The Contendings of the Apostles, Part 1

The Contendings of the Apostles, Part 1

continued

The Preaching of Saint Matthias

1 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, [One God.] And it came to pass in those days that the holy Apostles were gathered together in Jerusalem (now they were all assembled in one place), and they divided the countries of the world among themselves, and they cast lots, so that each of them might go unto the place which fell to him by his lot; and it fell upon the blessed Matthias to go to the city of the Cannibals. Now in that city the people eat neither bread nor drink water, but only the flesh of men do they eat, and their drink is the blood of men. And whensoever any man goeth into their country they put out his eyes, and give him certain medicine to drink whereby he becometh bewitched, and when he hath drunk the poison for seven days his heart changeth, and his mind changeth, and his understanding becometh like unto that of a beast. Then they carry him to prison, and bring him grass (or hay) to eat, and he dwelleth there for thirty days; and after this time they bring him out, and slay him, and then they divide his flesh [among] the people of the city.

2 Now when Matthias had come into the gate of the city, the people thereof laid hold upon him, and put out his eyes, and made him to drink enchanted medicines, and they put him into the prison-house, and brought him grass (or hay) to eat, but Matthias would not eat thereof; and although he had drunk their medicine his heart (or understanding) remained unchanged, and his mind was in no wise altered. And Matthias began to weep, and said, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, for Whose sake we have left all and followed Thee, I know that Thou wilt be my helper. Look and see what they have done unto Matthias Thy servant, and how they have treated me like a beast of the field; but Thou knowest everything. Since Thou didst command me to come into this city, if the sinful men thereof [wish] to devour my flesh [let them do so], and I shall not flee from Thy command; but give only light unto mine eyes so that I may see what the sinful men of this city will do unto me. Be not deaf unto my petition, O my Lord Jesus Christ, and deliver Thou me not over unto a cruel death." And saying these words Matthias wept and groan-ed aloud. Then straightway there came a great light which illumined the inside of the prison-house, and a Voice went forth from that light which said, "O Matthias, My beloved, look with thine eyes;" and Matthias looked, and he was able to see, and he rejoiced with an exceedingly great joy, and he fell upon his face and worshipped that light. Then again a Voice went forth from that light which said, "Be strong, O Matthias, and fear

3 AA* 119a. "not, for I will not forsake thee, and I, even I, will deliver thee; and not thyself only, but all those who are with thee, for I will be with thee every day, and for ever. And now, wait thou patiently seven and twenty days for deliverance by man, and after this period I will send unto thee thy brother Andrew, and he shall bring thee out from this place, and not thyself only but all those who are with thee here." Then the Voice said unto him, "Peace be unto thee, O Matthias," and the light passed away into the heavens. And Matthias, being full of joy said, "Let Thy grace come to me and be with me, O Jesus Christ, my Lord;" and having said these words he sat down. 4 And the officers of the prison-house came to bring out men for the food of the people of the city; and Matthias was there, and he kept his eyes shut so that they should not see that he had the power of sight. And the officers came to where he was, and they read out the writing of the tablet which was on his hand, and said among themselves, "Three days are still left unto him, and then we will bring him out, and slay him for the food [of the people]. Now it was the custom of that country for the people thereof whenever they seized a stranger (or traveller) to cast him into the prison-house, and they kept account of the day wherein they had brought him in [there], by tying a written tablet to his hand for thirty days; and then, when he had become fat, they would bring him out, and kill him and eat him. And when Matthias had completed [his thirty days] they laid hold upon him [to bring him out, and to kill and eat him]. Then our Lord appeared unto Andrew and his disciples in the country wherein they were teaching, and He said unto Andrew, "Andrew. And Andrew answered and said unto Him, "What is it, Lord? Then the Lord said unto him, "Rise up and depart unto 'the city of the Cannibals,' unto the place which I will 'shew thee, and bring out Matthias from thence.

5 Three days are [still] left unto him, but after that time sinful men will lay hold upon him, so that they may perform the work of wickedness and kill him.' Then Andrew answered and said unto him, 'Lord, how can I perform the journey, and arrive [there], and find him in three days? And besides, I know not the road, for I have never travelled thereon. Send an angel [endowed] with power to bring him forth thence, for I am only a being of flesh, and Thou knowest what the flesh of man is, and I am afraid to go thither.' And our Lord answered and said unto Andrew, 'Hearken, O Andrew, if I had the wish I could speak one word unto Matthias and his dis-ciples, and I could bring them hither forthwith. But now, rise up and depart at daybreak unto the sea-coast, where thou shalt find a ship ready [to sail]; and thou shalt ask those who are in the ship where they are going, so that thou mayest go [with them] and ful-fil My command.' Then Andrew rose up at daybreak and went to the sea, and he saw a little 1203.

