----------------------------------------
THE CHRONICLE
OF
JOHN, BISHOP OF NIKIU
(Pp. 1-14 CONTENTS OF THE CXXII CHAPTERS)
IN the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, one God. An introduction to this Chronicle with an enumeration of its one hundred and twenty-two chapters. These accounts of the primitive events which are past and gone (the author) has put together from the chronicles of primitive generations: i.e. (the events) from Adam to Tîw (=Dido) who reigned over the Greeks and over Africa, and from the time of Rômânôs (? = Remus) and Romulus, who reigned over Rome, of happy memory, to the end of the reign of the holy Constantine, first Christian emperor of Rome; from the accession of the sons of the great Christian emperor, the Godfearing Constantine, to the end of the Godloving emperor Jovian; and from the accession of Andejâs (? Valentinian) to the end of Theodosius, the great and blessed emperor; and from the time of Arcadius and Honorius, the sons of the Godloving emperor Theodosius, to the end of the blessed emperor Anastasius; and from the days of the emperor Justin to the days of the reign of Heraclius (even) to its end; and from the time of Theodore, chief prefect of the province of Egypt, to John, monk of the convent of Sinai, who believed in the faith of the Chalcedonians. And furthermore these accounts were put together in (their) completeness by John the ascetic and Maddabbar,1 which is by interpretation, administrator, who was bishop of the town of Nakijus in Egypt, which is called Absai, And these he has put together from more extended histories, and these are (in) |2 chapters to the number of one hundred and twenty-two, which is (thus) a chronography beginning with the generation of primitive men.
CHAPTER I. Concerning the names of Adam and Eve and their children and all creatures.
CHAPTER II. Concerning the names of the stars and of the sun and of the moon and the things that are found in the books of the Hebrews.
CHAPTER III. Concerning those who first began to make ships2 and went upon the sea.
CHAPTER IV. Concerning those who engraved astrolabes from first to last.
CHAPTER V. Concerning the beginning of the building of Babylon, and those who worship the image of the horse as a god, and the beginning of the chase and the eating of animal food.
CHAPTER VI. Concerning those who first eat human flesh, and him who first slew his sons, and likewise him who slew his father.
CHAPTER VII. Concerning him who first took his sister and made her (his) wife.
CHAPTER VIII. Concerning him who founded the city of Nineveh and who first took his mother and made her (his) wife.
CHAPTER IX. Concerning him who first wrought gold and brought (it) from mines.
CHAPTER X. Concerning him who first made weapons of war.
CHAPTER VII. Concerning him who first took his sister and made her (his) wife. CHAPTER VIII. Concerning him who founded the city of Nineveh and who first took his mother and made her (his) wife. CHAPTER IX. Concerning him who first wrought gold and brought (it) from mines. CHAPTER X. Concerning him who first made weapons of war.
CHAPTER XI. Concerning him who first made a furnace and who married two women.
CHAPTER XII. Concerning him who built a city named the City of the Sun.
CHAPTER XIII. Concerning him who built two cities, Abusir, the one in upper Egypt, the other in northern Egypt.
CHAPTER XIV. Concerning him who built the city of Samnûd and Elbarâbî, which is the house of idols.
CHAPTER XV. Concerning the Greeks, who were the first to proclaim the glory of the coequal Trinity.
CHAPTER XVI. Concerning those who first made a plough in the provinces of Egypt, and in what condition Egypt was at the first.
CHAPTER XVII. Concerning him who first levied taxes on the country of Egypt and measured the land with a reed and made |3 the inhabitants give (a return) to the king. And who it was that dug channels in the land for the water to flow in and the canal named Dîk.
CHAPTER XVIII. Concerning him who made the waters to disappear and drained the marshes of Egypt, so that they could build cities and villages thereon and plant plantations.
CHAPTER XIX. Concerning those who built three temples (? pyramids) in the city of Memphis.
CHAPTER. XX. Concerning him who first made dyes for garments.
CHAPTER XXI. Concerning him who made beautiful statues and worshipped them. And concerning him who founded the cities of Iconium and Tarsus. And who named Assyria Persia, and who planted trees in Egypt, and who was the first to worship the sun and the moon and fire and water.
CHAPTER XXII. Concerning him who worshipped the moon only and built an altar to her as a goddess.
CHAPTER XXIII. Concerning him who named Libya. And who built Tyre and who named Canaan, and Syria and Cilicia.
CHAPTER XXIV. Concerning him who named the cities of Europe and built the city of Gortyna.
CHAPTER XXV. Concerning him who first put beams of wood to the feet of men.
CHAPTER XXVI. Concerning him who first built an altar to idols and worshipped them.
CHAPTER XXVII. Concerning Melchizedek the priest, the nature of his descent : and concerning those who built Sidon and Sion, which is called Salem ; and the naming of the Jews, that is, the Hebrews.
CHAPTER XXVIII. Concerning those who first invented the letters of the Greeks and the teaching of the writing of letters.
CHAPTER XXIX. Concerning the deluge in Attica, and the cause of the long continuance (of the waters) upon it and of its becoming a desert.
CHAPTER XXX. Concerning the condition (?) of Pharaoh before Moses and his destruction with his own in the depths of the Red Sea. .
CHAPTER XXVIII. Concerning those who first invented the letters of the Greeks and the teaching of the writing of letters. CHAPTER XXIX. Concerning the deluge in Attica, and the cause of the long continuance (of the waters) upon it and of its becoming a desert. CHAPTER XXX. Concerning the condition (? ) of Pharaoh before Moses and his destruction with his own in the depths of the Red Sea. .
CHAPTER XXXI. Concerning him who changed the name of the |4 town of Absâi and named it Nakijus, and the cause owing to which the river changed its course from the east and came to be on the west of the city according to the commandment of God.
CHAPTER XXXII. Concerning the building of Jerusalem, and the alteration of its name into Nablos, and concerning the house of God which was built in it.
CHAPTER XXXIII. He who first pursued a handicraft among the ancients.
CHAPTER XXXIV. Concerning him who was the first to find an inscription and communicate it to men : and concerning him who found the teaching and who interpreted the verses which were written on the table of stone.
CHAPTER XXXV. Concerning him who established the law of marriage, that men should take to wife young virgins and call them spouses: and concerning him who was the first to institute the (common) meal.
CHAPTER XXXVI. Concerning him who first among the Greeks believed in the Holy Trinity as coequal in one Godhead.
CHAPTER, XXXVII. Concerning those who first practised medicine in the world.
CHAPTER XXXVIII. Concerning him who first built a bath in the world.
CHAPTER XXXIX. Concerning him who first played on the flute and like instruments such as the horn and the trumpet.
CHAPTER XL. Concerning the building of Cyzicum and the cause which led the spirits to confess the unity of the Holy Trinity and announce to all men that God should be born of a virgin.
CHAPTER XLI. Concerning him who established the sanctuary of Sosthenium and the building of a church by the command of the Godloving emperor Constantine.
CHAPTER XLII. Concerning the nails (of the cross) of our Lord Jesus Christ and the victory which the kings won by their means.
CHAPTER XLIII. Concerning him who gave their names to the two provinces Achaia and Laconia.
CHAPTER XLIV. Concerning him who named the Peloponnesus3 and built in it a city called Peloponnesus.4
CHAPTER XLV. Concerning him who built Farma and Bulkinun. |5
CHAPTER XLVI. Concerning him who first taught playing on instruments of music.
CHAPTER XLVII. Concerning him who named the island of Ephesus which is in Asia ; formerly it was named Saqâlbah, but they changed its name and called it Iconia (sic).
CHAPTER XLVIII. Concerning him who built the city which is named Bûlmîz (= Palmyra), for5 in its neighbourhood David conquered the Philistine.
