul, declaring it to be the beginning of creation, a teaching from God, and the ruler of all things, so much did he strive to undermine and dishonor it. He believed it was unnecessary to say anything at all about the soul.

⁸ For there is neither spirit nor fire nor body at all, nor is it even incorporeal, as if it could exist on its own and move, but also not remain still in the body and, so to speak, lifeless. For this person dared to do this, or was even compelled to, by taking away the primary functions of the soul: the ability to decide, to think, to expect, to remember, and to reason.

⁹ For he, the scribe of nature, claims that these movements do not belong to the soul, as others say. Indeed, he is quite trustworthy, as he tries to explain something about the outside world, while he himself has missed so much about his own soul that he cannot even grasp what he thinks. He says that it is not the soul, but the person who carries out each of these actions, and that the soul is unmoving.

¹⁰ Therefore, following this, Dicaearchus, being able to observe what follows, has removed the entire essence of the soul. It is clear that the soul is something invisible and hidden, so we cannot claim that it is a soul based solely on the actions of the senses. However, its movements, being unseen, seem to compel us to agree that the soul is something.

¹¹ For anyone seems to understand that these are the actions of the soul: to decide, to consider, and to think in various ways. When we see the body and its abilities, and we reflect on such actions, we recognize that there is something else within us that makes decisions, and this is what we call the soul. But from where have we believed about the soul?

¹² If someone removes the things that most clearly show the soul and attaches them to something else, they leave behind neither where it is shown to be nor what it might be useful for. So what help is there for someone wanting to claim that the soul is immortal if they are the one who destroys it? And what is the teaching about the way of movement, by which we say it moves itself, coming from those who do not give it any movement at all?

¹³ Yes, but when it comes to the immortality of the mind, someone might say it shares this idea with Plato. For even if they do not believe that the whole soul is immortal, they agree that the mind is divine and uncorrupted. So what is the essence and nature of the mind? Where does it come from, how does it connect with humans, and where does it go when it separates? If it understands anything about what it says regarding the mind and does not make the argument unclear by avoiding the difficult parts, it would stand out like a worm finding its way through darkness.

¹⁴ Certainly, in these matters, he differs from Plato. For Plato says that the mind cannot exist without the soul, while this person separates the mind from the soul. Regarding immortality, Plato gives it to the soul, as it cannot be otherwise, but this person claims that it can exist only when separated from the soul. He did not believe the soul should leave the body, because Plato liked this idea, but he insisted that the mind could break away from the soul, because Plato recognized that this was impossible. This is what the Athenian says. I will also add what Plotinus has to say on this topic.

Book 15, Section 10

Now, if someone were to examine the idea of actuality as it relates to the soul, they would find that the soul has a specific order in relation to the body, which is a living being. This does not apply to every kind of body, nor to the body in general, but specifically to a natural, organic body that has the power of life.

² If, then, it is compared in this way, it is like the form of a statue to bronze. When the body is divided, the soul is said to share in that division, and when a part is cut off, the soul is considered to be a part of what was cut off. Additionally, the soul does not withdraw during sleep, if it is necessary for it to remain in its actuality; the truth is that it does not even fall asleep.

³ And indeed, with actuality existing, there is no conflict between reason and desires. The whole must be one and the same, not disagreeing with itself. Sensations may be possible, but thoughts cannot occur. Therefore, they introduce another soul, which they call the mind, and they consider it to be immortal.

⁴ Therefore, the rational soul must have a different actuality than this, if it is necessary to use this name. The sensitive soul, if it has the forms of sensed things when they are absent, cannot hold them without the body. If it cannot, then they will exist only as shapes and images. But it is impossible to understand it in any other way, if it exists like this. So, it is not an actuality that can be separated.

⁵ And indeed, the desire for food or drink does not come from things outside the body, nor is it an actuality that can be separated. Therefore, the vegetative soul would be, and it seems there is something to argue about, so that it may never be an actuality that is inseparable in this way.

⁶ But this does not seem to be true. For if the source of every plant is around the root, and as the other parts of the body grow around the root, and the lower parts in many plants, the soul clearly leaves the other parts to come together as one. Therefore, it was not in the whole as an inseparable actuality. For it also exists before the plant has grown to its small size.

⁷ If it comes from a larger plant and goes to a smaller one, what prevents it from being completely separated? How could an indivisible actuality become divided if it is part of the body? The same soul changes into another from another animal; how then could the soul of the previous one become the next, if it was the actuality of one?

⁸ This is clear from the way animals change into other animals. Therefore, the essence of something does not depend on its form; rather, it is a substance that does not take its being from being established in the body. Instead, it exists before this happens, like that of an animal; the body does not create the soul.

⁹ "What then is its essence? If it is neither body nor the condition of a body, but rather action and creation, and many things both within it and from it, what kind of essence is it, existing apart from substances? Or is it clear that what we say is truly essence? For generation is not essence; everything that is physical can be said to be becoming and perishing, but truly it never is, preserved only by the change of being, as long as it is receiving from it." Since we have also discussed the ideas of Plotinus, it is fitting to consider what Porphyry has said in his writings about the soul.

Book 15, Section 11

Regarding the soul being complete and completely unmoving, we must ask where the movements of the animal come from, since nothing is understood from what it sees and says. The soul looks at both the future and what is not present while moving in the same way. So, where do the desires, thoughts, and wishes of the soul arise in the structure of the animal, being the powers of the soul and not of the body?

² Then he continues by saying that the soul is represented by heaviness or by qualities that are uniform and unmoving in bodies, through which it either moves or what is underneath it exists. It was either completely fallen or willingly or unwillingly of the value of the soul, and in no way was it seen that the presence of the soul made the body of the animal alive, just as the presence of fire makes the nearby water warm, even though it is cold by itself. The air is indeed illuminated by the rising of the sun, remaining dark without its light.

³ But neither is the warmth of water the heat of fire, nor is fire itself, nor is the light of the air the light that is naturally connected to the sun. In the same way, neither is the life of the body, which seems to be related to heaviness and the qualities surrounding the body, the soul that is placed in the body, through which the body shares in some vital breath.

⁴ Then he continues by saying, "All the other things that others have said about it bring us shame. For how is it not shameful to consider the soul as the completeness of a natural, organic body? And how is it not filled with shame to claim that it somehow has a spirit, or a thinking fire, that is raised or thickened by the air, or to suggest that it comes from the gathering of atoms or is entirely born from the body?" He declared that such reasoning is impious in the Laws. Therefore, all these words are full of shame. He also says that no one would be ashamed to say that there is a self-moving essence.

Book 15, Section 12

Furthermore, Plato says that the soul organizes everything and is present in all things, and that through it others would agree to be governed in each case. He claims that nothing else is nature except the soul, and clearly that the soul is not irrational. From this, he concludes that everything happens according to purpose, if it also happens according to nature. Aristotle does not agree with any of this.

² For nature is not the soul, and the things on earth are governed by nature. Each thing has different causes. He suggests that those with a cause have a determined fate, while those under the moon are governed by nature. For human matters, there is reason, purpose, and soul. He clearly presents these distinctions, but does not recognize the necessary connections between them.

³ For if there is not one living power that fills everything and connects and holds all things together, then the whole could neither be reasonably nor beautifully ordered. It would be foolish to hope that a city could ever exist well without unity, and to think that the whole could be considered beautiful by reason alone, as it seems, without being connected and joined together in a community of something similar.

⁴ He says that the thing that governs each part is like a principle of motion, but he does not want this to be the soul. Yet, even Plato himself shows that for all things in motion, the soul is the principle and source of motion. Whatever work belongs to a rational and wise soul, which is to do nothing harmful, he attributes to nature. However, he does not connect the name of the soul to it, as if it comes from names rather than from the powers taken from things.

Book 15, Section 13

But the main point and essence of Plato's doctrine, concerning the arrangement of the intelligible, is honored and praised in many ways, while it is rejected by Aristotle. For he cannot understand why the great, divine, and extraordinary things need a similar kind of power for recognition. Believing in his own subtle and humble sharpness, which could penetrate the truths of earthly matters and see their reality, he was unable to grasp the realm of true reality. Using his own standards and judgment, he denied that there are certain unique natures, like those recognized by Plato, and he dared to call the highest things mere nonsense, trivialities, and foolishness.

² Therefore, the highest and ultimate point of Plato's philosophy is about this intelligible and eternal essence of the ideas, where the greatest effort and struggle lie before the soul. The one who participates in and reaches it is completely happy, while the one who is left behind and unable to see it is entirely deprived of happiness.

³ And for this reason, Plato argues everywhere, showing the strength of these natures. He says that it is not possible to truly give anything well unless one participates in these, nor can one have any true knowledge unless it relates to them. He also claims that one cannot engage in any discussion unless there is agreement on the essence of these.