6 ship and three men sitting therein; now it was our Lord Jesus Christ and His power that had made the ship, and He had caused His glory to be hidden, and He appeared in the form of a man. And our Lord had brought three angels [with Him] and He made [them to appear] as if they were wishing to treat the Apostles with roughness. Then Andrew said unto them, "We may not give slumber "[unto our eyes], for we are the disciples of Jesus Christ, and servants of the Good God. When He chose us Twelve He gave us a commandment, saying, 'When ye travel ye shall preach and teach, and ye shall not take with you nor shall ye carry either gold, or silver, or wallet, or staff, or two changes of raiment, or any piece of money in your wallet, except that which [is sufficient to buy] one loaf of bread;' therefore we have no [money] in our hand. Now, if ye will deal graciously

7 1403. "[with us], tell us quickly; and if ye will not, behold, we will go and enquire [if we can sail] in other ships." And Jesus answered and said, "Is the command which your Lord hath given you indeed thus? Verily I say unto you, Get ye up into My ship, O ye Apostles of Jesus Christ, for I would rather have you in it than those who would give Me money. Is it not meet for 1203. 8 "Me [to be] with the Apostles of the Lord God, and to travel with them unto Mine own country? Then Andrew answered and said unto Him, "May Jesus Christ keep thee, and give Thee glory and praise, O my beloved Brother; and Andrew went up into the ship with his disciples, and [stood on] the deck(?). And Jesus answered and said unto the angels, "Rise up and go down into the body of the ship, and bring up three loaves of bread which [these men] may eat; and they brought [them] unto Him. And Jesus answered and said, "O my brother Andrew, rise up and take [this] bread, so that ye may be able to bear the waves of the sea; and Andrew said unto his disciples, "We have found in this Man great love for His fellow creatures. Then Andrew answered and said, "O my Brother, may God give unto Thee bread in the kingdom of heaven! And now, leave me, O my Brother. And Jesus answered and said unto Andrew, "Compel these thy men to take some food," but a voice answered Him, saying, "They are not able to eat anything whatsoever, for they have been greatly frightened since they saw the sea, and they are not accustomed to travel thereon. Then Jesus answered and said unto Andrew, "Fear thou not, for nothing [shall harm] thy disciples in passing over the sea.

9 But enquire of them if they wish to descend to the land [again], and to wait there until thou hast gone and performed what thou hast been commanded [to do], after which thou wilt return unto them. So Andrew asked his disciples, saying, "O my children, do ye desire to descend to the land, and to wait there whilst I go and fulfil my mission and return unto you? Then Andrew's disciples answered and said [unto him], "If we were to dissemble in our heart, and were to say with our mouth 'We are not afraid', we should be liars; but, inasmuch as if we were remote from thee we should become strangers to the good things which thou hast given unto us, we will go with thee whithersoever thou goest." 10 Then Jesus answered and said unto him, "If thou art the disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ, teach thy disciples with sweet words how to make their hearts to rejoice, and to forget the billows of the sea, for behold, we are going to take the ship away some distance from the land. And Jesus commanded the angels, saying, "Let go the ship from the land," and they let the ship go from the land. Then Jesus went and sat down upon the place for steering that He might steer the ship, and meanwhile Andrew admonished and taught his disciples, and encouraged them, saying, "O my children who have delivered yourselves over [to tribulation] for the sake of Christ, let not your hearts be moved, for our Lord will not forsake us, and He will be with us and will preserve us for ever. Now, in times past, we the Twelve Apostles embarked in a ship, and our Lord was with us; and our Lord went down into the body of the ship, and lay down to sleep, wishing to try us, but He did not go to sleep. And a very mighty wind arose, and the waves of the sea dashed over the ship, and great fear laid hold upon us; then He arose and rebuked the sea and the winds, and there came a great calm over the sea, for all things fear Him because they are the work of His hands. Fear not then, O my children, for God will not neglect you.

11 Then whilst Andrew was admonishing them with these words, and praying in his heart that sleep might overtake his disciples, they fell asleep. And whilst Andrew was praying on their behalf his disciples fell into a slumber, and slept a deep sleep, and when Andrew knew that they were asleep he rejoiced with an exceedingly great joy. Then Andrew turned towards Jesus, Who was in the form of the master of the ship, and he began to hold converse with Him; now He knew not that the Man was Jesus. And he said unto Him, "O my Brother, verily Thou art cunning in Thy craft, and the steering of a ship is well suited to Thee, for no man can steer a ship as Thou canst. Verily, I say unto thee, I have crossed the sea seventeen times, behold, seventeen times, and I never saw a mariner as skilled as Thou art, for Thou steerest this ship as well on the sea as if it were upon land. Then Jesus answered and said unto Andrew, "O my brother, in travelling over this sea we have been in tribulation many times, but the sea knoweth that thou art a disciple of Christ and a righteous man, and it doeth honour unto thee [now], and it will not lift up its waves against thee. Then Andrew cried out with a loud voice, saying, "I give thanks unto Thee, and I bless Thee, O my Lord Jesus Christ, that I am holding converse with a Man Who doth glorify Thee.