CHAPTER XLIX. Concerning the cause of Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of the city of Tyre, which is an island.
CHAPTER L. Concerning the Ark of God and the tables and Aaron's rod which budded and the measure of manna and the fragment of hard rocks, and concerning him who hid them from men.
Concerning him who built the city which is named Bûlmîz (= Palmyra), for5 in its neighbourhood David conquered the Philistine. CHAPTER XLIX. Concerning the cause of Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of the city of Tyre, which is an island. CHAPTER L. Concerning the Ark of God and the tables and Aaron's rod which budded and the measure of manna and the fragment of hard rocks, and concerning him who hid them from men.
CHAPTER LI. Concerning the kingdom of King Cyrus and his sending back the captive children of Israel; and how Cambyses forbade them to build the temple and Yasid the Commander of the Egyptian forces provoked Cambyses and Cambyses6 slew the Egyptian officers and took away captives, which he had taken from Egypt, to his own country, and (how) the Egyptians returned a second time to their own land, and (how) after forty and one years Alexander of Macedon, called the conqueror of the world, became king.
CHAPTER LII. Concerning the building of the city named Lavinia.7
CHAPTER LIII. Concerning him who was the first to build a house and call it a palace.
CHAPTER LIV. Concerning him who built the city named Alba.8
CHAPTER LV. Concerning him who built Carthage.
CHAPTER LVL Concerning him who built Rome and the reason they were named Romans: and concerning the origin of the formulas in demanding and decreeing, and the circuit of the courts,9 and how the army went to battle on horseback : and concerning the establishment of a place of combat for women, and the administrative decrees for the army and concerning those who are sent and those |6 who minister to them ; and the reason on account of which our Fathers the monks of Egypt celebrated the Eucharist on the first day of every month.
CHAPTER LVII. Concerning him who invented, as it appears, stamped money, which gave rise to selling and buying. And concerning the institution of prefects, magistrates, and judges.
CHAPTER LVIII. Concerning him who built the city of Thessalonica.
CHAPTER LIX. Concerning him who built the cities of Alexandria and Chrysopolis of Byzantium, i.e. Alexander. How he conquered Darius and took his daughter captive : and how queen Candace took Alexander prisoner when he came to her with spies (even) the messengers whom he had sent to her : and how he made her his wife.
CHAPTER LX. Concerning the epoch when the Scriptures inspired by God were translated, and how many translations there were.
CHAPTER LXI. Concerning him who built Antigonia, and Antioch, and Laodicea and Apamea, cities of renown.
CHAPTER LXII. Concerning him who first wrote chronicles and named them.
CHAPTER LXIII. Concerning him who persecuted the Maccabean saints.
CHAPTER LXIV. Concerning the birth of Julius Caesar, King of Rome : and the reign of Cleopatra, and the building of a great Church named Caesarion in the city of Alexandria.
CHAPTER LXV (LXVI). Concerning him who built Caesarea in Palestine.
CHAPTER LXII. Concerning him who first wrote chronicles and named them. CHAPTER LXIII. Concerning him who persecuted the Maccabean saints. CHAPTER LXIV. Concerning the birth of Julius Caesar, King of Rome : and the reign of Cleopatra, and the building of a great Church named Caesarion in the city of Alexandria. CHAPTER LXV (LXVI). Concerning him who built Caesarea in Palestine.
CHAPTER LXVI (LXVII). Concerning him who built the Pharos of Alexandria and made a channel through the land in order to conduct the canal of Kariûn, which is by interpretation 'ditch', so that the water came from the great river Gihon to the great city Alexandria. And concerning the passage of the water to the skilfully constructed and deep reservoir. And at what time our Lord Jesus Christ was born in the flesh. And why the Romans made their months to begin with the sixth month of the year.
CHAPTER LXVII (LXVIII). Concerning him who fixed one of the 'changes' on the sixth day of the month Ter. And how Ezra, the holy man, was unjustly rejected. |7
CHAPTER LXVIII (LXIX). Concerning the reign of the Emperor in which our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified: and concerning him who built the city Tiberias.
CHAPTER LXIX (LXX). Concerning that which befell the Emperor Nero and his bitter death.
CHAPTER LXX (LXXI). Concerning the Emperor Domitian and how he sent St. John the Evangelist twice into exile, and concerning his (St. John's) death : and how he built Domitianopolis, and concerning the grievous death of Domitian, and the abolition of (gladiatorial) combats and the smiting of men.
CHAPTER LXXI (LXXII). Concerning the death of Ignatius, clothed (?) with God and the women who became martyrs with him : and the building of a fortress in the Egyptian Babylon. And concerning him who named it Babylon and him who made the channel for the canal called by the name of Trajan which terminates in the Red Sea, and concerning (him who built) the fortress in Manûf.
CHAPTER LXXII (LXXIII). Concerning him who built Antinoê in the province of Rîf.
CHAPTER LXXIII (LXXIV). Concerning him who established the decree as to fathers that they should make wills in favour of their children: and the construction of two gates in the city of Alexandria in its east and west.
CHAPTER LXXIV (LXXV). Concerning him who introduced lions into Egypt and Palestine.
CHAPTER LXXV (LXXVI). Concerning him who founded the usage of writing accounts and pledges that a man might be made secure.
CHAPTER LXXIII (LXXIV). Concerning him who established the decree as to fathers that they should make wills in favour of their children: and the construction of two gates in the city of Alexandria in its east and west. CHAPTER LXXIV (LXXV). Concerning him who introduced lions into Egypt and Palestine. CHAPTER LXXV (LXXVI). Concerning him who founded the usage of writing accounts and pledges that a man might be made secure.
CHAPTER LXXVI (LXXVII). Concerning the reign of Diocletian the Egyptian and how he lost his reason and was exiled : and which of his sons wrought the evil. And concerning the pestilence which God brought on the idolaters till there were none to bury them. And concerning the reign of the Godloving Constantine and the achievement of the works which he wrought and the magnificence of the churches 10 in his days. And concerning him who was the first to make a qanâtra11, i. e. a bridge. And concerning the finding of |8 the cross. And concerning the building of Constantinople and its designation by this name, being called aforetime Byzantium. And concerning the faith of Gelasinus (which was produced) by a wonder which he saw, i.e. the holy baptism, and his marvellous death : and in what way the Indians came to know our Lord Jesus Christ, one God. For the holy Athanasius, the apostolic, was the first to ordain for them a bishop of India and of Yemen. And (how) there had been visible to Constantine all the days of his life an angel of God who awaked him for prayer.
CHAPTER LXXVII (LXXVIII). Concerning the building of a qantarâh (sic), i.e. a bridge on the river named Pyramus: and the disaster at Nicaea, and the appearance of the holy cross at midday on Golgotha in the place where our Lord was crucified. And the tribulations which the holy Athanasius, the apostolic, had to endure at the hands of the Arians. And the exile of Liberius and the holy bishops who were with him through the evil devices of the Arians. And moreover concerning the emperor Julian, the apostate: and how he forsook the orders of the Church and became the general of the army until he acceded to the throne in the place of Gallus his brother: and how he persecuted the holy Athanasius, in order to slay him at the instigation of the heathen. And how Alexandria was deemed worthy to receive the body of St. John the Baptist, that it might dwell there and a magnificent building might be. constructed for it by the command of the patriarch Theophilus.
CHAPTER LXXVIII (LXXIX). Through whom it is we know the city and family12 of Theophilus, the patriarch of Alexandria and the place of the birth of Cyril, his sister's son.
CHAPTER LXXIX (LXXX). Concerning the consummation of the death of the holy martyr Domecius: and the vengeance which God brought upon Julian, the apostate, and how God punished him by the hand of the holy martyr Mercurius and how he died by an evil death.