⁴ Those who understand Plato's ideas see the greatest struggle of words in this. For nothing of the Platonic remains if someone does not agree with these first and most fundamental natures beyond Plato. These are what stand out the most compared to the others.

⁵ For having thought of god as the father, creator, lord, and guardian of all things, and recognizing from the works the craftsman who first thinks of what he will create, he then brings the likeness to the things that exist. Indeed, the thoughts of god are older than the things that have come to be, which are formless and intelligible, always existing in the same way and manner, primarily and truly being. They are also the reasons for the existence of other things like them, according to their similarity to these. Plato, seeing that being is not easily shown and cannot be clearly expressed in words, believed he could think and speak about these things, preparing those who would follow him and organizing his entire philosophy around this. He says that the understanding of these, along with their wisdom and knowledge, is what brings about human purpose and the blessed life.

⁶ Thus much from the Attic writer. There were many more things to share from the explained writings of the man; however, since we are satisfied with what has been presented, we will move on to the teachings of the Stoics.

⁷ Therefore, Antisthenes became a follower of Socrates. He was a man from Heraclea who said that being mad is better than being pleased. For this reason, he also advised his friends never to reach out a finger for the sake of pleasure.

⁸ From him, Diogenes the Dog became a follower, who also introduced many ideas about thinking in a very wild way. Crates taught him, and from Crates came Zeno of Citium, who became the founder of the Stoic school of philosophers.

⁹ Zeno was taught by Cleanthes, and Cleanthes was taught by Chrysippus, and then there was another Zeno and those who came after. All of these are said to have cared deeply about living a strong life and about dialectic. Now, the teachings of their philosophy are as follows.

Book 15, Section 14

They say that the basic element of all things is fire, just like Heraclitus said. But this philosopher claims that the beginnings are matter and god, similar to Plato. However, he states that both are bodies—the one that creates and the one that suffers—while the first creator is said to be an incorporeal cause.

² Then, according to certain destined times, the whole universe is said to be burned up and then rearranged again. However, the first fire is described as a kind of seed, containing the reasons and causes of all things that have happened, are happening, and will happen. The connection and order of these things are said to be fated, along with knowledge, truth, and law, which are unavoidable and unchangeable for all beings. In this way, everything in the universe is governed by a higher order, just like in a well-ordered society.

Book 15, Section 15

They call the whole universe, along with its parts, a god. They say that this one is the only one, limited, living, eternal, and divine. For in this, all bodies are contained, and nothing empty exists within it. What is made from all being is called this, having this kind of order according to its arrangement.

² Therefore, according to the earlier explanation, they say that the universe is eternal. However, according to its arrangement, it is generated and changeable through endless cycles of events that have happened and will happen.

³ The universe, made from all being, is said to be eternal and divine. It is called the cosmos, a system made of heaven, air, earth, and sea, along with the natures within them. It is also referred to as the cosmos, the dwelling place of gods and humans, and of those who have come into being for these reasons.

⁴ For just as a city is called in two ways—both as the dwelling place and as the system made up of the inhabitants along with the citizens—so too the universe is like a city made up of gods and humans, with the gods in leadership and the humans being subject.

⁵ There is a community among each other because they share reason, which is by nature law. Everything else has come into being for these reasons. Therefore, we should believe that the god who governs all is thoughtful, beneficial, good, and kind to humans, just, and possesses all virtues.

⁶ Therefore, Zeus is called the universe because he is the cause of our living. In terms of reason, everything is governed unchangingly by an eternal fate. "Adrasteia" means that nothing can escape him. "Pronoia" means that he arranges everything for our benefit.

⁷ Cleantes believed that the sun is the leader of the universe because it is the largest of the stars and plays the biggest role in governing everything, creating day, year, and the other seasons.

⁸ Some of the thinkers from that school believed that the earth is the leader of the universe. Chrysippus believed that the aether is the purest and most genuine substance, as it is the most mobile of all things and surrounds the entire movement of the universe.

⁹ Let these points come from the Summary of Areius Didymus. To support the Stoic view about god, it is enough to present the words of Porphyry from the writings he copied for Boethus, which have this kind of content.

Book 15, Section 16

They do not hesitate to say that god is an eternal, thinking fire, which destroys everything and brings it back again, claiming that this fire is like the one we know. They also argue against Aristotle, who refuses to say that the aether comes from such a fire.

² They ask how such a fire can continue to exist, saying that it is not a different kind of fire. By making this claim and believing it, they connect this unreasonable belief to the idea that it is also eternal, asserting that the aether is both extinguished and ignited in part. But what can one say about their carelessness toward their own ideas and their laziness and disregard for the thoughts of the ancients?

Book 15, Section 17

But what is being? Are the four elements—earth, fire, and the other two natures—what truly exists? Are these beings considered together or in some way individually? And how can they be both created and destroyed if they can be seen coming from each other, changing, and neither existing as elements nor as combinations?

² A body cannot be what is being in this way. But perhaps matter can be considered as being; however, it is also impossible in every way because of the difficulty of remaining. For matter is like a flowing river, always changing and without a fixed depth, width, or length.

³ After a short time, he adds that if matter is infinite, it must be unlimited; and if it is unlimited, it is without reason; and if it is without reason, it is unknown. Since it is unknown, it must be chaotic; for things that are organized can certainly be known from somewhere. But what is chaotic does not remain still, and whatever does not remain still cannot be said to be being.

⁴ This is what we agreed upon earlier: that all these things combined with being are unchangeable. Let everyone believe this, but if not, then let it be my belief. Therefore, I say that neither matter itself nor the bodies are being.

⁵ What then? Do we have anything else in the nature of all things besides these? Yes, this is not difficult to say, if we first try to discuss it among ourselves.

⁶ Since the bodies are by nature dead, lifeless, in motion, and not staying in the same place, shouldn't they need something to hold them? Certainly, they do.

⁷ If it does not happen, would it then remain? Certainly, it would be less likely. So what is it that holds it? If this is also a body, it seems to me that I should pray to the savior god for it, as it is falling apart and breaking apart.

⁸ If it is necessary for it to be freed from the sufferings of bodies, so that it can protect those that are burdened with decay and hold them, it seems to me that there is nothing else but the incorporeal. For this alone stands out among all natures, and it is indeed uncombined and not physical at all. It neither comes into being nor grows nor moves in any other way, and for these reasons, it rightly seems just to advocate for the incorporeal.

Book 15, Section 18

It pleases the elders that everything from this choice be lifted up, at certain times, into the fiery ether where all things are dissolved. And then it continues.

² From these things, it is clear that Chrysippus did not include this confusion about essence; it is impossible. Instead, he spoke of change. For those who mainly accept the decay that happens during the greatest cycles of the cosmos do not consider the decay they call "purification by fire." Instead, they use the term "decay" in place of natural change.

³ For the Stoic philosophers, it is pleasing to transform the whole essence into fire, like turning it into a seed, and then to form the arrangement from this, as it was before. This teaching was first and mainly brought forth by the elders of this school: Zeno, Cleanthes, and Chrysippus. They say that Zeno, the student and successor of this school, held views about the purification of all things.

Book 15, Section 19

When common reason has advanced to such an extent, and common nature has become greater and more abundant, it finally dries up everything and takes it back into itself. It becomes present in all essence, returning to the first stated reason and to that resurrection which brings about the greatest year, during which the restoration happens solely from it back to itself.

² Returning in order, it begins to arrange things in the same way as before. According to reason, it makes the same process happen again, with such cycles being formed endlessly from eternity. For there is neither a cause for the beginning, nor is it possible for all things to be arranged.

³ For there must be a substance that underlies what comes into being, which is naturally able to accept all changes, and the creator comes from it. What kind of nature is there in us that creates, being something necessary and not born in the world? It is not possible for there to be a beginning of generation in this nature. In the same way, it is ungenerated and cannot be destroyed, neither from itself nor by anything outside of it that would destroy it.

Book 15, Section 20

Zeno says that the seed is what a man releases—a spirit mixed with moisture, a part and fragment of the soul, and a blend of the seed of the ancestors and the parts of the soul that have come together. For having the same reasons as the whole, when it is released into the womb, it is conceived by another spirit, becoming a part of the female's soul and naturally joined. Hidden, it grows, moved and stirred by that spirit, always taking in moisture and growing from itself.

² And after a short time, he adds, "About the soul, Cleanthes, while presenting the teachings of Zeno for comparison with those of other natural philosophers, says that Zeno describes the soul as sensation or as a kind of vapor, just like Heraclitus. He wants to show that souls, being vaporous, always become mental, comparing them to rivers, saying this: 'In these rivers, different waters flow in and out; and souls are vaporized from moist things.'"