12 And Jesus answered and said unto Andrew, "Tell Me, O disciple of the Lord Jesus, why the unbelieving Jews did not believe in Jesus, and why they said, 'He is not the Son of God, but a man.' Reveal the matter to Me then, O thou who art a disciple of Jesus, for we have heard that He made Himself manifest to His disciples in the mountain. Then Andrew answered and said unto Him, "Yea, He did, O my Brother, and I will tell Thee how God revealed Himself unto us. It was He Who made man, and Who for our salvation became Man, and was crucified, and rose in the form of God, for He is God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, "Why then was it that the Jews did not believe? 13 "Dost thou know whether it was because He did not work [miracles] before them?" Then Andrew answered and said unto Him, "Hast thou never heard how our Lord wrought mighty deeds before them? How He opened the eyes of the blind, and made the lame to walk, and the deaf to hear, and how He raised the dead, and cleansed the lepers, and turned water into wine, and how He took five [loaves] of bread, and two fishes, and commanded the multitudes of the people to sit down upon the grass, and how having broken the bread [He gave it to them,] and they were all filled? Now the number of those people was five thousand, but even after this [the Jews] did not believe." And Jesus answered, and said unto him, "I think that this miracle which He wrought [was done] among the people and not before the priests." Then Andrew said unto Him, "Not only openly did He work [miracles], but He did so in secret also; and still they did not believe in Him." And Jesus answered and said unto him, "Tell me now, truly, what your Master did in secret." Then Andrew answered and said, "I believe that Thou wouldst put me to the test." And Jesus answered and said unto him, "Tell Me, O my brother, so that My soul may rejoice."

14 Then Andrew answered and said unto Him, "O my son, may God perfect for Thee every good work! And now, hearken unto [the story of] the miracle which our Lord Jesus Christ wrought in secret. The Twelve Apostles were with our Lord, and when the chief priests saw us following Him, they said unto us, 'Woe be unto you, O accursed ones, for ye follow after this Man who saith, I am the Son of God. Who among you hath seen God and conversed with Him? Is not MARY His mother? And are not James and Simon His brethren? "Now when we heard these words our hearts turned towards unbelief. Then Jesus knew that our hearts were turning away from Him, and our Lord took us and carried us away into a desert place, and He wrought a mighty miracle and performed a most wonderful thing before us, and made manifest His Divinity unto us. Then we said unto the chief priests, 'Come ye and see for yourselves if ye will not believe us;' and the chief priests came with us, and we went with them into one of their heathen temples. And when we had entered in we saw a similitude of the heavens [which was so exact] that we believed that it was God [Who had made it]; and there came in with us three men from among the people, and four of the chief priests.

15 Then, having come inside the temple, Jesus saw two images which were hewn out of stone, the one on the right hand, and the other on the left of the temple. And our Lord made us to turn round and said unto the men, Do ye see the similitude (or figure) of the heavens? Those which ye see are the figures of the Seraphim and Cherubim, which are in heaven above, but they are the work of men upon the earth.' Then Jesus turned to the figure which was at the right of the place where the cunning work was, and said unto it, 'I say unto thee, O thou figure of a heavenly being which hath been fashioned by a handicraftsman, remove thyself, and come down from the place whereon thou art, and tell the chief priests whether I am God or no, and rebuke them.' Then straightway, in that same hour, the statue leaped down, and spake after the manner of a man, and said, 'O ye foolish Jews, who live always in blindness, and are never able to cease therefrom! moreover, there are others who wish to be as blind as ye are, and who say that [He Who is] God is [only] a man. But it is He Who fashioned man in the beginning, and Who gave unto him His own breath of life; it is He Who causeth to move everything which moveth; it is He Who held converse with Abraham; it is He Who brought Jacob back to his own country;

16 it is He Who is the God of the living and of the dead; it is He Who is ready [to bestow] blessings upon those who call upon Him; and it is He Who is ready to punish those who do not submit unto Him. Can ye not see that I am only a [piece of] carved stone? I say unto you that we are [pieces of] carved stone which have been hewn into shape by the hand of the handicraftsman, and yet they call us, and give us the name of gods.' But this they say because they know not God; and their priests who minister with sacrifices make themselves pure that they may minister at their altars because they are afraid of devils; and for this reason they have given us the name of 'gods,' and they call us by this name because they know not God. For when the priests have had intercourse with devils (i. e., women) they purify themselves [for seven days], and then they bring in offerings to me through fear. Ye commit fornication, and then ye take the Law of God in your hand, and come into your synagogues, and perform the service, and read the services, and yet fear not the glorious Word of God. Therefore shall your synagogues be destroyed, and they shall become churches to the Name of the One Who is the Son of the Lord God.'

17 "And having said these things the image held its peace. Then we answered and said unto the chief priests, 'Do ye believe? Behold, ye must speak what is right [before] this stone image, and ye must shew yourselves to be ashamed.' And the chief priests answered and said, 'Ye must see and understand that this stone speaketh only by means of [your] sorceries, and ye must not imagine that it is God Who speaketh unto us; and if ye think that it is the stone itself which speaketh, [ye err] and ye must know that it is only by means of [your] sorceries that [it doeth so]. For behold, ye heard the stone say, It was He Who spake with Abraham. Where now, did the stone find Abraham? It is not a few days since Abraham died, nay, it must have been before he (i. e., the figure in the stone) was born. How then could he have known Abraham?' And having again turned Himself towards the statue, Jesus said unto it, 'Inasmuch as they do not believe what thou didst say unto them concerning Abraham, whose body is in the grave, and whose soul is in the Garden of Joy (i. e., Paradise), go thou and speak unto them, saying, Thus saith He Who fashioned man at the creation, and Who made thee to be [His] friend,' Rise up, and come