CHAPTER LXXX (LXXXI). Concerning the reign of Jovian and how the Church became glorious : and how the holy Athanasius returned to his throne with great honour: and the Church everywhere was conspicuously in the orthodox faith.
CHAPTER LXXXI (LXXXII). Concerning the reign of Sallustius (? Valentinian) and his hatred of iniquity and his just and equitable |9 judgement : and his construction of stone gates, i.e. the Heracleotis, the gates of the great river of Egypt which he had caused to be made with excessive labour. And how the ocean tide rose to Alexandria to such a height that it would have submerged the city had not the holy Athanasius the patriarch checked it by his prayers.
CHAPTER LXXXII (LXXXIII). Concerning the reign of the Godloving Theodosius the elder : and the address which he pronounced before Amphilochius bishop of Iconium on the unity of the Holy Trinity. And concerning the Council which the emperor convoked in Constantinople : concerning the strengthening of the Churches. And concerning Timothy, patriarch of Alexandria, who admonished Gregory bishop of Nazianzum 13 to leave the city of the emperor Constantine and go to his own city and nominated a man named Maximus patriarch of Constantinople. And further concerning the building of the church of Theodosius at Alexandria and the church of the holy martyrs Cosmas and Damian and the martyrs their brethren. And concerning the burning by fire of the city of Antioch by the command of the emperor : and the reproof which was sent to him by the holy monk of the desert of Asqêto on this matter and the grief of the emperor regarding it. And further concerning the wine-merchants and the brothels which were suppressed in his days: and the splendour of his reign in all places,
CHAPTER LXXXIII (LXXXIV). Concerning the accession of the emperors Arcadius and Honorius : and Arcadius was over Constantinople and Honorius over Home. And concerning Arcadius' love of God and the devotion of Honorius. And concerning the revolt which Alaric raised in the city of Rome. And how the sister of the emperor Honorius was taken prisoner by him. And the plundering of all the treasures of the palace. And further how Honorius quitted Rome and went to Constantinople and became the colleague of the emperor Theodosius the younger, the son of his brother Arcadius, till the day of his death. And further concerning the empress Eudocia, the consort of the emperor Theodosius the younger — her family, and how the emperor made an alliance |10 with her and took her to wife. And at what time they inscribed the name of St. John Chrysostom in the diptychs, after he had gone to our Lord. And concerning the anathema of Nestorius and the victory of Cyril. And further concerning a heathen woman of Alexandria and the tumults which she caused between the Jews and Christians in Alexandria. And how the holy Cyril took the Synagogue of the Jews and made it a church in consequence of his controversy with the Jews. And how they dragged the heathen woman through the streets till she died. And how they burned her body with fire by the command of the patriarch, Abba Cyril.
CHAPTER LXXXIV (LXXXV). Concerning the massacre made by the Jews in Qîmîtrâ : concerning the mockery they practised against the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, when in mockery they crucified a young infant and put it to death.
CHAPTER LXXXV (LXXXVI). Concerning Fînkeser the Jew who presented himself to the Jews saying, I am Moses the chief of the prophets.
CHAPTER LXXXVI (LXXXVII). Concerning the apple which they brought as a present to the emperor Theodosius and the appointment of his sister Pulcheria: and the darkness which prevailed over all the earth from morning to evening on the day that Marcian the schismatic became emperor.
CHAPTER LXXXV (LXXXVI). Concerning Fînkeser the Jew who presented himself to the Jews saying, I am Moses the chief of the prophets. CHAPTER LXXXVI (LXXXVII). Concerning the apple which they brought as a present to the emperor Theodosius and the appointment of his sister Pulcheria: and the darkness which prevailed over all the earth from morning to evening on the day that Marcian the schismatic became emperor.
CHAPTER LXXXVII (LXXXVIII). Concerning the occasion when the heaven rained diran, i.e. the lightnings on Constantinople, and the fire flamed from sea to sea: and the conversion of the heathen philosopher Isocasius to the orthodox faith. And from what place came the patriarch Timotheus. And concerning the terrible pestilence which prevailed in Constantinople: and the fall of the mountain in Syria and the apostasy of Basiliscus after the manner of the Chalcedonians for corruptible goods. And concerning the reign of the emperor Zenon over the imperial city of Constantinople, and the banishment of Basiliscus for life, and the death which was inflicted on the judges because of their negligence in the administration of justice. And concerning the reign of Zenon and his command that the letter should be read in every place. And concerning Verina his mother-in-law and her warring against him till death overtook her and her adherents.
CHAPTER LXXXVIII (LXXXIX). Concerning the reign of Godloving Anastasius in consequence of the prophecy of Abbâ |11 Jeremiah, an anchorite of the convent of Manûf : and the building of the stone gates of Elmûwrad and a trench in order to make a great bridge which should start from Babylon and terminate with the river. And concerning the naming of Philaletes, and the victory of the great patriarch Severus, and the banishment of Macedonius and the abrogation of the Chalcedonian Council.
CHAPTER LXXXIX (XC). Concerning the banishment of the holy Severus from his throne in Antioch through the instrumentality of heretics, and the prayer which he made to God on behalf of the inhabitants of Constantinople regarding the evil that the emperor Justin had wrought, and the admonition which he heard from God. And concerning the fire which raged in Antioch and in the cities of the East: and the destruction of many oratories of the Martyrs, and all kinds of marvels which befell. And concerning the baptism of the people of the Arians (?), and the kings of India and the Elmarîts, that is, the Nubians. And of what religion they had been formerly. And concerning the earthquake in Egypt: and the Huns14 (?) without the city. And the Indians, that is the Elmâkûrîds, were formerly Jews.
CHAPTER XC (XCI). Concerning the manifestation of the towel and mandîl of our Lord Jesus Christ: they were found in the house of a Jew who lived in Alexandria.
CHAPTER XCI (XCII). Concerning the reason of us Christians being named after the name of Theodosius, and the appearance of the Athenâwjân and their doctrine. And concerning that which the chief officials published in the market-places that there should be a memorial with them till all who wished might take.
CHAPTER XCII (XCIII). Concerning the primitive building of the city of Rome.
CHAPTER XCIII (XCIV). The tumults which took place in the city of Constantinople concerning the holy body of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
And concerning that which the chief officials published in the market-places that there should be a memorial with them till all who wished might take. CHAPTER XCII (XCIII). Concerning the primitive building of the city of Rome. CHAPTER XCIII (XCIV). The tumults which took place in the city of Constantinople concerning the holy body of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER XCIV (XCV). Regarding Aristomachus the son of Theodosius of the city of Absâi and the accusation which they brought against him <before> the emperor, so that he was put in bonds. And how Chosroes the King of the Persians believed and became a Christian.
CHAPTER XCV (XCVI). Concerning Galandûh, a woman of |12 patrician rank—the name of a dignity—and the vision which she clearly saw in prison daring her exile.
CHAPTER XCVI (XCVII). Concerning those who were in a corner of a dwelling in the city of Mausal: and concerning the animal which appeared in the likeness of a woman in the river of Egypt.
CHAPTER XCVII (XCVIII). Concerning Paulinus the magician who sacrificed to demons in a silver bowl.
CHAPTER XCVIII (XCIX). Concerning him who first wrote 'In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ'.
CHAPTER XCIX (C). Concerning the flood that covered the city of Antinous and of Tarsus, the capital of Cilicia, in the same night.
CHAPTER C (CI). Concerning the setting of the sun at midday, and the appearance of stars and a great earthquake.
CHAPTER CI (CII). Concerning Sûrîkûs the prefect who practised piety and the death which overtook him, and how the inhabitants of Constantinople chased the emperor Maurice.