³ Therefore, Zeno similarly describes the soul as vaporous, just like Heraclitus, but he also says it is sensory because it can be shaped by the part of itself that is seen as real and existing through the senses and can receive impressions. For these things are characteristic of the soul.

⁴ And in addition to other things, they say that the soul is in the whole, which they call ether, and in the air that surrounds the earth and sea, and from these come vapors. The other souls are connected to this, both those in living beings and those in the surrounding world, for the souls of the dead remain.

⁵ Some say that the soul of the whole is eternal, while the other souls mix together at their end. Each soul has something guiding within it, which is indeed life, sensation, and impulse.

⁶ And a little later, they say that the soul is both generated and perishable. It does not immediately perish when it is separated from the body, but it remains by itself for some time. The soul of the serious lasts until everything is dissolved into fire, while the soul of the foolish lasts for a certain period.

⁷ They say that the souls remain in this way: we souls continue to exist after being separated from the body and changing into a lesser essence. However, the souls of foolish and irrational animals are completely destroyed along with their bodies.

⁸ These are the teachings of Stoic philosophy, gathered from the summaries of Areius Didymus. As for the strange beliefs of people about the soul, what Longinus has briefly argued against us is sufficient.

Book 15, Section 21

When I come together to speak, it seems to me that everyone who has separated the soul from the body has strayed far from thinking about what is truly necessary. For how can it make sense to say that something similar to the elements exists in relation to the soul? And where can one discuss the mixtures and combinations? These mixtures, occurring in many ways, have produced countless forms of bodies, in which, even if not continuously, one can see from a distance the cause of the elements and their connection to the second and third of the first things. However, there is no trace or evidence of the soul found in the bodies, even if someone tries hard, like Epicurus and Chrysippus, to move every stone and investigate all the powers of the body in order to explain the actions related to the soul.

² For what would the subtlety of the spirit do for us in terms of imagination and reasoning? And what about this? What power and change does the shape of atoms have compared to others, that it can generate thought when mixed into the form of another body? I believe that even if someone were a servant of Hephaestus, with tripods and attendants (of whom Homer says that some move to the contest by themselves, while others assist their master, and that no living creature has any advantage over another), would it not be that some of these automatic movements, and those resembling stones on the shores, could do something extra in relation to perception?

³ "For someone might justly feel anger towards Zeno and Cleanthes for speaking so arrogantly about the soul, claiming that it is the same as the solid body. For what, by the gods, could be common to both the soul and the body? And how can they think that our essence is similar to that of other living beings, when one can preserve thoughts and memories, while the other is about the impulses and intentions that lead to understanding? Or shall we also place the gods and the one who is present in all things into the same category of smoke and nonsense, just like earthly and heavenly beings? Are we not ashamed of the poets, who, even though they do not have a precise understanding of the gods, still speak more seriously about them—some from the common ideas of humans and others from the inspiration of the Muses, which naturally moves them to speak? They do not talk about smoke, air, or spirits and nonsense?" These things are also said by Longinus. Listen also to Plotinus, who speaks similarly about these matters.

Book 15, Section 22

"Each of us is either immortal, or everyone perishes, or some parts go into scattering and destruction while others always remain in scattering and destruction. But some parts remain just as they are. This is what one might learn by observing nature."

² "A person is certainly not simple; there is a soul within them, and they also have a body. Therefore, whether the soul is like an instrument for us or connected in some other way, let us examine this and consider the nature and essence of each."

³ "The body, being made up of parts, cannot remain unchanged according to reason. Sensation observes it breaking down, melting away, and experiencing all kinds of destruction, as each part is affected by what comes to it. One part is destroyed by another, changing into something else and perishing, especially when the beloved soul that creates is not present with the whole."

⁴ "When each part is isolated, it is no longer one, as it undergoes destruction in both form and matter, which is necessary for the simple bodies to have their compositions. Since they have size, being bodies, they can be cut and broken into small pieces, and in this way, they would face destruction."

⁵ "So, if this is a part of us, it is not the whole that is immortal. If it is an instrument, it must have been given such a nature for a certain time. But the most important thing is that a person is either related to matter as a whole, or related to matter as the body, or related to the instrument as it is used. In both cases, the soul remains the same."

⁶ "So, what kind of nature does this have? If it is a body, it must be completely analyzed, since every body is made up of parts. But if it is not a body, but of another nature, we should consider whether it is in the same way or in a different way. First, we should think about what this body, which they call the soul, needs to be broken down."

⁷ "Since life is necessarily present in the soul, this body must have a soul. If it is made of two bodies or more, then each of them must either share life together or each one must have life separately. Or one might have life while the other does not, or neither might have life. If life is indeed present in one of them, then that would be the soul."

⁸ "What then could a body be that has life from itself? For fire, air, water, and earth are lifeless on their own. And whatever of these has a soul is added to life; but other bodies besides these do not exist. Those that are thought to be elements are different bodies, and they have not been said to be souls, nor do they have life. But if life has been created from none of them, that would be odd."

⁹ "But if each one has life, then one is enough. It is even more impossible for a collection of bodies to create life and produce thought in the mindless. And indeed, they will not say that these things happened by chance. Therefore, there must be order and a cause for the mixture; thus, this would imply an order of the soul."

¹⁰ "For a body cannot be either composite or simple among existing things without a soul being present in the whole. If a reason comes to matter to create a body, then that reason could not come from anywhere except from the soul."

¹¹ "If someone claims that atoms or parts come together to create a soul, they could be challenged by the ideas of connection and similarity, as well as by the arrangement. It cannot happen through the whole, nor from one thing becoming, nor from the feelings of the unfeeling, and not from bodies that cannot unite. The soul, however, is sympathetic to itself. And from parts, a body or size could not come to be."

¹² "And indeed, if the body is simple, they will not claim that the material part has life by itself, for matter is unformed. Rather, it is the form that brings life. If they say that this form is the essence, then the soul will be something different from both of these. And there is no body again, for it does not come from matter alone, or we would break it down in the same way once more."

¹³ "But if they say that the suffering of matter is not essence, then they must explain where the suffering and life have come into matter. For matter does not shape itself, nor does it give a soul to itself. Therefore, there must be something that provides life, whether it is the matter itself or something from outside and beyond the nature of bodies, since there would not be any body at all without the presence of a soul's power."

¹⁴ "For it flows, and its nature is in its form, and it would perish as quickly as possible if all bodies were the same, even if someone placed a soul within them. They would suffer the same things as the other bodies, since they share the same matter. Moreover, it would not even come to be; instead, everything would remain in matter, without something to shape it."

¹⁵ "Perhaps matter would not even exist at all. This whole thing would fall apart if someone believed it could come together as a body, giving it a rank of soul, up to the names, scattered in air and spirit, and having within it something that does not come from itself. For how could someone, while cutting up all bodies, place this whole thing in a way that is not foolish and does not happen randomly?"

¹⁶ "For what kind of order exists in a spirit that needs a rank from a soul, or in reason, or in mind? But all these things help the soul's existence for the structure and life of each living thing, coming together from different powers into a whole. And without this presence in all things, none of these would exist, not even in an orderly way."

¹⁷ "They themselves testify, being guided by the truth, that there must be something greater than bodies, which is the form of the soul, considering spirit and fire as something intelligent. Just as without fire or spirit, the greater fate cannot exist among beings, seeking a place to be established, it is necessary to look for where bodies are formed, since these must be established in the powers of the soul."

¹⁸ "But if nothing is placed besides spirit for life and the soul, how can the many-sounding thing be true for them, into which they escape, being forced to consider another active nature besides bodies? Therefore, if not every spirit is a soul, since there are countless lifeless spirits, then they will somehow claim that there is a spirit. How does this spirit exist, and what about this relationship? Will they say something about beings, or nothing at all?"

¹⁹ "But if there is nothing, then spirit would be only that, and somehow it would have a name; and so they would say nothing else but matter. Everything, including soul and god, would be just that. But if there is a relationship among beings, and something else besides the underlying thing and matter, then it would exist in matter, but it would not be formed again from matter. There would be some reason, not a body, and a different nature."

²⁰ "Moreover, it seems impossible for the soul to be any kind of body. For it is either hot or cold, either hard or soft, either wet or dry, black or white, and all the other qualities of bodies vary in different things. If it is hot, it will only heat; if it is cold, it will only cool. It will make a light thing lighter and a heavy thing heavier, and it will make a black thing black and a white thing white."

²¹ "For it is not fire that cools, nor does cold make things hot. But the soul, in different living things, does different things, and in the same thing, it does opposite things: it makes some things solid and others flow, some things thick and others thin, black and white, light and heavy. Yet it should only do one thing based on the body's different qualities and colors, but now it does many."