18 The allusion here is to the Bible passages in which Abraham is called the "Friend" of God; see 2 Chronicles xx. 7; Isaiah xli. 8. "forth, thou and thy son Isaac, and Jacob, thy son's son, and come into the three temples of Bāsyōs, and rebuke the priests, and let them know that I know thee, and that thou knowest Me.' "And when the image heard these words from our Lord it straightway passed by us, as we were all looking on, and it departed and journeyed unto the land of the Canaanites, and came unto the grave of Abraham; "and it stood up outside the grave, and cried out and declared the command which [it had received] from our Lord. Then straightway the twelve patriarchs came "forth alive from the grave, and they said unto the image, 'Unto whom among us hast thou been sent?' And the statue answered and said unto them, 'Unto

19 "three of the patriarchs [only]; get ye in and sleep until the time of the resurrection;' and when they [the nine other patriarchs] heard [this] they went into their graves. Then the [three] patriarchs departed with the image, and they came unto the chief priests, and rebuked them; and after this Jesus' said unto them, 'Depart ye unto your places and sleep, O fathers.' And having turned Himself towards the image, Jesus said unto it, 'Return thou unto thy place;' and straightway it returned to its place, and remained as it had been aforetime. Now the chief priests, although they had seen these things, did not believe. And besides this thing there were many other "things which our Lord shewed unto us in secret, and if I were to tell [them] to Thee, O my Brother, Thou 20 "wouldst not be able to understand them." And Jesus "answered and said unto him, I am able to understand every hidden thing, and everything which belongeth unto faith; for a few words suffice for the wise man, but the soul of the fool will not believe whatsoever a man telleth him until the day of his death."

21 And Jesus knew within Himself that the ship was nigh to arrive at the shore, and He ceased to talk with Andrew, and having laid down his head he also fell asleep. Now when Jesus knew that Andrew was asleep, He said unto His angels, "Make flat your hands, and lift up Andrew and his disciples, and depart, and set them down outside the City of the Cannibals, and when ye have set them down, then come back to Me. Then they laid flat [their hands], as Jesus had commanded them, and they lifted up Andrew and his disciples, and they flew up into the air [with them], and laid them down outside the City of the Cannibals; then Jesus went back into heaven, together with His angels. And when the morning had come Andrew awoke, and opened his eyes, and he saw that he was upon dry land, and he sat and gazed at the gates of the city; and turning round he saw that his disciples were [still] sleeping. Then he woke them up, and said unto them, "Rise up, O my children, and learn ye concerning the work of mercy which the Lord wrought for us on the sea, but we did not recognize Him, for He turned away his face; and He appeared in the form of a man [wishing] to try us. Then Andrew said, "O Lord, I know the beauty of Thy works and word, but Thou didst not reveal Thyself unto me, and therefore I did not recognize Thee.

22 And Andrew's disciples answered and said unto him, "We know that whilst thou wast talking with Him we fell asleep, and three eagles swooped down and snatched away our souls into heaven. And we saw a great marvel, for we saw our Lord Jesus Christ sitting on the throne of His glory, and all His angels were round about Him. And we saw Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the saints, and David singing psalms to his harp, and we saw you, and the [other] Apostles, standing before our Lord Jesus Christ; and by the side of you were [twelve] angels, and behind you was [one] angel in your form. And we heard God saying unto His angels, 'Hearken ye unto whatsoever My Apostles shall say unto you.' This is what we saw, O our father Andrew, and at length thou didst wake us up, and we arose, and our souls returned into our bodies. Then when Andrew had heard these words he rejoiced with an exceedingly great joy, because God had made his disciples worthy to see this wonderful thing. And Andrew lifted up his eyes into heaven, "I was on the ship I held converse with Thee pridefully, thinking that Thou wast a man whom I could teach; and now, O my Lord, appear Thou unto me and make Thyself manifest."

23 And whilst Andrew was speaking thus the Lord came unto him, and He appeared in the form of a beautiful Child. Then Jesus answered and said unto him, "Hail, My friend Andrew! And Andrew [looked and] saw great majesty, and the Child standing there, and he knew that He was Jesus; and Andrew bowed low before Him, saying, "Forgive me, O my Lord Jesus Christ, in that I thought Thee to be a man on the ship, and because I held converse with Thee [as such]. How could I help sinning against Thee, O Lord? For Thou didst not reveal Thyself openly unto me. Then Jesus answered and said unto him, "Thou hast not sinned, O Andrew, but I have done all these things unto thee because thou didst say that thou couldst not go to this city in three days. Therefore have I shewn thee that I am able to do everything, and that I can make Myself to appear in any form I please. And now, rise up, and enter into the City of the Cannibals, and go to the prisonhouse wherein Matthias is, and bring him and all the other men out therefrom. Behold, I tell Thee what shall happen [unto thee]. Thou shalt endure suffering, and in this city they shall treat thee with contumely and disgrace; and they shall bring judgments upon thee, and shall strew the flesh of thy body about in the streets and open places in the city.