CHAPTER CII (CIII). How the captains of vessels were discharged of responsibility when their cargo was lost at sea. And concerning the reign of Phocas and his murders,
CHAPTER CIII (CIV). How it was forbidden to appoint a Patriarch or any other Church dignitary without the consent of Phocas : and concerning the action of the people of the East and of Palestine in this matter so that the tombs (?)15 of the churches were filled with blood when the people took refuge in the baptisteries.
CHAPTER CIV (CV). Concerning Theophilus of the city of Maurad: and the massacre which Phocas carried out because of his death in Antioch and Palestine.
CHAPTER CV (CVI). Concerning the wife of Heraclius the elder and the wife of Heraclius the younger and Fabia16 her daughter, a virgin: and how Crispus the magistrate saved them from the impure attempts of Phocas.
CHAPTER CVI (CVII). Concerning the tumults which were raised against Phocas in Egypt, in Mareotis and the city of Alexandria, and the great massacres which were made in connexion with this matter. And how they cast his statue to the ground. |13
CHAPTER CVII (CVIII). Concerning Theophilus the Stylite and his prophecy to Nicetas17: 'Thou wilt conquer him and the kingdom of Phocas will speedily be destroyed and then Heraclius will reign.'
CHAPTER CVIII (CIX). Concerning the bridge which was in the city of Dafâsher near the church of St. Mînâs.
CHAPTER CIX (CX). Concerning the death of Phocas and the dispersion of the treasures of the palace: and the chastisement which Heraclius inflicted on Phocas because of the outrage he had done to his wife and daughter.
'
CHAPTER CVIII (CIX). Concerning the bridge which was in the city of Dafâsher near the church of St. Mînâs. CHAPTER CIX (CX). Concerning the death of Phocas and the dispersion of the treasures of the palace: and the chastisement which Heraclius inflicted on Phocas because of the outrage he had done to his wife and daughter.
CHAPTER CX (CXI). Concerning the appearance of the Moslem on the confines of Fîjûm and the defeat of the Romans who dwelt there.
CHAPTER CXI (CXII). Concerning the first encounter of 'Amar with the Romans at the city of 'Awn (i. e. Heliopolis).
CHAPTER CXII (CXIII). How all the Jews assembled in the city of Manûf owing to their fear of the Moslem, the cruelties of 'Amar and the seizure of their possessions till (at last) they left the gates of Misr open and fled to Alexandria. And how wicked men multiplied in the beginning of wickedness and began to help ('Amar) to destroy the people of Egypt.
CHAPTER CXIII (CXIV). How the people of Samnûd so flouted 'Amar as to refuse to receive him : and concerning the return of Kalâdî to the Romans: and how they seized his mother and his wife—now he had hidden them in Alexandria—because he had joined and helped the Moslem.
CHAPTER CXIV (CXV). How the Moslem took Misr in the fourteenth year of the cycle and made the fortress of Babylon open its gates in the fifteenth year.
CHAPTER CXV (CXVI). Concerning the death of the emperor Heraclius and the return of Cyrus the Patriarch from exile and his departure for Mesr to pay tribute to the Moslem.
CHAPTER CXVI (CXVII). How God gave the Romans into the hands of the Moslem and rejected them because of their incredulity and their divisions and the persecution which they had brought on the Christians of Egypt.
CHAPTER CXVII (CXVIII). How 'Amar got possession of |14 Absâdî, that is, Niqîjûs: and (concerning) the flight of the general Domitian and the destruction of his army in the river, and the great massacre which took place in the city of Absâdî, and in all the remaining cities—till 'Amar came to the island of Sawnâ— which were under the sway of Absâi and its island on the eighteenth day of the month Genbôt, in the fifteenth year of the cycle.
CHAPTER CXVIII. How the Moslem got possession of Caesarea in Palestine and the trials that overtook it.
CHAPTER CXIX. Concerning the great earthquake and the loss of life in Crete both in their island and in all their cities round about.
CHAPTER CXX. Concerning Cyrus the Patriarch of the Chalcedonians—the same who went to Babylon and to 'Amar the chief of the Moslem and took the tribute in a vessel and paid it into his hands. And further how 'Amar increased the taxes of the Egyptians: and concerning the death of Cyrus the Chalcedonian after he had repented of having delivered the city of Alexandria into the hands of the Moslem.
CHAPTER CXXI. Concerning the return of Abba Benjamin the patriarch of Egypt from his exile in the city of Rîf (where he had been) fourteen years, and of these (he had been there) ten years because the Roman emperors had exiled him, and four under the dominion of the Moslem. And concerning the remaining history with the conclusion of the work.
CHAPTER CXXII. A second epilogue concluding this history. |15
----------------------------------------
IN THE NAME OF GOD MERCIFUL AND GRACIOUS
THE holy father,18 John bishop of Nikiu,19 who put this work together, said: 'O thou that hast loved toil till thou hast acquired the love of goodness, till the love of toil, which is pain, giveth increase to all the good qualities which every zealous man covets, and for the sake of all the good qualities which constitute the eternal wisdom belonging to the Omnipotent and Lord of all; for He hath reserved it for those who come after them, that they may accomplish what they have chosen.' For this task, moreover, I am wanting in eloquence beyond all authors and feeble in discourse, though with many a testing I have tested the chosen portions. We will begin to compose this work from many ancient books, which deal with the (various) periods and the historical events, which we have witnessed also in the times to which we have come. And I have been honest (in this work) in order to recount and leave a noble memorial to the lovers of virtue in this present life. And we have left this narrative which is written in good order and in an exalted translation. Yea it is exalted beyond everything that has been by the interpretation of the translator, so that those who find it may not be without past and present gain, without portion or inheritance.
CHAPTER I. We will begin with the first beings that were created; for it is written concerning Adam and Eve, that it was God who named them, but as for his children and all created things it was Adam that named them all. |16
CHAPTER II. 1. And Seth, the son of Adam, who received wisdom from God, named five planets20: the first Cronus; the second Zeus ; the third Ares; the fourth Aphrodite; the fifth Hermes. 2. And on a different ground he named the sun and the moon. And the number of the planets was seven. 3. And, moreover, he was the first to write letters in the language of the Hebrews; for he had received wisdom from God: and he composed history in it in the times of the giants. And, moreover, he said that Ovid a wise man of the heathen and Plutarch wrote about them after the deluge.21
CHAPTER III. The sons of Noah were great and strong, (and) they began to build ships 22 and to go upon the sea.
And, moreover, he said that Ovid a wise man of the heathen and Plutarch wrote about them after the deluge. 21
CHAPTER III. The sons of Noah were great and strong, (and) they began to build ships 22 and to go upon the sea.
CHAPTER IV. 1. It is told regarding Cainan,23 the son of Arphaxad, who was sprung from Shem, the son of Noah, that he was a wise man and a shepherd. 2. He was the first to compose + astrolabes + (read 'astronomy') after the deluge.
CHAPTER V. 1. And after him the Indians composed (it),24 and there was a man from India, named Qantûrjûs,25 an Ethiopian of the |17 race of Ham, who was named Cush, 2. He begat Afrûd, i. e. Nimrod, the giant. He it was that built the city of Babylon. 3. And the Persians served him and worshipped him as a god, and named him after the name of the stars of heaven and called him Orion,26 that is, Dabarah. 4. And he was the first to hunt27 and eat the flesh of animals.
CHAPTER VI. 1. Cronus, moreover, was a giant of the race of Shem,28 the firstborn of Noah, who was thus named after the name of the first planet, which is Cronus. 2. + And his son, named Domjos,+ 29 was a warrior, a redoubtable man and a slayer (of men). 3. He was the first to rule over Persia and Assyria: and he married an Assyrian woman, named Rhea, and she bare him two sons, Picus whom they named Zeus,30 and Ninus, who built a royal city in. Assyria, i. e. Nineveh. 4. And Cronus left his son in his kingdom and went to the west and ruled over the people (there) as they had no king. 5. And Picus his son, who was named Zeus, rebelled against Cronus his father and slew him, because he had devoured his children.