²² "How can there be different movements and not just one movement of the whole body? If this is true for some things, then the choice does not belong to the body, nor does the movement of the body. The reasons are not different, as they are one and simple for the body, and there is no such reason connected to it, or as much as is given to it by the creator to be hot or cold."

²³ "But how can it grow over time, and to such an extent? From where would this growth come to the body itself? It should grow in a way that is fitting for it, and it should be a part of the growth, or as much as can be taken in the whole volume that helps the growth happening through it. For if the soul is a body and grows, it must also grow itself. This means adding a similar body. If it is going to become equal to what is growing because of it. And either the soul will be what is added, or it will be a lifeless body."

²⁴ "And if it is a soul, from where and how would it enter, and how would it be added? But if what is added is lifeless, how will it become alive and agree with what was there before, becoming one and sharing the same qualities as the first? It will not be like a foreign soul that is unaware of what the other knows. Just as with our other mass, some of it will flow away, and some will come to it, yet nothing will be the same?"

²⁵ "How then do we have memories? And how does knowledge of familiar things occur when they are never used by the same soul? And indeed, if it is a body, and the nature of a body is divided into parts, then each part is not the same as the whole. If the soul is so much less, then it will not be a soul, just as any amount taken away from being will change what was there before."

²⁶ "If something that has size is reduced in quantity but remains the same in quality, then it is a body, and it is different. In terms of quantity, it cannot maintain the same quality when it is of a different quantity."

²⁷ "What will those who say that the soul is a body argue? First, regarding each part of the soul that is in the same body: is each part a soul, and how does it compare to the whole? And again, is a part of a part?"

²⁸ "Therefore, size does not add to its essence; (and yet, it should, since it is a matter of quantity). The whole cannot be present in many ways in a body while being the same whole in more than one instance. And a part cannot exist as the whole."

²⁹ "But if they do not claim that each part is a soul, then a soul will come from lifeless things for them. Furthermore, if each soul has a specific size for each part, whether smaller or larger, then there will be no soul."

³⁰ "When twins are born from a single seed, or even when many offspring come from the seed being divided in different places, where each one is a whole, how does this not teach those who want to learn that where the part is the same as the whole, it has exceeded the amount in its essence and must necessarily be separate? For in this way, it would remain the same, with the amount being taken away, since it does not belong to it in quantity and size, as if its essence were something different. Therefore, the soul and the reasons are separate."

³¹ "But if the soul were a body, then there would be no sensing, thinking, knowing, or any of the good qualities of things, as is clear from this. If something is going to be sensed, it must be one and the same in every way. And if there are many senses for many things, or many qualities surrounding one thing, even if it is through one, like a face."

³² "For there is nothing different about the nose and nothing different about the eye; they are the same in every way. If one sense is through the eyes and the other through hearing, there must be something they both connect to. How could one say that these are different if they do not come together in the same sense? Therefore, this must be like a center, with lines coming together from the edge of a circle, bringing all the senses together toward this point, and that which understands must truly be one."

³³ "But if this were separated, like a line where the senses touch both ends, or if they come together into one and the same thing again, like the middle or something else, then each would have a different sense for each. It would be as if I were sensing one thing while you were sensing another."

³⁴ "And if the sense were one, like a face, it would come together as one, which is also clear; for it comes together even in those features. (How could we see the greatest things through these?) So it would become even more like a guiding thought, like separate ideas. This would be separate, or if it were a certain size, it would share with another, meaning one would have one part, and none of us would hold the complete perception of what is sensed."

³⁵ "But indeed, the whole is one; for how could it be divided? What is equal does not fit with what is equal, since what leads is not equal to every sense. Is the division like clay? Or will it be divided into as many parts as there are numbers in the variety of the sensing experience?"

³⁶ "And each of those parts of the soul will indeed sense with its own parts. Or will the parts be without sensation? But that is impossible. If it senses anything at all, it will be divided into endless sizes, and countless sensations will occur for each sensed thing, just as there are countless images in what guides us."

³⁷ "And indeed, since the body senses, it could not sense in any other way than like seals pressed into wax from rings, whether in blood or in the air of the sensed things. If, therefore, it is like in wet bodies, which makes sense, just as in water, it will be mixed, and there will be no memory."

³⁸ "If the types remain, which cannot be marked by others holding them, then there will be no other senses, or those that are being formed will lose the previous ones, leaving nothing to remember. But if remembering exists and senses other things, without the previous ones getting in the way, it is impossible for the soul to be a body."

³⁹ "One can see the same thing from the sense of pain. When a person says that a finger hurts, the pain is certainly around the finger, but the sense of pain clearly shows that it happens around what is in control. When another part is in pain, the controlling spirit senses it, and the whole soul feels the same thing."

⁴⁰ "How then does this happen? They will say that first the spirit around the finger suffers, and then it passes to what you mentioned, and from there to another part, until it reaches what is in control."

⁴¹ "Therefore, if the first sense feels pain, there would be another sense for the second. If the sense is passed on, then the third would also be different. There would be many senses, even countless ones, responding to one pain. After all of these, the controlling sense would feel, and it would be separate from them."

⁴² "But truly, each of those does not feel the pain in the finger. Rather, the second sense feels that the toe hurts, the third feels something else above, and there are many pains. The controlling sense does not feel the pain in the finger, but rather in itself. It knows only this, allowing the other senses to be unaware, not realizing that the finger hurts."

⁴³ "If then, through passing on, the sense of size is something, and another feels something else, there must be a different understanding. For every size, if one is something and another is something else, the sensing thing must be different. It must be arranged in such a way that it senses itself everywhere. And this must connect to something else in the senses or the body."

⁴⁴ "But that it cannot even think if the soul is connected to the body must be shown from these things. For if sensing is the soul interacting with the body, then understanding must also be the soul interacting with the body, grasping the sensed things. It would not be possible for thinking to be understood through the body, or it would be the same as sensing."

⁴⁵ "If then thinking is the grasping of things without the body, then the thinking thing must not be the body, since sensing is for sensed things, but understanding is for understood things. But if they do not accept this, then there will still be some understandings of things that can be thought and graspings of things that cannot be measured."

⁴⁶ "How then can something that has size understand something that does not have size, and how can something that is divided understand something that is not divisible? Or is there some part that is indivisible? If so, then the thinking thing would not be a body. For it is not necessary to touch the whole; it is enough to touch even a part."

⁴⁷ "If they will agree on the first understandings, which is true, that there are the purest things of the body, then each one must also know that the thinking thing, being pure or becoming pure, understands. But if they say that the understandings are in the forms of matter and that they come into being when the bodies are separated, then the mind is also separated."

⁴⁸ "For the separation is not with flesh or with matter as a whole, like a circle and a triangle, a line and a point. Therefore, the soul must also be separated from the body in this way. Thus, it must not be a body itself. I believe that both beauty and justice are also without size, and their understanding is therefore without size. So it will accept what is indivisible and will remain indivisible within itself."

⁴⁹ "How then, if the soul is part of the body, can its virtues be temperance and justice, courage and others? What is it—some spirit or blood—that makes one temperate, just, or courageous? Is courage just the struggle of the spirit, and is temperance balance? And is beauty simply a kind of harmony in forms, through which we say that we see bodies as beautiful and lovely?"

⁵⁰ "Therefore, it would make sense for a strong and beautiful spirit to exist, but what does it mean to be temperate in spirit? Instead, it seems the opposite: to feel good in different situations and experiences, where it may either be warmed, or want to be cooled just enough, or be surrounded by soft, simple, and smooth things. So what should I say about what is fitting for it?"

⁵¹ "Does the soul connect with eternal things of virtue and other intelligible things, or does virtue come to it, help it, and then get destroyed again? But who creates this, and where does it come from? For that would have to remain the same. Therefore, there must be eternal and unchanging things, like those in geometry. If they are eternal and unchanging, then they are not bodies. So whatever it will be in must be of that kind; therefore, it must not be a body. For the nature of the body does not stay the same, but flows."

⁵² "If they observe the actions of bodies that heat, cool, push, and weigh down, they place the soul here, as if they are setting it in an active place. First, they do not understand that these bodies operate through powers within them that are not physical. Then, they assume that these powers are connected to the soul, but instead, they are searching for another essence, which includes thinking, sensing, reasoning, desiring, and caring for everything wisely and beautifully."

⁵³ "Therefore, by transferring the powers of incorporeal things into bodies, they leave nothing behind for those. It is clear that bodies can do what they do through these incorporeal powers. For they will agree that there is a different quality and quantity, and that every body is a quantity, yet not every body is just a quantity, like matter. By agreeing on this, they will also agree that the quality is a different kind of quantity and that it is a different essence from the body."