24 They shall pour out thy blood like water, but they shall not be able to slay thee, and they shall bring many judgments upon thee, but bear thou them patiently; O My friend Andrew, and act not as do those who have no faith. Remember how they scourged Me, and spat in My face, saying, 'He casteth out devils by means of Beelzebub.' Was I not able, in the twinkling of an eye, to shake down the heavens and the earth upon those who sinned 25 St. Matthew xii. 24. Bb "against Me? Yet I endured patiently that I might give the example of Myself unto you. But know, O Andrew, and endure, for those who will shew themselves hostile to thee in this city are those who have no understanding." And having said these words Jesus went up into heaven. Then Andrew rose up and came into the city, together with his disciples, and there was none who saw them. And when they arrived at the prison-house, Andrew saw seven men standing by [and guarding] the door of the prison-house, and he prayed a prayer, and these men fell down upon the ground, and died; and the Apostles drew nigh unto the doors, and by the might of Christ they opened wide of themselves. Then Andrew went into the prison-house with his disciples, and they saw Matthias sitting and singing psalms; and when Matthias saw him, he rose up, and they embraced each other. And Andrew answered and said unto him, "O my brother Matthias, how findest thou thyself [here]? Behold, there are only three days left unto thee before they bring thee out to eat thee. What hath become of the mighty deeds which [our] Master hath wrought? If I were to tell thee the earth would quake." And Matthias said unto him, "O my brother, hast thou not heard our Lord say, 'Behold, I send you forth like sheep among wolves?' Now, our Lord came and entered into the prison-house, and appeared unto me, and said unto me, Bear patiently for seven and twenty days, and after that time I will send Andrew to bring thee out of the prison-house, and not thee only, but all those who are

26 St. Matthew x. 16. "with thee;" and behold, according as our Lord spake "unto me I see thee this day. Look at these things and see, O Andrew." Then Andrew turned and saw men and women naked, and they were all eating hay like animals. And Andrew smote his breast, and said, "Look and see how they treat these people who are like unto ourselves, for they treat them like the beasts." Then Andrew began to curse the Devil, and he said unto him, "Woe be unto thee, O thou Devil, thou enemy of God, thou foe of all the saints, for these rational beings have done no evil whatsoever! How couldst thou bring upon them this cruel treatment? How long hast thou fought [with us]? Even from the time of the Garden of Delight [which was] in [this] earth. Thou hast given them to eat of hay which was sown in the earth, and thou hast placed a stone upon the table in the place of bread. And, moreover, thou didst enter into the minds of the angels in such wise that they desired women wherewith they might work uncleanness, and they begot sons [who were] giants. And besides, thou didst enter into the heart of the giants in such wise that they devoured men upon the earth, and God was wroth with them, and brought a flood and blotted out everything which He had created upon the earth, except the righteous man Noah and his house. And besides, thou hast come hither and hast made [the people] to devour men. Dost thou imagine that God cannot blot thee out because the waters of a flood shall not come [again] upon the earth? But beyond doubt thy doom shall come upon thee."

27 Then Andrew and Matthias prayed, and after they BB* 145b. 28 had prayed, Andrew laid his hand on the faces of those who were in the prison-house, both men and women, and straightway they were able to see; and then, again, he laid his hand upon their bodies (literally, livers), and their hearts turned again into those of men. And Andrew answered and said unto them, "Rise up and depart unto the lower parts of the city, and ye shall find on the way a large fig tree; sit ye down under it, and eat of the fruit thereof, until I come unto you. And however long I•tarry [in coming], ye shall find thereon food for you to eat, for the fruit which is upon that fig tree is without number, and the more ye eat of the fruit of that fig tree the more will the fruit thereof increase, according as God hath commanded." Then those people answered and said unto Andrew, "Come thou also with us, lest, when the people of the city see us, they treat us again as enemies and inflict upon us much more injury than they have hitherto done." And Andrew said unto them, "Verily I say unto you, that as ye go on your way not even a dog shall lift up his tongue against you." So they all went forth from the prison-house, even as the blessed Andrew had told them [to do]. Now those people who were in the prison-house were both men and women, and the number of the men was one thousand and forty-nine, and that of the women was forty-nine, and [all] these Andrew made to go forth from the prison-house. And Matthias and his disciples set out to go towards the eastern part of the city. Then Andrew said, "Let a cloud descend and take up Matthias and the disciples of Andrew, and carry them unto the place where Peter sitteth and teacheth [the people];" and the cloud brought them unto him.

29 And Andrew went forth from the prison-house and departed unto the market-place of the city, and no man saw him; and as he was going along he saw a pillar of brass whereon [stood] an image, and he went and sat down by the side of it in order that he might see what it was. Then certain men departed to go unto the prison-house to bring forth people for the food of the [men of the] city, according to their ancient wont and usage, and they found the doors thereof wide open, and the keepers lying dead outside them; and when they had come into the prison-house they found no one there at all, and they departed and told the magistrates of the city what had happened. And they said unto them, "We went to the prison-house, and found the doors wide open, and those who had guarded them were lying dead upon the ground; and when we went inside we found no one at all [there]." Now when the magistrates of the city heard this, they said, "What hath happened? Many people had gone into the prison-house, and where shall we find our food?" Then they gave orders unto the soldiers of the guard, and said unto them, "Bring hither unto us those seven men who died, and let them be our food this day. To-morrow we will gather together the aged men of the city and they shall cast lots, and the seven men upon whom the lot shall fall shall be our tribute, and they shall be our food, until we can send and gather together stranger folk and people from the districts and borders of the city, and bring them [here]