CHAPTER VII. 1. And he made pregnant the daughter of + Niks+ his mother, who was named Rhea. And Picus, moreover, that is, |18 Zeus, was the first to take his sister to wife. 2. And he begat by her a son named Belus, who resembled his grandfather Cronus. 3. And this Belus ruled in Assyria after the disappearance of his father and his grandfather Cronus. 4. And him also after his death the Persians worshipped with the gods.
CHAPTER VIII. 1. And after the death of Belus, Ninus his father's brother reigned over Assyria. 2. He married Semiramis his mother and made her his wife, and established this impure custom and transmitted it to his successors : and they are + designated by this evil name + till the present day. 3. This conduct does not create a scandal amongst the Persians; for they take to wife their mothers and sisters and daughters.
CHAPTER. IX. 1. After the death of Picus, Faunus, called Hermes, ruled in the west for thirty-five years. 2. And he became a silversmith. He was the first to begin to work in gold in the west, and to smelt it. 3. And when he learnt that his brothers were envious of him and wished to slay him, he became afraid and fled to Egypt, taking with him a great quantity of gold. 4. And he dwelt in Egypt and clothed himself in a beautiful robe of gold. 5. And furthermore he became a diviner, for he declared everything before it came to pass, and he gave to people money in abundance and he gave gifts in abundance to the people of Egypt. 6. And for this reason they received him with honour and called him 'the Lord of gold'. And he was honoured by them as a god. And the poor worshipped him.
CHAPTER. X. 1. And there was a man named Hephaestus. He ruled over Egypt: and they made him a god. And he was warlike and full of fury. 2. And men believed that he investigated hidden things and received weapons of war from the non-existent; |19 for he was an ironsmith and was the first to make weapons of war to fight with in time of war and stones wherewith men contended. 3. Now he was lame; (for) when going to war he fell from (his) horse and was injured and was lame all his days.
CHAPTER XI. 1. And Methuselah begat Lamech, and Lamech married two wives. The name of the one was Ada and the name of the other was Zillah. 2. And Ada bare Qabel and after some time she bare Tobel who wielded the hammer in working brass and iron. 3. And Tobel the son of Lamech was a brass and iron smith before the deluge; for he had received wisdom from God—Praise be to Him.
CHAPTER XII. 1. And after Hephaestus, who was named the Sun, there reigned in Egypt his son who was named the Sun after his father's name. 2. It was he who built the city of the Sun after his own name, and in it there were temples of. the supreme gods and likewise the bodies of kings.
CHAPTER XIII. 1. And there was a man named Matunavis who succeeded Aiqasbera which name is by interpretation Dionysus.31 2. He built a city in upper Egypt, named Busir, and another Busir in the north of Egypt.
CHAPTER XIV. Osiris, which is by interpretation Apollo, being so named by the Greeks, built the city of Samnud and (in it) a temple of the supreme gods. And this is the city which is called Bab'el Fegor.
And there was a man named Matunavis who succeeded Aiqasbera which name is by interpretation Dionysus. 31 2. He built a city in upper Egypt, named Busir, and another Busir in the north of Egypt. CHAPTER XIV. Osiris, which is by interpretation Apollo, being so named by the Greeks, built the city of Samnud and (in it) a temple of the supreme gods. And this is the city which is called Bab'el Fegor.
CHAPTER XV. 1. In the writings of the Egyptian sages 'Abratus32 is mentioned ... at that time, (i. e.) he who was Hermes, a man of extraordinary judgement, through whom they declared among the |20 heathen saying : c There are three supreme powers that have created all things, (but only) one divinity.' 2. And this same Hermes, who was a great sage among the heathen, declared, saying: 'The Majesty of the holy coequal Trinity is the Giver of life and King over all things.'
CHAPTER XVI. 1. And there was a certain city that was the first to learn the use of the plough (and) the sowing of seeds and all kinds of grain. 2. It was the most elevated city in Egypt; for the land of Egypt is full of waters and lakes owing to the abundance of water in the river Gihon.
CHAPTER XVII. 1. And Sesostris, who ruled over all the land of Egypt and the adjoining countries, was the first to levy taxes and to measure the land. 2, And when he had gathered together much booty and many captives from all countries, thereupon [gathering them together] he brought them to the land of Egypt: and all the souls over whom authority was given to levy taxes he made to dig channels in the land and to fill up all the waters of Egypt with earth. 3. And owing to this measure the Egyptians were enabled to plant plantations and plough arable lands like those of Said, which was the first province to learn the art of ploughing. 4. And besides he commanded (the people) to pay taxes and a proportionate return of the products of the earth to the king. 5. And he dug the canal which is called Dik unto this day.33
3. And owing to this measure the Egyptians were enabled to plant plantations and plough arable lands like those of Said, which was the first province to learn the art of ploughing. 4. And besides he commanded (the people) to pay taxes and a proportionate return of the products of the earth to the king. 5. And he dug the canal which is called Dik unto this day. 33
CHAPTER XVIII. 1. And after him Sabacon, king of India, reigned over the country of Egypt fifty years. 2. And he was a lover of his kind and was averse to shedding blood unjustly. And he established a law in Egypt to this effect, that no criminal should be put to death or torture; but should be permitted to live: and every criminal according to his crime he ordered to purify the earth and to collect soil together and cast it upon the morasses (lit. river or sea). 3. And when they had been long engaged in these forced labours, the waters of the river retired from the land, and (the inhabitants) made their towns higher through fear of being inundated by the waters. 4. And previously indeed in the days of Sesostris there had been inundations before that they had dug channels in the land for the river. And yet, notwithstanding all they did in casting earth into the marshes, they failed to realize their purpose because of the great quantity of water brought down |21 by the river. 5. And Sabacon, king of India, in the vigilance of his affection had dwellings made for the people on the heights.34
CHAPTER XIX. 1. And there was a man named Rampsinitus,35 the Pharaoh who reigned over Egypt. 2. He (i. e. Cheops) closed the temples of the gods and the other idols which the Egyptians worshipped : and they sacrificed to demons. And he built three temples (i. e. pyramids) in the city of Memphis and made the Egyptians worship the Sun. 3. And he paid the builders 16,000 talents of silver besides leeks and vegetables; for so it was found written in the inscriptions in the Egyptian language, which were engraved on a stone wall and made known these facts to such as read (them). 4. And he paid away all the taxes and exhausted the royal treasuries owing to the multitude of builders—and yet to no good purpose. 5. For when he fell into great poverty and want he was sore troubled: he had a daughter of beautiful form (who) was stirred up by the practices and foul seductions of Satan, and he placed her in the quarter of the debauchees : and she dwelt there in obscurity and sorrow and became a prostitute. 6. And such as wished to lie with her had to carry one of the great stones and add it to the structure. 7. And the stone so carried measured, it is said, not less than thirty feet, i. e. twenty cubits. (So they did) until they had built one of the three pyramids by means of the shameful lust of this wretched girl.
CHAPTER XX. 1. Heracles, a philosopher of the city of Tyre, discovered the art of making silk36 and clothed himself (with it), 2. And Phoenix, king of Tyre, the Canaanite, and all the kings of all countries, as well as his successors, did likewise and so became conspicuously distinguished from the multitude. 3. Now the clothing of the ancients was of wool, but the kings and chief rulers abandoned such clothing and clad themselves in silk.