⁵⁴ "For how can something that is not a quantity be a body, if every body is a quantity? Moreover, as mentioned above, if every body is divided and everything is taken away from what it was, when the body is broken into parts, the same overall quality remains in each part. For example, the sweetness of honey is just as sweet in each part; it would not be a body of sweetness. The same is true for other qualities."

⁵⁵ "Then, if the powers were bodies, it would be necessary for the strong powers to have large sizes and for the weaker powers to have smaller sizes. But if the small sizes of the large bodies have few powers, and the smallest sizes have the greatest powers, then something else must be responsible for their effects, other than size; it must be something without size."

⁵⁶ "But if matter is the same body, as they say, and it takes on different qualities, how is it not clear that the resulting things are themselves without bodies? It is not said that animals die when their spirit or blood leaves. For they cannot exist without these, nor without many other things, which even the soul cannot exist without. And indeed, it is neither spirit nor blood, but the soul."

⁵⁷ "Moreover, if the soul is a body and it passes through everything, and if it were to be mixed, how would this mixing be like the mixing of other bodies? But if the mixing of bodies does not allow the mixed things to exist in action, then the soul would not still be active in the bodies, but only potentially; having lost its existence, just as if sweetness and bitterness were mixed, the sweetness would no longer exist. Therefore, we do not have a soul."

⁵⁸ "But if a body is mixed with another body everywhere, it must be equal in volume to both, and everything would hold together. There would be no increase when one is mixed with the other, nor would anything remain that is not cut. For mixing does not happen in large parts; (they say it will happen in layers); but when mixed, it would be divided into smaller parts, which is impossible, because the smaller cannot be equal to the larger. Therefore, everything is completely divided."

⁵⁹ "It is necessary, then, if there is any point, that there cannot be a body in between. What is not cut must become points in the division of the body, which is impossible. If there is an infinite amount of cutting (for whatever you take is a body that can be divided), it will only exist potentially, but in action, the infinite will exist. Therefore, it is not possible for the body to occupy the whole by the whole, but the soul can occupy everything; thus, it is without a body."

⁶⁰ "But it is also strange to say that the same spirit is nature before it becomes a soul when it is made cold and thickened, becoming finer in the cold; this is indeed odd. Many living things are formed in warmth and have a soul that is not cooled. However, they say that the nature of the soul comes first according to the external events that occur."

⁶¹ "It happens, then, that they first create the worse thing, and before that, something lesser, which they call habit. The mind comes last, clearly arising from the soul. If the mind is first, then the soul should follow, and then nature; and the later always tends to be worse, if it has indeed been formed."

⁶² "If, then, god is last for them in terms of the mind, and is generated and has the ability to think, it would be possible that there is neither soul nor mind, nor god. If it is potential and does not exist before it becomes actual and gains mind, it will not reach action. For what can lead if there is nothing else existing before it? But if it leads itself into action, that is odd; instead, it will lead toward something else, which is not potential, but will be in action."

⁶³ And yet, if what always remains is the same, and if it has potential, it will reach action by itself, and this will be better than what is merely potential, like something that desires it. Therefore, the better thing must exist first and have a different nature from the body, always being in action. Thus, both mind and soul must exist before nature. Therefore, the soul is neither like spirit nor like body. However, it could be said that it is not body, and it has been described as other things, and these descriptions are sufficient.

⁶⁴ Since there is also another nature, we must seek to understand what it is. Is it something different from the body, or is it something related to the body, like harmony? For those discussing Pythagoras believed this harmony to be something similar to the harmony of strings.

⁶⁵ For just as when the strings are stretched, something like an experience occurs, which is called harmony, in the same way, in our body, when different elements mix together, this mixture produces life and soul, which is the experience of that mixture. It has already been stated in many ways that this is impossible regarding this idea.

⁶⁶ For indeed, the soul comes first, and harmony comes later. The soul governs and controls the body and interacts in many ways, but harmony cannot do these things. The essence is one thing, while harmony is not an essence. The mixture of the bodies from which we are made, when understood, would be health. If each part were mixed differently, there would be a different soul for each part, meaning there could be many souls. This is the most important point: it is necessary that before this soul, there is another soul that creates this harmony, like in musical instruments, where the musician brings harmony to the strings, having a reason by which it fits together.

⁶⁷ For neither do the strings by themselves create harmony, nor do the bodies here bring themselves into harmony. In general, these things make living beings from lifeless matter, and those arranged by chance and disorder do not come from the soul; rather, their existence comes from a natural order. This cannot happen either in parts or in other things. Therefore, the soul is not harmony.

⁶⁸ These ideas come from Plotinus about the Stoics' belief regarding the soul, which they claim is physical. However, since I have chosen to discuss both Aristotle and the Peripatetics, as well as the Stoic views, as I have briefly presented, it is time again for the noble philosophers to explore the wonderful aspects of nature together. At that time, all Greeks commonly saw the visible gods—the sun, the moon, and the other stars—and they considered the other parts of the universe. They also spoke of their mythical and foolish stories about the many gods, which were indeed more serious and based on natural explanations concerning the elements and the parts of the whole universe.

⁶⁹ Therefore, it seems necessary for me to gather the beliefs about these matters, to examine their differences and the emptiness of ignorance. I will also present these ideas from Plutarch's writing, in which he collects the views of both the elders and the young on all these topics, and he writes in this way: "On the Sun."

Book 15, Section 23

Anaximander says that the Earth is like a cylinder, twenty times longer than it is wide, with a shape similar to a chariot wheel. It is hollow and filled with fire. A part of this fire comes out through an opening, just like through a pipe; and this is what he calls the Sun.

² Xenophanes says that the Sun is formed from fiery particles that come together from moist vapor, gathering from burning clouds.

³ The Stoics say that the Sun is a mental fire that comes from the sea.

⁴ Plato says that the Sun comes from the largest fire.

⁵ Anaxagoras, Democritus, and Metrodorus say that the Sun is a burning mist or a fiery stone.

⁶ Aristotle says that the Sun is a sphere made of the fifth substance.

⁷ Philolaus the Pythagorean says that the Sun is a glass disk, receiving the reflection of the fire in the cosmos and sending the light to us. Therefore, the fiery light in the sky resembles the light that spreads to us from the mirror by reflection; and we call this the Sun, like an image of an image.

⁸ Empedocles says there are two Suns: one is the original fire in the other hemisphere of the cosmos, always filling that hemisphere directly with its light; the other is the apparent reflection in the other hemisphere, filled with warm mixed air, created by the reflection from the round Earth into the crystalline Sun, drawn in by the movement of the fire. To put it simply, the Sun is the reflection of the fire around the Earth.

⁹ Epicurus says that the earthly substance is dense, like ivy, and sponge-like in its wear, burned by fire.

Book 15, Section 24

About the size of the Sun. Anaximander says that the Sun is the same size as the Earth, and that it is a circle from which it breathes out and is carried, being seventy-two times larger than the Earth.

² Anaxagoras says it is many times larger than the Peloponnese.

³ Heraclitus talks about the width of a human foot.

⁴ Epicurus again says that all the things mentioned before can be accepted; either it seems to be this size, or a little bigger, or smaller.

Book 15, Section 25

About the shape of the sun, Anaximenes says it is wide like a petal.

² Heraclitus says it is boat-shaped and has a slight curve.

³ The Stoics say it is spherical, like the universe and the stars.

⁴ Epicurus agrees with everything that has been mentioned before. Such is the great god of the heavens, the sun, to them. But Moses and the writings of the Hebrews do not pay attention to any of this.

Book 15, Section 26

About the moon. Anaximander says it is a circle fourteen times larger than the earth, filled with fire, and it disappears during the rotations of the wheel. It is like a chariot wheel, having a hollow rim and full of fire, with one breath coming out.

² Xenophanes says it is a cloud that is stacked up.

³ The Stoics say it is a blend of fire and air.

⁴ Plato says it is made mostly of earth.

⁵ Anaxagoras and Democritus say it is a fiery solid that contains fields, mountains, and valleys.

⁶ Heraclitus says it is earth surrounded by fog.

⁷ Pythagoras says it is based on the fiery body.

Book 15, Section 27

On the size of the moon. The Stoics claim it is larger than the earth, just like the sun.

² Parmenides says it is equal to the sun, for it is also illuminated by light.

Book 15, Section 28

On the shape of the moon. The Stoics say it is spherical like the sun. Heraclitus says it is shaped like a boat. Empedocles says it is disk-shaped. Others say it is cylindrical.

Book 15, Section 29

On the lighting of the moon. Anaximander says it has its own light, but it is somehow fainter.

² Antiphon says that the moon shines with its own light. However, what is hidden around it becomes dim because of the sunlight hitting it, just as a weaker fire is dimmed by a stronger fire. This also happens with the other stars.