30 "that we may eat them." So the soldiers of the guard went to fetch the men who were dead. Now there was in the middle of the city a burning, fiery furnace, above which was a huge stone in the form of a shallow trough, and upon this stone they slaughtered men and women, and distributed their blood; and they brought the [seven] dead men and laid them upon the stone slab to cut them up. Then Andrew heard a voice which said, "Andrew, see what [great] sin is committed in this city!" And when Andrew had seen it, he prayed to the Lord God, and said, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, I have come to live in this city, and let not the deeds of violence which are wrought therein be multiplied in any way. Let the slaughtering knives slip "out of their hands, and, as wax melteth at the fire, even so let [the bodies of the slaughterers] melt away." Then the soldiers of the guard of the city put forth their hands to cut up the dead bodies, but their knives fell from them. Now when the magistrates saw these things they wept, and said, "Woe be unto us! Sorcerers have come into our city and have wrought all these things, and they have caused the knives to fall from their hands; what shall we do? Let us gather together the aged men of the city, for we are hungry." Then the guards of the city went and gathered together all the aged men (now the number of those who were thus gathered together was two hundred and ten), and they brought them to the magistrates, and they made them to cast lots for seven men. And [one] of those upon whom 1 LIPSIUS (ibid.) gives 217.

31 the lot fell said unto the guards of the city, "I have a son, prithee, take him, and slaughter him instead of me, and let me go free;" and the guards said unto him, "We may not take thy son without first of all telling the magistrates." So the guards went and told the magistrates, and they answered and said unto the guards, "If he will give you his son in his place, take him, and let the father go free." And the guards came and told the old man what the magistrates had said, and he said unto them, "I have a daughter [also]; take them both and slaughter them, and let me go free." And he gave his children to the guards that they might slaughter them, and they took the children to the stone slab to do so. Then the children of the man wept and cried out, and made supplication unto the guards, praying, "We beseech you not to kill us at this season of our lives, but let us be free for a little while longer, and let us live until we arrive at our maturity, and then ye can slaughter us;" but the guards would not consent [to this]. And, moreover, these people had yet another sinful habit: if anyone died belonging to them they used to eat them and did not bury them, and for this reason they have no graves in their country. Now the guards would not consent to what the children asked them, but they made them go forth to the place where they intended to slaughter them without mercy.

32 And when Andrew saw what had taken place, he wept, and said, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, hasten Thy mercy, for Thou seest [these] children weeping and groaning." And Saint Andrew wept, and looked up into heaven, saying, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, Who didst hear me in the matter of the seven dead men, and didst not permit these guards to lift up their hands against them, hear me now, I beseech Thee, and permit not these guards to lift up their hands against these children." Then when the guards lifted up their hands against the children their slaughtering knives fell from their hands, and they (i. e., the men) melted away as doth wax before the face of the fire. Now when the magistrates saw [these things] they feared exceedingly; and when Andrew saw the miracle which had taken place, he blessed God with a salutation of peace. Amen.

33 And when the magistrates saw what had taken place, they wept with a great weeping, saying, "Woe unto us! Woe unto us! What shall we do? And behold, the Devil came in the form of an old man, and stood up in their midst, and he began to say unto them, "Woe unto you! Woe unto you! Now shall ye die for want of food, for what shall sheep and ox profit you, seeing that ye cannot eat them? And now, rise up, and seek in the city for a man whose name is Andrew, and slay ye him, for if ye do not this there is nothing whatsoever left for you to do. He it is who hath entered into the prison-house and set free the strangers whom ye had shut up therein, and he hath been living in the city, yet ye knew him not! And now, deal cunningly with him and seek him out, and rise up and kill him, so that henceforth ye may be able to gather together your food [without hindrance]. Then Andrew, who was listening, said unto the Devil, "Woe unto thee, O Bērāhēl, thou enemy of all created beings, who dost wage war [against them] continually, for our Lord Jesus Christ shall bring thee down into Sheol [and] Gehenna. And when the Devil had heard [these words], he said, "I hear his voice, but I see no man.

34 Then Andrew answered and said unto him, "It is because thou art 'blind that thou hast been named Semā'ēl', and thou 'shalt never see the saints.'' And on hearing this the Devil said unto the men of the city, Now, seek ye after 'him that speaketh unto me, for he is the man [who hath bewitched the men of the guard];' and the people of the city ran and shut the gates. Then Andrew said unto them, Here am I whom ye seek; and they all ran towards him, and they came up to him and laid hold upon him, and said unto him, "According as thou 'hast done evil unto us even so will we do evil unto thee.'' And they said among themselves, If we cut 'off his head his death will not be [sufficiently] cruel. Then one of them, whose heart had been entered and filled by the Devil, answered and said, "Hearken unto me, all of you. Let us tie a rope round 'his neck and drag him through the market-place of the city and through the squares thereof, and let us drag him about the streets until he die, and [then] we will divide his body among the people of the city.'' And when they heard these words they did even as the Devil had said unto them, and they tied a rope round the neck of the blessed Andrew, and began to drag him about through the squares and the market-place of the city.