CHAPTER XXI. 1. And there was a man named Perseus.37 He aspired to the throne of Assyria; but the sons of Ninus, the brother. |22 of his father Zeus,1 were his rivals. 2. And when he came to Qorontos, there met him a young38 girl, walking alone. 3. And he seized her by her hair and cut off her head with (his) sword, and placed it on the shield which he had according to the magic which his father Zeus had taught him. 4. And he carried it with him in all his warlike expeditions. 5. And after he had journeyed and gone down into 'Elbawna, he turned towards Assyria. And when the Lycaonians made war upon him; he took the head of the Gorgon the virgin magician and by displaying it before them vanquished them. 6. And he built the town of Iconium, which had previously been a small town named Amandra; <and he called it Iconium> because he had set up formerly his statue (ei0kw&n) near it together with the detestable Gorgon. 7. And when he came to Isauria, a city of Cilicia, and its people, moreover, warred against him, he vanquished them by the magical power residing in the head of the Gorgon. 8. And the village of Cilicia, named Andrasus, he made into a city and named it Tarsus. 9. And from Cilicia he went to the land of Assyria, and there moreover he slew Sardanapalus—now this is the name of a dignity. 10. And he disowned his claims of consanguinity and took possession of his kingdom as a spoil, and changed the name of the country, that is, Assyria, and named it Persia 39 after his own name and their kingdom by the second name. 11. And when he had taken away this name he planted trees there, called Persea, that is plums.40 12. These trees, moreover, are planted to the present day in memory of his name. And the Persians were Assyrians at that time, and he reigned over them all during fifty and three years. 13. And there was a great commotion and a hissing and much rain, and the river in Syria, named Orontes, was quickly filled. 14. (And) he urged the Ionians41 to make prayers, and when they had |23 offered supplications there fell from heaven a globe of fire in the likeness of lightning. 15. And the people became still and ceased to be indignant, and the flowings of the river were stayed. 16. And as Perseus was surprised at what had befallen, forthwith from that lire he kindled a fire and preserved it. 17. And this fire he took and brought to Persia on his return and placed it in the kingdom of Assyria. 18. And the Persians made it a god and honoured it and built it a temple and named it 'The immortal fire'. 19. And they say that fire is a son of the Sun enveloped in crystal, and the form of the crystal resembles the cotton tree (?), the colour of which is like water; for it is born from water and its interior resembles water.
18. And the Persians made it a god and honoured it and built it a temple and named it 'The immortal fire'. 19. And they say that fire is a son of the Sun enveloped in crystal, and the form of the crystal resembles the cotton tree (? ), the colour of which is like water; for it is born from water and its interior resembles water.
CHAPTER XXII. 1. Inachus of the race of Japhet, the son of Noah, who ruled in the west over the country of the Argives, was the first to rule over that country. 2. He paid honour to the Moon and made her a goddess. 3. And he built in the country of the Argives a city named Iopolis after the name of the Moon ; for the Argives in their secret mysteries name the moon Io unto this day. 4. And he built a temple, and set up an altar in it, and he |24 represented the Moon by a brazen image, whereon he inscribed 0I0w_ ma&kaira, which is by interpretation, 'full of light '.42
CHAPTER XXIII. 1. And Libya, who was the daughter of Picus by her mother Qalfmja, became the wife of Poseidon, who ruled in the south. 2. And he named the country over which he ruled after the name of his wife Libya. And he begat by her Poseidon and Belus and Agenor. 3. And this (last), having gone to Canaan, took him a wife named Diro, and also built a city and named it Dairus, that is Tyre, after the name of his wife. 4. And during his reign there he begat by her three sons, men of renown and founders, i. e. Syrus and Cilix and Phoenix who was the first to wear silk. 5. And when about to die he divided (his empire) among his three sons and made the land subject to them. 6. And Phoenix took Canaan and all the adjoining country and named it Phoenicia after his own name. 7. And the second took Syria and gave it his name, 8. And Cilix the third took his territory and named.it Cilicia after his own name.
CHAPTER XXIV. 1. And there was a man named Taurus, king' of Crete, and he made an expedition against Tyre about the hour of sunset, and attacked it, and made himself master of it, and took its riches and + led away captive many cities +. 2. And in that way he took Europa and made her his wife. For Taurus having made a night expedition by sea returned to his own country, Crete, and having taken Europa to be his wife, he named that country after the name of; his wife. 3. And he built a city there and |25 named it Gortyna after the name of his mother. Now she was of the race of Picus, i.e. Zeus.
CHAPTER XXV. And there was a certain man named Laius. + His father was Waika,+ who, seeing that his son would have commerce with his mother, commanded his soldiers to suspend him on a tree of which they had cloven the branches in order that the feet of him that was suspended might be made fast in it.
Now she was of the race of Picus, i. e. Zeus. CHAPTER XXV. And there was a certain man named Laius. + His father was Waika,+ who, seeing that his son would have commerce with his mother, commanded his soldiers to suspend him on a tree of which they had cloven the branches in order that the feet of him that was suspended might be made fast in it.
CHAPTER XXVI. 1. And there was a man named Seruch of the race of Japhet, the son of Noah. 2. He appears to have been the first of those who worshipped idols through the influence of Satan. And he set up altars to the idols and served them.
CHAPTER XXVII. 1. And Melchizedek was found to be holy though of Gentile origin, and he served God and was chaste (and) without sin. 2. And Holy Scripture declares him to be without father and mother because he was not of the family of Abraham. 3. And he hated his father's gods and made himself a priest of the living God. 4. He was descended from the race of Sidus, son of (Egyptus) the king of Egypt and Nubia, on whose account the Egyptians are (so) called. 5. Now Melchizedek signifies king of righteousness. 6. Now King Sidus, though a priest, ruled over Canaan, being sprung of a powerful race, and the Egyptians so named him because of (the land of) the Canaanites, which is the land of Palestine until this day. 7. And when he warred with them, they submitted themselves to him, and as they were pleasing unto him, he dwelt in their country, and built a city and called it Sidon after his own name, which till the present day has been reckoned in |26 Canaan. 8. Now as touching the father of Melchizedek who went forth from Sidon, we have learnt that such was his origin. But his father was an idolater and his mother likewise. And this holy man used to reprove his father and his mother for their idolatry. 9. And afterwards he fled away and became priest of the living God as has been recounted. And he ruled over the Canaanites and built on Golgotha a city named Zion, i.e. Salem, a name which being interpreted means in the language of the Hebrews 'the city of peace'. 10. And he ruled over it one hundred and thirteen years and died, having preserved his chastity and righteousness as the wise Josephus,43 the historian, has written in the beginning of his work on the history of the Jews. 11. For he was the first (to offer) sacrifices to the God of heaven and bloodless oblations of bread and wine in the likeness of the holy mysteries of our Lord Jesus Christ ; as David has sung, saying : 'Thou art His priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.'44 12. And again he said: 'God manifested Himself in Zion 45 and His name is great in Israel, and His place abideth in peace 46 and His dwelling is in Zion.' For the Jews learnt from Abraham the knowledge of God. 13. And Salem also, that is, Jerusalem, is named [Jerusalem] 47 because peace abideth in Zion, that is, Melchizedek. 14. And the Jews were called 48 Hebrews from Heber, from whom Abraham, the chosen vessel, was descended. 15. And when the rebels against God built the tower and laboured in vain in their impious designs, Heber indeed refused to join with them : he alone preserved without wavering his loyalty to God. 16. And when the confusion of tongues took place, Heber alone was not deprived of his speech 49 |27 in its integrity and perfectness. 17. And his successors guarded the language of angels which Adam spoke. And for this reason they are called Hebrews and their language Hebrew.