³ Thales and his followers say that the moon is lit by the sun.

⁴ Heraclitus says that the sun and the moon are affected in the same way. He explains that the stars are shaped like bowls, and they receive light from the moist vapor and smoke, shining based on how they appear. The sun shines in clearer air, while the moon shines in cloudy air, which is why it looks dimmer.

Book 15, Section 30

"What is the substance of the wandering stars and the fixed stars?" Thales says they are made of earth, while others say they are made of fire.

² Empedocles says they are made of fire, from the fiery substance that the air holds within itself, which it first separated.

³ Anaxagoras says that the surrounding air is fiery in its essence and that it has grabbed rocks from the earth through its swirling motion and burned them, turning them into stars.

⁴ Diogenes thinks that the stars are made of a kind of ivy and that they are breaths of the universe. He also believes that the same hidden stars often fall to the earth and are extinguished, just like the stone star that fell into the Nile.

⁵ Empedocles says that the fixed stars are connected to crystal, while the wandering stars are free.

⁶ Plato says that most of them are made of fire, but they also contain other elements, like glue.

⁷ Xenophanes says that from burning clouds, they are put out each day and reignited at night, just like coals; for the sunrises and sunsets are brightening and extinguishing.

⁸ Heraclides and the Pythagoreans say that each of the stars has its own cosmos, surrounded by earth, air, and ether in the infinite. These teachings are found in the Orphic texts; for they create a universe from the stars.

⁹ Epicurus does not grasp any of these things, as he is focused on what is possible.

Book 15, Section 31

About the shape of the stars. The Stoics say that the stars are round, just like the cosmos, the sun, and the moon.

² Cleanthes says they are shaped like cones.

³ Anaximenes says they are like holes filled with crystal. Some say they are fiery petals, similar to crystal. These are the amazing ideas of philosophers about what they claim are the appearances of the gods. They also talk about the whole universe in the same way, learning from the teachings of Plutarch.

Book 15, Section 32

How the universe was formed. The universe is shaped like a closed figure. The atoms, which are mindless and move randomly and quickly, come together to form many bodies. Because of this, they have a variety of shapes and sizes.

² As these came together, the larger and heaviest ones sank down, while the smaller, round, smooth, and slippery ones were pushed along in the gathering of the bodies, rising up into the sky.

³ When the striking force stopped lifting, the blow no longer pushed them upward. They were held back from moving down and settled in the places that could hold them. These were the areas around them.

⁴ And around these, the crowd of bodies gathered together. As they tangled with each other in the surrounding area, they formed the sky. These atoms, which were of the same nature and varied, as mentioned, were pushed upward and made up the nature of the stars.

⁵ And the crowd of rising bodies filled the air and crushed it. This air, moving with motion and surrounding the stars, carried them along and kept their movement in the sky. Then, from the bodies settling down, the earth was formed, and from those rising up, the sky, fire, and air were created.

⁶ And with much material still wrapped up in the earth, this matter became dense from the blows of the winds and the breezes from the stars. Every small formation of this matter was crushed and created the wet nature.

⁷ Being fluid, it flowed into the hollow places that could hold and contain it. Alternatively, the water, sinking on its own, filled the spaces below.

⁸ Such is their wonderful creation of the world. Along with this, there is another great debate about many questions. People wonder whether the whole is one or many, whether the world is one or more, and whether it is alive and cared for by a god, or the opposite. They also ask whether it is unchanging or changeable, where it gets its nourishment, and what the god used to begin creating the world. There are questions about the order of the universe and the reason for its existence, as well as what lies outside the universe and what the right and left parts of the world are. Discussions also cover the sky and all these matters related to spirits and heroes, matter and ideas, and the order of everything. Additionally, there are inquiries about the movement of the stars, where they get their light, and about those known as the Dioscuri. Questions arise about the eclipses of the sun and moon, their appearance, why they seem earthy, their spots, and also about the years.

⁹ All these things were prepared by countless people regarding the topic of discussion. Since Plutarch, having examined the matter, gathered the main points and their disagreements into a few, I believe it will be helpful for us to present them for reasonable consideration. When they stood against each other in direct opposition, fighting and warring, they achieved nothing more than each arguing with the pride of their own words. How could it not be reasonable for anyone to agree that we have a solid understanding of these matters?

¹⁰ I will also add to what has been said about matters related to the earth. This includes the shape of the earth, its position and tilt, as well as the sea. You should know that the noble thinkers did not only disagree about the heavenly bodies, but also argued about things on the ground. To further impress you with the wisdom of these thinkers, I will include what they debated about the soul and its ruling part, even though they did not fully understand their own nature. But now, let us return to the first topics mentioned.

Book 15, Section 33

"If there is one whole." Some from the Stoa declared that there is one world, which they said is the whole and includes all physical things.

² Empedocles said that the world is not the whole, but rather a small part of the whole, while the rest is just useless matter.

³ Plato argues that there is one world and one whole made from three things: it is not perfect if it does not contain everything; it is not like the model if it is not unique; and it is not immortal if something exists outside of it.

⁴ It should be said against Plato that the world is not perfect, for it does not contain everything. A human is perfect, but does not contain everything. There are many examples, like statues, houses, and paintings. How can it be perfect if something can move around in it? And it is not immortal, nor can it be, since it is created.

⁵ Metrodorus says it is strange for one grain to grow in a large field and for a world to exist in the infinite. The idea of the infinite is clear from the infinite causes. If the world is limited, but all the causes are infinite, from which the world has come, then the causes must be infinite. Wherever all things come from causes, there too are the results. The causes are either atoms or elements.

Book 15, Section 34

"If the world is alive and governed by intelligence, then all the others are also alive and governed."

² "Democritus and Epicurus introduce atoms and the void, claiming that neither is alive nor governed by intelligence, but instead by some irrational nature."

³ "Aristotle states that the whole is neither alive, nor sensory, nor rational, nor governed by intelligence. The heavenly bodies share in all these qualities—since they are spheres that contain living and vital things—while the surrounding things have none of them. The order of these things is due to chance, not because of any prior participation."

Book 15, Section 35

"If the world is eternal. Pythagoras, Plato, and the Stoics say that the world is created by a god; and while it is perishable by nature—since it is sensory and physical—it will not be destroyed because of the intelligence and unity of god."

² "Epicurus says that what is perishable is created, like an animal or a plant."

³ "Xenophanes says that the world is uncreated, eternal, and imperishable."

⁴ "Aristotle says that the part of the world under the moon is changeable, where even the things on Earth are made of clay."

Book 15, Section 36

"Where does the world get its nourishment? Aristotle says that if the world needs nourishment, it will perish; but it does not need any food. For this reason, it is also eternal."

² "Plato says that the world gets its nourishment from what is changing and perishing."

³ "Philolaus says that there are two kinds of destruction: sometimes from fire coming down from the sky, and sometimes from water that has been poured out by the movement of the air. These are the sources of nourishment for the world."

Book 15, Section 37

"Where did god begin to create the world? Some natural philosophers say that the origin of the world started from the earth, just like the center is the starting point of a sphere."

² "Pythagoras says it comes from fire and the fifth element."

³ "Empedocles says that first the ether was separated, then the fire, which the earth rests upon. From the tightly compressed earth, water rises because of the movement of the sphere, and from this, the air becomes fragrant. The sky is formed from the ether, the sun is made from fire, and the surrounding things are created from the other elements."

⁴ "Plato says that the visible world was created as a model of the intelligible world. First, the soul existed, and then the physical body was formed, made first from fire and earth, and second from water and air."

⁵ "Pythagoras says that there are five solid shapes, which are also called mathematical. He says that the earth was made from the cube, fire from the pyramid, air from the octahedron, water from the icosahedron, and the sphere of the whole universe from the dodecahedron."

⁶ "Plato also shares these ideas of Pythagoras."

Book 15, Section 38

"About the order of the universe. Parmenides says that there are crowns twisted around each other, one made from the rare and the other from the dense. There are also mixed crowns made from light and darkness between these. What surrounds them is solid, like a wall."

² "Leucippus and Democritus describe the universe as wearing a circular cloak and a belt around it."

³ "Epicurus says that some worlds have a thin boundary, while others have a thick one. Among these, some are moving, and some are still."

⁴ "Plato says that first is fire, then ether, followed by air, which is above water, and finally earth. Sometimes, he connects ether with fire."

⁵ "Aristotle says that first is the unchanging ether, and fifth is body. After that come the changeable ones: fire, air, water, and finally earth. Among these, the heavenly bodies move in a circular motion, while those below have upward motion for the lighter ones and downward motion for the heavier ones."

⁶ "Empedocles says that the elements do not always stay in one place, nor are their locations fixed. Instead, everything somehow shares with one another."