35 Now as they were dragging him about [portions of] his flesh clave unto the ground, and his blood flowed down like water upon the earth; and when the evening had come they bound him in chains, and fastened his hands in fetters, 148a. 36 and cast him into the prison-house, where they inflicted grievous sufferings and cruel injuries upon him. And as soon as the morning was come they tied a rope round his neck and dragged him about the streets, and again [portions of] his flesh clave unto the ground. Now whilst they were dragging him about the second time, the blessed Andrew wept, saying, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, "look upon me, and see what these sinful men are doing unto me; but I am bearing [all] patiently because of the command which Thou didst give me, saying, 'Act not like unto those who have no faith.' And now, O my Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen Thou my soul, for the sufferings which these men are inflicting upon me are not a few. And behold, my soul waxeth weak, and Thou Thyself knowest well what the flesh of man is, and how if but a small wound be made in his body he suffereth pain in every part thereof. O my Lord, my whole body hath become dead because of the multitude of tortures [which it hath endured]. But make strong my soul and see what they have done unto me, for I

37 "know that Thou wilt be remote neither from me nor from Thy servants, and I will not refuse [to obey] the command which Thou hast given unto me. And if it be that Thou wilt not make these men to go down into the abyss, even then far be it from me to forsake Thy commandment until I die. For Thou art my God, therefore let not mine adversary the Devil have me in derision, and smite Thou him upon the mouth, so that he may not be able to speak." And as soon as the evening was come they again bound him in chains, and cast him into the prison-house. 38 Then the Devil went unto the prison-house to the blessed Andrew, taking seven devils with him, and they went in before Andrew, and began to laugh and to mock at him exceedingly. And the seven devils and the Devil answered and said unto Andrew, "Andrew, now hast thou 'come into our hand[s]. Where is thy strength, and thy might, and the glory, and [the greatness] wherewith thou hast magnified thy face? Thou hast disgraced us, and driven us away and hast declared our works unto all men. Thou hast made our altars houses of desolation, and no offerings wherein we might delight ourselves enter therein, and because of this thing we are going to kill thee, even as was killed thy Master Jesus Christ, Whom the Jews slew.' And the Devil said unto his devils, 'Go ye and slay this man who put us to shame, that all countries [of the world] may be ours;' so the devils came before Andrew wishing to kill him. Now when they saw in his forehead the mark which our Lord had given him, they were afraid, and were not able to draw nigh unto him; and Andrew blew at the devils, and they fled. And the Devil said unto them, 'Why do ye flee without having slain him?' Then the devils answered and said unto him, 'We were not able to kill him, for we saw the sign of the cross in his forehead, and we were afraid, for we know that without [it] he must have suffered this pain. But do thou thyself go and kill him, if thou art able so to do, for we cannot obey thee; and unless God shall give us strength he (i. e., the Apostle) will be the victor.' And one who dwelt in the devils answered and said unto them, 'To kill him we are not able, but we will go and 1292.

39 "make a mock of him." Then the devils went with the Devil, and they stood up before Andrew, and made a mock of him, and said unto him, "Behold, O Andrew, 'thou hast come into shame and disgrace; who is able to deliver thee?" Then a voice came unto Andrew which said, "Wherefore weepest thou?" Now that voice was the voice of the Devil who had turned (i. e., changed) his voice, and had made it to appear to be that of another man, but it was that of the Devil. And Andrew answered and said, "I am not weeping, for my Lord 'gave me [His] commandment, saying, Bear patiently, for no evil whatsoever shall be done unto thee by them, and if it be otherwise then ye shall see what I will do unto them." Then the Devil answered and said, "Whatsoever thou canst do, that do." And Andrew answered and said, "Now ye would kill me, but 'your will shall not be performed unless it be the will of my Lord Jesus Christ. Ye would make me to for-sake the commandment of my God, but my Lord keepeth watch over me in this city, and He will judge you according as it shall be necessary for you to be judged."

40 1492. And when the seven devils and the Devil had heard [these things] they took to flight. And when the morning had come they brought forth Andrew, and again they tied a rope round his neck and dragged him about [thereby]. Now as they were dragging him along he wept, and cried out, and said, "O my Lord Jesus Christ, [this] 'torture consumeth me; O my Lord, my body becometh feeble, and my soul waxeth faint. Behold, O my Lord, Thou seest how the Enemy hath acted towards me with his devils. O my Lord, when Thou wast being killed, and Thy soul was waxing faint, Thou didst say, Father, why hast Thou forsaken Me?' Thou Thyself hast tried and hast had experience of the flesh of the children of men, and Thou knowest well what is the suffering which is upon me; O command Thou, my Lord, that my soul be taken away from me, and then let me rest. Where are Thy words, O Lord, wherewith Thou didst speak to give me strength, saying, 'If ye come unto Me not one hair of your heads shall be destroyed?' And behold, both my flesh and my hair are mingled [with] the dust, and behold, [I have endured] this torture for three days, and yet Thou hast not appeared unto me to strengthen my soul, for it waxeth very faint." Now he spake thus whilst they were dragging him [round about the city].