CHAPTER XXVIII. 1. There was a man named Hesiod of the race of Japhet, the son of Noah. 2. He invented Greek letters and was the first to teach them. 3. It is told that there was in the times of the kings of the country + in Lydia + a certain philosopher descended from the children of the giants who were of the race of Japhet, named Endymion. 4. He, it is told, prayed in secret to the Moon, and they say that he learnt from the Moon in a vision the name of God. 5. And when he +went one day+, he heard the sacred name and thereupon he gave up the ghost and died and rose not again. 6. And his body is preserved unto this day in the city of + Lydia +, and any one can see it once a year when they open the coffin in which it is.
CHAPTER XXIX. 1. It is told that in the time of Joshua the son of Nun, a king named Ogyges ruled over Attica, and that there was a great deluge in that country only. And the king himself perished and the inhabitants of that country. 2. And it became a desert and no man dwelt therein for two hundred and six years,50 as Africanus has recorded in his chronicle.
CHAPTER XXX. 1. And in the days of Moses the lawgiver, the servant of God who led the exodus of the children of Israel out of |28 Egypt, + in the days of Petissonius, that is, Pharaoh Amosius, king of Egypt, who ruled by the help of the book of the magicians Jannes and Jambres, who wrought shameful things before the mighty Moses, who talked with God—for this reason, they say, they were not willing to let the children of Israel go after the signs and the wonders which were wrought by his staff, + 51 2. Now (Petissonius) went to the diviners who were in Memphis and to the celebrated oracle and offered sacrifice. 3. And when one of the Hebrews asked the diviner Taninus <Who is first among you ? he answered :>52 'He who is in heaven, the Immortal, the First: before whom the heavens quake and likewise the earth and all the seas fear, and the Satans are affrighted and but a few angels stand; for He is the creator of powers and measures.' 4. And Petissonius inscribed this oracle on a tablet and placed it in the temple of the gods near the water-measure whereby they learn the volume of the Nile. 5. We should recount that, when the temple was already destroyed: this tablet was the only one in Egypt that was still unbroken till the foundations of the idol temples were overthrown, and it was no longer possible for any one to maintain the temple of Memphis. 6. It was only through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ that all the temples were destroyed. 7. Now this mad Petissonius, that is, the Pharaoh Amosius, was overwhelmed in the Red Sea together with his horses and horsemen. 8. And when, after the children of Israel had gone forth from Egypt, he learnt that they had taken (with them) the riches of the Egyptians— a thing they had done with the approval of God and in accordance with His law; for the children of Israel had taken the riches of the Egyptians in compensation for the heavy labours which had been imposed upon them without intermission—Pharaoh was filled with indignation. 9. Thereupon he went forth in pursuit of them with his army. And he was overwhelmed in the sea with his followers and there was not one left. 10. And the children of Israel marched in the sea as on dry land, and they came to the place where God willed : for. He is the conqueror of all the elements of creation.—Glory be to Him. 11. And, after the Egyptians had been destroyed, those who remained worshipped demons and forsook God, Those unhappy ones destroyed themselves and became like |29 unto the angels who rebelled against God, and they worshipped the work of their own hands. 12. Some worshipped the cow, and some the ox, and some the dog and also the mule: and some the ass, and some the lion : and some fish, and some the crocodile : and some the leek and many other like things. 13. And they named their cities of Egypt after the name of their god. And they worshipped the + buildings+ of Busir and Manuf and Samnud and Sahraisht and Esna and of the Tree and of the Crocodile. And they gave divine honours to + the building of many cities + 53 and likewise to the storm.
CHAPTER XXXI. 1. And during the time of him who first reigned over the Egyptians, when they served idols and such creatures as have already been mentioned and as regards the celebrated city Absâi, that is, Nakius, and its king was named Prosopis, a name which being interpreted means 'Lover of the deities with three faces'—now he lived on the west bank of the river and he was continually at war with the barbarians who were named Mauritanians who came from the five countries.54 2. And when these came in wrath, the inhabitants warred vigorously against them and slew many of them. 3. And in consequence of this happy victory, (the barbarians) did not for a long period come again against the city) through the mercy of God who by the mighty power of his Godhead hath made all things to come into being out of nothingness. 4. And the great river of Egypt was named Chrysorroas by the Greeks but it is named Gihon in the book that is inspired by God. 5. Now this river flowed (anciently) to the east of the city, but it changed its course from the east to the west of the city, and the city became like an island in the midst of the river like a plantation of trees named Akrejas, that is, the myrtle.
CHAPTER XXXII. 1. And as for Jerusalem which had been built by Melchizedek its king under the sway of the Canaanites, that is, the Philistines, Joshua the son of Nun subdued it and called it Jebus. 2. And he dwelt in Shechem; for he had subdued all the adjoining country. And this (city) is named Nablus unto this day. 3. And in the days of the wise kings David and Solomon, David prepared all the building materials for the building of the holy temple of God, and Solomon built it in Jerusalem. 4. And he |30 called it the city of the sanctuary on account of the consecration and the sacrifices according to the law and the abundance of righteousness and because our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ— praise be unto Him—underwent the passion there.
CHAPTER XXXIII. And in the days of the Judges, there was a judge of the Greeks named Pano&pthj, who was so named in regard to the hundred piercing eyes with which he beheld afar and saw better than all men. He was the first to devise in a city of the west all manner of handicrafts.
CHAPTER XXXIV. 1. Prometheus and Epimetheus discovered a stone tablet with an inscription which had been written and engraved in the days of the ancients. 2. And Elijah the prophet interpreted the verses. So the Greeks (have recounted) this saying that on account of this he ascended to heaven and that what had been in heaven was in his heart. 3. And Deucalion, moreover, wrote a detailed history55 of what had happened in the days of the deluge and the strange events (of that time).
CHAPTER XXXV. 1. And after the deluge in Attica, the sovereignty passed into the hands of the Athenians. 2. And there ruled there a man named Elwates56 and he established the (common) meal as a legal institution. 3. And he was also the first to ordain that all men should take as their wives young virgins and name them spouses: and that they should dig a fountain in a hidden place in order to cause milk to spring (from the earth) in abundance as a visible stream. 4. Now before his reign the women of Attica and the Athenians lived in unclean intercourse and male was joined to male. And they were like beasts : each lusted (after the other) and none had a woman to himself; but they ravished with wicked violence as we have already recounted. 5. And they knew not their own offspring, either their male or female. And who could have known, seeing that none of them had fathers and all whom they bare57 were begotten by all. Owing to their promiscuous intercourse they could not know whether they had male or female offspring. And they were all pleased with this unclean mode of living. 6. As Cecrops the author of the prescript in his law has said : 'This country of Attica will be destroyed bv a deluge from God.' 7. And after this time they became wise and |31 conformed to the law of marriage, the men and the women. 8. And Cecrops was highly honoured and esteemed all his days, and he brought it about that the children knew their fathers, as was befitting.
CHAPTER XXXVI. 1. And in these days lived Orpheus of Thrace, the lyric poet of the Odrysae, called the great sage among the Greeks. 2. He expounded to them that which is called the Theogony, which being interpreted in their language means 'The combatant of God', which things are recounted by the chronicler Timothy. 3. He said : 'Before all time was the holy Trinity coequal in one Godhead, Creator of all things.'
CHAPTER XXXVI. 1. And in these days lived Orpheus of Thrace, the lyric poet of the Odrysae, called the great sage among the Greeks. 2. He expounded to them that which is called the Theogony, which being interpreted in their language means 'The combatant of God', which things are recounted by the chronicler Timothy. 3. He said : 'Before all time was the holy Trinity coequal in one Godhead, Creator of all things. '
CHAPTER XXXVII. 1. It is said that certain savants of the Athenians were the first to practise the art of medicine. 2. Indeed the philosophers were the first who made known the noble art of using medicines which agreed with the stomach. 3. And many people go to Athens for the sake of this art also, for it flourishes there until this day.