Book 15, Section 39

"What is the reason for the world being tilted? Diogenes and Anaxagoras say that after the world was formed and living things were brought up from the earth, the world somehow tilted on its own toward the southern part, perhaps due to some providence. This way, the uninhabitable areas would become habitable parts of the world, through cooling, heating, and balance."

² "Empedocles says that as the air follows the movement of the sun, the northern regions are raised up while the southern regions are lowered, just like the whole world."

Book 15, Section 40

"About what is outside the world, and whether there is a void. Some, following Pythagoras, say that there is a void outside the world, into which the world breathes and from which it comes."

² "But the Stoics say that it is infinite, into which everything is dissolved during the great fire."

³ "Posidonius says it is not infinite, but just enough to be self-sufficient for the dissolution, in his first work about the void."

⁴ "Plato and Aristotle say that it is neither empty outside the world nor inside it."

Book 15, Section 41

"What is on the right side of the world and what is on the left? Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle say that the eastern parts are on the right side of the world, from which the beginning of motion comes, while the western parts are on the left."

² "Empedocles says that the areas near the summer solstice are on the right, while the areas near the winter solstice are on the left."

Book 15, Section 42

"About the sky, what is Anaximenes' view on the movement of the outer zone?"

² "Empedocles says that the sky is solid, made of compacted air beneath the fire, resembling crystal, with fiery and airy parts surrounding each hemisphere."

³ "Aristotle says it comes from the fifth element or from a mixture of hot and cold."

Book 15, Section 43

"About spirits and heroes. Following the discussion about the gods, the one about spirits and heroes should be shared."

² "Thales, Pythagoras, and Plato, along with the Stoics, say that there are spiritual beings. They believe that the separated souls of bodies are also heroes; the good ones are the good souls, while the bad ones are the wicked."

³ "Epicurus does not agree with any of this."

Book 15, Section 44

"About matter. Matter is what lies beneath generation, decay, and other changes."

² "Only from Thales, Pythagoras, and the Stoics do we learn that all matter is changeable, altered, and fluid."

³ "Those who follow Democritus say that the first things are unchanging: the atom, the void, and the incorporeal."

⁴ "Aristotle and Plato say that matter is body-like, formless, shapeless, and without qualities in its own nature, but it acts as a container for forms, like a mold or a mother. Those who say that water, fire, air, or earth is matter no longer call it formless, but rather call it body; while those who talk about the indivisible and the atoms still call it formless."

Book 15, Section 45

"About ideas. An idea is an essence that is incorporeal, existing on its own and by itself. It represents formless materials and is the cause of their appearance."

² "Socrates and Plato believe that ideas are separate from the essence of matter, existing in the thoughts and imaginations of the divine mind."

³ "Aristotle set aside forms and ideas, but he did not separate them from matter, as if they were outside of what is created by the divine."

⁴ "I know that the Stoics derived their ideas from the thoughts of Zeno."

Book 15, Section 46

"Regarding order, Xenocrates believes that the stars move in a single way."

² "The other Stoics place some above others, in terms of height and depth."

³ "Democritus first discusses the fixed stars, and then the wandering stars, which include the sun, the morning star, and the moon."

⁴ "Plato, after discussing the fixed stars, first mentions the bright star called Cronus; second, the shining star of Zeus; third, the fiery star of Ares; fourth, the morning star of Aphrodite; fifth, the shining star of Hermes; sixth, the sun; and seventh, the moon."

⁵ "Some mathematicians, like Plato, place the sun at the center of everything."

⁶ "Anaximander, Metrodorus of Chios, and Crates place the sun at the top of everything; after it comes the moon; and below them are the fixed stars and the wandering stars."

Book 15, Section 47

"About the movement and motion of the stars. Anaxagoras, Democritus, and Cleanthes say that all the stars move from east to west."

² "Alcmaeon and the mathematicians say that the wandering stars are opposite the fixed stars, for they move from west to east."

³ "Anaximander says that the stars move beneath the circles and spheres, which each one has traveled along. Anaximenes says that the stars do not move beneath the earth, but that they revolve around it."

⁴ "Plato and the mathematicians say that the sun, the morning star, and the shining star are at equal distances."

Book 15, Section 48

"Where do the stars get their light? Metrodorus says that all the fixed stars are illuminated by the sun."

² "Heraclitus and the Stoics say that the stars are fed by the smoke rising from the earth."

³ "Aristotle says that the heavenly bodies do not need food, because they are not perishable but eternal."

⁴ "Plato says that the entire universe and the stars are nourished by it."

Book 15, Section 49

"About the so-called Dioscuri. Xenophanes says that those who appear on the ships are like stars shining through the clouds, depending on their type of movement."

² "Metrodorus says that the eyes of those who see are shining with fear and wonder."

Book 15, Section 50

"About the eclipse of the sun. Thales was the first to say that the sun is eclipsed by the moon moving directly in front of it, since the moon is naturally round. This can be seen as if it were reflected in a disk."

² "Anaximander says that the opening of the fire is blocked."

³ "Heraclitus says that according to the shape of the boat, the hollow part rises up, while the rounded part sinks down from our view."

⁴ "Xenophanes speaks about the extinguishing; and another one happens again toward the east. He also described a solar eclipse that lasts for the whole month, and then a total eclipse, so that the day seems like night."

⁵ "Some say that a thickening of the invisible appears with the disk of clouds."

⁶ "Aristarchus places the sun among the fixed stars, while the moon moves around the solar circle. Because of these positions, the disk is shadowed."

⁷ "Xenophanes says that there are many suns and moons, depending on the slopes of the earth, the cuts, and the zones. At certain times, the disk falls into a part of the earth that is not inhabited by us, and it seems to show an eclipse as if it were disappearing. He also says that the sun moves into the infinite, appearing to be circled because of the distance."

Book 15, Section 51

"About the eclipse of the moon. Anaximander talks about the opening around the circle."

² "Berossus, concerning the return of the part without fire towards us."

³ "Heraclitus, about the turning of the boat-shaped object."

⁴ "Some of the Pythagoreans talk about a reflection and covering of the earth, or of the antipodes. However, the later ones say that, based on the spreading of fire, it gradually goes out until it reaches the full moon, and then, in a similar way, it decreases until it is completely extinguished at the conjunction."

⁵ "Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and mathematicians agree that the monthly eclipses happen when the sun is covered and surrounded by the moon. However, the eclipses occur when the shadow of the earth falls between the two celestial bodies, especially when the moon is blocked."

Book 15, Section 52

"About its appearance and why it seems earthy. The Pythagoreans say that the moon appears earthy because it is surrounded by larger animals and more beautiful plants than those on our earth. They claim that the creatures there are fifteen times larger, without any physical differences; and the day is just as long."

² "Anaxagoras explains the irregularity as a result of the mixture, since it is both cold and earthy. The dark part is mixed with the fiery part. That is why the star is said to be falsely bright."

³ "The Stoics say that because the substance is mixed with air, the mixture is not pure."

Book 15, Section 53

"About the distances from it. Empedocles says that the moon is twice as far from the sun as it is from the earth."

² "The mathematicians say it is eight hundred times larger."

³ "Eratosthenes says that the sun is 400,000 stadia away from the earth, and the moon is 30,000 stadia away from the earth."

Book 15, Section 54

"About the years. The year of Cronus is 29 years; the year of Zeus is 12 years; the year of Ares is 2 years; and the year of the sun is 11 months. The same is true for Hermes and Aphrodite, as they have equal cycles. The moon has a cycle of 27 days. This is the complete cycle from new moon to full moon."

² "The great year is said to fit into the eight-year cycle; some place it in the thirteen-year cycle, while others in the sixty-year cycle. Heraclitus claims it is 18,000 solar years. Diogenes states it is 563 years, the same number as the year according to Heraclitus; others say it is 72."

³ "And concerning the heavenly bodies and the upper regions, there are many differences among those who have been shown to each other. But regarding the earth and its matters…"

Book 15, Section 55

"About the earth. Thales and his followers say that the earth is one."

² "The Pythagorean Ikketes says there are two: this one and the opposite one."

³ "The Stoics say that the earth is one and has boundaries."

⁴ "Xenophanes says that from the lower part it is rooted in the infinite and that it is made solid from air and fire."

⁵ "Metrodorus says that the earth is the foundation and source of water, while the sun comes from the air."

Book 15, Section 56

"About the shape of the earth: Thales and the Stoics say that the earth is round."

² "Anaximander adds a stone pillar to the things that are on the ground."

³ "Anaximenes says that the earth is shaped like a table."

⁴ "Leucippus says that the earth is shaped like a drum."

⁵ "Democritus says that the earth is shaped like a disk on the surface, but it is hollow in the middle."