CHAPTER XXXVIII. 1. King Solomon the son of David was the first to build baths and places for reading and instruction in every place under his dominion; for he had the demons subject to him. 2. Now he enjoyed this privilege before he provoked God the Lord of all through the strange women who lived with him. These polluted Jerusalem with their gods.
CHAPTER XXXIX. 1. In the days of the Judges also there arose in Phrygia a philosopher named Marsyas. 2. He was the first to play upon the flute and the horn and the drum (?). And he deafened the ears of men and made himself out to be a god, saying : 'I have found food for man by means of a small member.' 3. And God was wroth with him and punished him and he became insane and cast himself into the river and perished.
2. He was the first to play upon the flute and the horn and the drum (? ). And he deafened the ears of men and made himself out to be a god, saying : 'I have found food for man by means of a small member. ' 3. And God was wroth with him and punished him and he became insane and cast himself into the river and perished.
CHAPTER XL. 1. And in those days also lived the hero Heracles and the Argonauts, the people that were with Jason. And they |32 went to the Hellespont. 2. And the people (of the Hellespont) had a king named Cyzicus. And they attacked and slew the king Cyzicus without knowing it. 3. And when they learned (this), they were grieved; for they were all his kinsmen (and he was sprung) from their country. 4. And after they had attacked Cyzicus, who was called the lord of the seven images, and won the victory <they built a temple in Cyzicum, and> named its name Rhea, which is by interpretation, mother of the gods. 5. It is told (further) that they went to the place of those who announced (oracles) and to the seat of the elders and asked one of them, saying: 'Prophesy to us, O prophet, servant of Apollo, of what nature this building will be and to whom shall it belong.' 6. And they presented gifts to him who spake to them and he said unto them : 'There are three (Persons) but one God only. And behold a virgin will conceive His word, and this house will be His and His name shall belong to thousands.' 7. And the idolaters wrote down this prophecy on a fragment of marble with a brazen pen, and they placed it in one of the temples. 8. After these times in the days of the Godloving emperor Zeno, this temple was converted into a church, dedicated to the holy Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. 9. This the emperor Zeno did at his own costs. And thus was accomplished the prophecy of the demons who proclaimed the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER XLI. 1. The Argonauts sailed to the Hellespont to an island named Principus. 2. Thence they went to Chalcedon and sought to pass into the sea of Pontus. 3. But the inhabitants brought with them a man of valour and fought with them. (And) he gained the mastery and overcame them. 4. And fearing the wrath of this man, they fled to a very desolate extremity of the coast. 5. And they saw a mighty portent from heaven which resembled a man with great wings on his shoulders after the likeness of a very terrible eagle. 6. And it said unto them: 'When ye fight with Amyous ye will overcome.' And when they heard these words from the apparition which they saw, they |33 took courage and fought and overcame him and slew him. 7. And they honoured that place where they had seen the mighty figure, and they built there a temple and they placed in it a statue resembling the apparition they had seen. 8. And they named this temple Sosthenium because they had sought refuge there and were saved. And so they name it unto this day. 9. And in the days of Constantine, the greatest and most illustrious of Christian emperors, the servant of Jesus Christ, when he first established the seat of empire in Byzantium, that is in Rome, he came to the Sosthenium to close the temple of the idols to be found there. 10. And when he saw the statue which was in it, he at once recognized that it was the statue of an angel. And as his thoughts were troubled with doubts he prayed and besought our Lord Jesus Christ in whom he trusted, saying: 'Make me to know, O Lord, whose image this is.' 11. And thereupon he fell asleep and heard in a vision that the image was the image of S. Michael the archangel. 12. Having learnt that it was he who had sent people to fight Amycus the emperor caused this temple to be adorned and commanded them to turn it to the east and [commanded them] to consecrate it in the name of the archangel Michael.
13. And numerous miracles were wrought in this (temple) through healings of the sick. And after that Christians began to build churches in the name of S. Michael the chief of the angels. And they offered in them holy offerings unto God.
CHAPTER XLII. 1, It is said touching the holy nails which were found in the cross of our Saviour Jesus Christ and with which his holy body was nailed, that the holy, Godloving Constantine took one of them and fixed it in the saddle of his horse; and the second he made into a bit for his horse; and the third he cast into the pass of Chalcedon. 2. For they were in grievous danger till by means of this holy nail the waves of the sea, yea all the waves of the ocean, were quieted. 3. And the empire made itself strong in the city of Constantine. Now in the days of Zeno the empire had had its seat in Rome. Afterwards the (two) empires were united in one by a decree of the Senate. |34 4. For one (of these) had been established on account of the continual outbreaks of the barbarians, and the other in accordance with the counsel of the prefects in order that they might have another authority in Asia.
CHAPTER XLIII. 1. And in the days of Samson the last of the Judges, Lapathus ruled in the land58 of Aegistheus.59 And he had two sons, whose names were Achaius and Lacon.60 2. And he divided the provinces of his kingdom into two parts, one half for himself and the other half for his sons. 3. And when he died, one province was named Achaia after the name of his eldest son, and the other was named Laconia after the name of the younger son (and such are their names) unto this day.
CHAPTER XLIV. 1. And at that epoch there reigned in Hellas a king whose name was Pelops. 2. After this man the Hellenes called the kingdom Peloponnesian by his name unto this day. 3. And he built a city and they named it Peloponnesus after his name. And the name of his kingdom is Hellas unto this day.
CHAPTER XLV. 1. And there was a man named Bilawon. He built the city Farma after his own name. 2. And Priam built the city of Malkibinun ( = Ilium?), in Phrygia ... in the city of Sparta in the country of Hellas, when he came there.
CHAPTER XLVI. And there was a wise and sagacious man named Palamedes. He was the first to teach the arts of playing on the harp and lyre 61 and the flute and all manner of musical instruments.
2. And Priam built the city of Malkibinun ( = Ilium? ), in Phrygia ... in the city of Sparta in the country of Hellas, when he came there. CHAPTER XLVI. And there was a wise and sagacious man named Palamedes. He was the first to teach the arts of playing on the harp and lyre 61 and the flute and all manner of musical instruments.
CHAPTER XLVII. 1. And Tros, also, who ruled over the country of Phrygia 62 . . . before that he had slain Priam and Hecuba, and he slew their young men and plundered their royal palaces that it might be a memorial unto him, and this city came under his power, and he named it Enderjan. 2. And Setabarja of Panton he named Asia of the Ephesians.63 It was named . . . which is now Saqilja |35 (= Sicily ?), and it became a great island and its earlier name was Qubaba.
CHAPTER XL VIII. 1. And Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built a great structure in + Bilimiktun+ in the midst of the city to be a memorial unto him in order that his name and the name of his father should not be forgotten. 2. And he gave it to a man named Aiwani, which is by interpretation in the language of Canaan 'light', but he named the structure Palmyra. 3. Indeed it was in that place that David his father, the strong and mighty one, was victorious when he slew and was victorious over Goliath the Philistine. 4. It is for this reason that he appointed its name to be Mezad in order that strange peoples (azmad) might dwell therein. And a great number of Jewish soldiers dwelt there. 5. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Persia took this city, having to expend much toil and severe effort before he could take it and burn it with fire. And he caused the memorial of it to disappear till this day.
CHAPTER XLIX. 1. And (he took) the city Tyre also, which is an island surrounded by water. And he put forth many a mighty effort to take it. 2. And he commanded his soldiers, the cavalry and foot-soldiers, and all the Persians to cast earth into the arm of the sea which surrounded it. 3. And they filled it with earth till the water of the sea dried up and (the strait) became as land. And by these means Nebuchadnezzar the king of the Persians was able to take this city.