Book 15, Section 57

"About the position of the earth. I say that, according to Thales, the earth is in the middle."

² "Xenophanes says that the first thing is rooted in the infinite."

³ "Philolaus the Pythagorean says that fire is in the middle, for this is the hearth of everything. The second is the counter-earth, and the third is the earth we live on, which lies opposite and revolves around the counter-earth. This is why it cannot be seen by those here from those there."

⁴ "Parmenides was the first to define the inhabited areas of the earth as being under the two tropical zones."

Book 15, Section 58

"About the motion of the earth. Some people say that the earth stays still."

² "But Philolaus the Pythagorean says that the earth revolves in a circle around the fire at an angle, just like the sun and the moon."

³ "Heraclides of Pontus and Ecphantus the Pythagorean say that the earth moves, but not in a way that changes its position. Instead, it rotates like a wheel around its own center, from west to east."

⁴ "Democritus says that at first the earth was wandering because it was small and light, but over time it became dense and heavy and settled down. While these ideas about the earth were being discussed, listen also to what was said about the sea."

Book 15, Section 59

"About the sea, how it was formed and how it is bitter. Anaximander says that the sea is a remnant of the original moisture. Most of it was dried up by fire, and what remained changed because of the heat."

² "Anaxagoras says that at first there was a wet substance that was heated by the sun, and then it became thick. Empedocles adds that it turned into salt and bitterness."

³ "Empedocles says that the sweat of the earth was burned by the sun because it was mostly compressed."

⁴ "Antiphon says that the sweat of heat, from which the gathered moisture was released, was paralyzed by being cooled down, which happens to all sweat."

⁵ "Metrodorus says that because it was filtered through the earth, it took on the thickness of what surrounded it, just like things filtered through ash."

⁶ "Those who follow Plato say that the water from the air becomes sweet through cooling, while the water from the earth becomes salty through heating and evaporation."

⁷ "These things are about the sea. But those who discuss the entire universe, including the heavenly and the ethereal, and the nature of everything, do not even understand what is true about themselves. You could learn from these things how they have spoken about these topics."

Book 15, Section 60

"About the parts of the soul. Pythagoras and Plato say that the soul can be divided in two ways: in the broadest sense, it has a rational part and an irrational part. In a more detailed and precise way, it is divided into three parts: the irrational part is further split into the spirited part and the appetitive part."

² "The Stoics say that there are eight parts: five related to the senses, which are sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch. The sixth part is the vocal part, the seventh is the seed part, and the eighth is the ruling part itself. From this ruling part, all these are organized through their own organs, much like the way a many-legged creature functions."

³ "Democritus and Epicurus say that the soul is divided into two parts: the rational part, which is found in the chest, and the irrational part, which is spread throughout the whole body."

⁴ "But Democritus says that everything has a part in nature, even dead bodies. This is because they somehow share in a hidden warmth and sensation, which is mostly present."

Book 15, Section 61

"About the ruling part: Plato and Democritus say it is located in the whole head."

² "Straton says it is located in the midbrain."

³ "Erastistratus talks about the meninges of the brain, which he calls the dura mater."

⁴ "Hippocrates speaks about the cavity of the brain, which is also the base."

⁵ "Parmenides talks about the entire chest."

⁶ "Epicurus, like all the Stoics, speaks about the entire heart."

⁷ "Diogenes talks about the arterial cavity of the heart, which is spiritual."

⁸ "Empedocles talks about the structure of the blood."

⁹ "Some say it is in the pericardium; others say it is in the diaphragm. Some of the younger thinkers explained it as being from the brain to the diaphragm."

¹⁰ "Pythagoras said that the vital part is near the heart, while the rational and thinking part is near the head."

¹¹ "That's enough about these matters. Do you not think it is right for us to have moved away from all this useless and confusing effort through judgment and reasoning? We should not meddle with what has been said, since we cannot see anything useful in it that leads to benefit and goodness for people. Instead, we should focus only on being pious toward the creator god of all, and strive to live a virtuous life that is pleasing to the divine through wise living."

¹² "But if you bring the true testimony to us with envy and jealousy, Socrates, the wisest of all Greeks, will once again present the votes for us, having done so honestly. He showed that those who speak nonsense are foolish and said they are no different from madmen, clearly proving that they are not only chasing the impossible but also wasting their lives on useless and unhelpful things. These points will also be confirmed to you by Xenophon, a well-known companion of Socrates, who writes this in his Memorabilia."

Book 15, Section 62

"No one ever saw Socrates doing anything wrong or heard him say anything wrong. He did not discuss the nature of everything or other topics like most people do. Instead, he focused on how the so-called wise men understand the world and what causes each thing in the heavens to happen. He also showed that those who worry about such matters are foolish."

² "And first, he looked into whether they thought they already knew enough about human matters and were coming to think about such things, or if they were ignoring human matters and focusing on the divine, believing they were doing what was right."

³ "He was amazed that it was not clear to them that these things cannot be discovered by humans, since even those who think very highly of themselves do not agree with each other about these matters, and even those who are mad feel the same way toward one another."

⁴ "For among the mad, some do not fear even terrible things, while others are afraid of things that are not frightening. Some do not think it shameful to say or do anything in a crowd, while others believe it is not right to be seen among people at all. Some honor nothing divine, like shrines or altars, while others worship random pieces of wood, stones, and wild animals. Among those who worry about the nature of everything, some think that only one thing truly exists, while others believe there are countless things. Some say that everything is always in motion, while others think that nothing ever moves. Some believe that everything comes into being and perishes, while others think that nothing ever comes to be or is destroyed."

⁵ "He also thought about this regarding them: just as those who learn about human matters believe that whatever they learn can be used for themselves and others as they wish, do those who seek the divine think that once they understand the necessities of how things come to be, they can create winds, waters, seasons, and anything else they desire? Or do they not hope for such things at all, but are satisfied just to know how each of those things comes to be?"

⁶ "Therefore, he spoke about those who deal with these matters. But he always discussed human affairs, thinking about what is pious and what is impious, what is beautiful and what is ugly, what is just and what is unjust, what is moderation and what is madness."

⁷ "Thus spoke Socrates. After him, those around Aristippus of Cyrene later argued that one should only study ethics. They believed that these matters are both possible and useful. However, they thought that discussions about nature are quite the opposite, as they are neither understandable nor, even if they were clear, would they be of any benefit."

⁸ "For nothing will be gained by us, even if we were to rise higher than Perseus and pour out over the sea and the Pleiades. We would still see the whole universe with our own eyes, and the nature of all that exists, whatever it may be."

⁹ "For this reason, we will not be wiser, more just, braver, or more moderate, nor will we be stronger, more beautiful, or richer. Without these qualities, it is not possible to be happy."

¹⁰ "From this, Socrates rightly said that some things exist beyond us, while others have nothing to do with us. Natural things are beyond us, and those that come after death have no connection to us, but only human matters are related to us."

¹¹ "And in this way, he said goodbye while exploring the natural philosophy of Anaxagoras and Archelaus to understand what good and evil are created among those in the great halls."

¹² "And in another way, the natural arguments are not only difficult and weak, but also disrespectful and contrary to the laws. Some deny that there are any gods at all, while others talk about the infinite, or being, or the one; and they value these ideas more than those that are commonly accepted."

¹³ "And again, there is a big disagreement; for some claim that everything is infinite, while others say it is limited. Some believe that everything is in motion, while others argue that nothing moves at all."

¹⁴ "And indeed, if there is anything better than all these, it seems to me that Timon of Phlius has expressed it in the Silli: 'For who has joined in this total conflict to fight? A crowd of echoes. For the one who remains silent, filled with anger, has stirred up a sickness against the winds, and many have perished.'"

¹⁵ "Do you see how the noble ones are already mocking each other? At least, the man mentioned shows how their rivalry, their battles, and their disagreements are still aimed at those previously mentioned. 'A strife that brings death to mortals wanders about, a hollow sound, the sister of deadly conflict, and a rival that rolls around everywhere, and then it strikes both mortals and hope.'"

¹⁶ "But indeed, regarding the established position and conflict among these people, which has nothing to do with us, as well as the excessive and unknown education and learning of all the others, in which even now the children of philosophers are being honored, chosen not by our own standards, but by their own proofs; yet, the cause has been made clear, through which we have turned away from the words of the Hebrews. Let the teachings of the Evangelical Preparation be recorded among these."

¹⁷ "But regarding the most complete work, which is based on the Evangelical Proof, we should now examine it from a different starting point, since it is lacking for the issue at hand, for those who are about to teach."

¹⁸ "Therefore, it is necessary to respond to those who criticize us for being from circumcision, asking why we, being of different races and origins, use their books, which have nothing to do with us, as they themselves would say; or why we accept their teachings and do not follow the way of life they present."