41 Then a voice came unto Andrew which spake unto him in the Hebrew tongue, saying, "Andrew, heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Word shall not pass away. Look in front of thee and see what thy members, and the hairs of thy head which have fallen to the ground, have become upon the earth;" and Andrew turned, and saw a mighty tree which was full of fruit. Then Andrew said, "I know, O Lord, that Thou wilt not forsake me." And when the evening was come they cast him into the prison-house. Now when they saw that he was becoming weaker and weaker, they said among themselves, "His body is perishing little by little, and presently "he will die; we think that it may be this night." Then our Lord Jesus Christ came into the prison-house, and stretching out His right hand He said unto Andrew, "Give Me thine hand, O My beloved, and rise up whole." And when Andrew saw Him he rejoiced greatly, and he gave Him his hand, and he rose up, having been made whole. Then Andrew fell down and worshipped the Lord and said, "I thank Thee, O my Lord Jesus Christ, Who hast appeared unto me and given me strength." And Jesus said unto him, "Peace be unto thee, O Andrew;" and He departed into heaven.

42 And Andrew turned round from the prison-house, and saw a pillar, which was like unto marble, standing [there], and he stretched out his hand, and said unto the pillar, "Pour forth water upon the ground, and let the mouth of the image which is on the top of the pillar send out water in abundance, like unto the waters of a flood, so that those who are in the city may be rebuked and may turn unto God. Fear thou not, O pillar, and say not, 'I am a stone, and it is not meet for me to praise God.'" And Andrew said, "Yea, ye are stone[s] which have been hewn, but God made you in the earth, and ye are pure. For God gave the Law unto Israel [written] upon stone; and it was not written with gold and silver, but it was [cut] upon tables of stone, therefore shalt thou perform this command, O thou image. And when Andrew had said these words water poured forth in abundance from the image which was on the top of the pillar, like unto the waters of a river which had overflowed, and the waters rose to a [great] height in the city. Now the water was exceedingly bitter, and it consumed the flesh of the people, and killed their children and their wives; and they all wished to flee from the city.

43 Then Andrew said unto God, "O Lord, since Thou art performing this sign, forsake me not, O my Lord Jesus Christ, but send Thine angel Michael with a cloud of fire that he may surround this city with fire as with a wall, so that he who wisheth to escape from the fire may not be able so to do. Then straightway fire came down and surrounded the whole city as with a wall, from the one side thereof even unto the other; and Andrew knew then that God [had wrought] a miracle, [and] he blessed Him. And the marble pillar [continued] to pour out water from its mouth like a torrent, and the water rose up to the height of the necks of men, and it swallowed them up; now it was very bitter. Then the people cried out in lamentation, and wept, and said, "Woe be unto us by reason of all the things which have come to pass and which have befallen us because of the stranger in the prison- house who hath come unto us, and because of the multitude of the judgments which have come upon us! What shall we do? Let us go and bring him out from the prison-house, lest we die in this place through the waters of this flood, and let us cry out, saying, 'We believe in the God of this stranger,' so that He may remove from us this flood of waters.

44 And they all cried out unto God, and they went forth wailing with loud voices, and the sound of their outcries came in unto Andrew, and he knew that their souls had been made subject unto him. And Andrew said unto the marble image, from the mouth of which the water was flowing, Thou hast poured forth sufficient [water], for behold, "the time of [thy] service hath passed. Behold, I will go forth, and I will preach concerning the word, and behold, O pillar, I say unto thee, that if the people in this city believe, I will build a church and will carry thee into it because thou hast fulfilled for me my work, O marble pillar, from the mouth of which water has poured. [And thereupon water ceased to flow from the mouth of the statue]. 45 And the people of the city came unto the door of the prison-house, and they all cried out, saying, "O God of this stranger, have compassion upon us, and do not unto us according as we have done unto this stranger, and remove from us this water." Then Andrew went forth from the prison-house and thrust aside the water with his feet; and all the multitude came unto him, and there came also the old man who had given his children to be slaughtered instead of himself and on his behalf, and he made supplication unto Andrew, and said unto him, "Have compassion upon me." Then Andrew answered and said unto him, "I marvel how thou canst say unto me, 'Have compassion on me,' see-ing that in the time past thou hadst no compassion on thine own son, for when the lot to die fell upon thee thou didst give thy son unto death instead of thyself. Behold, I tell thee that thou and the soldiers of the guard who put strangers to death every day shall dwell in Gehenna, until the time when I shall return and bring you out therefrom. And now, depart ye that ye may see the men of the guard and the place of their slaughter, and the place of peace; and this old man shall [see]

46 "the place where are the children whom he loveth; follow ye me, then, all of you." Then Andrew departed, and they all followed him. And Andrew, thrusting aside the water with his foot, came unto the slab where they slaughtered the people, and he stretched out his hands, and looking up into heaven he began to pray, and all the multitude was looking on; and the earth opened herself and swallowed up the water, and the old man and the men of the guard went down into Sheol. Then when the people saw what had happened they were afraid, and they began to say, "Woe unto us! for this man is a man of God, and behold, he will kill us because of the evil which we did unto him; for behold, what he said unto the men of the guard and unto the old man [was true], and see what hath come upon them."

47 And when Andrew heard these words he said unto them, "O my children, fear not, for it is not an evil reward which hath come through me, but good. And as for those who have gone down into Sheol I will not leave them there; for they have only departed thither that ye might believe." Then Andrew commanded the people to bring [unto him] all those who had died through the water, but they were unable to do so because those who had died, both men and women, and children, and animals, were very many; and Andrew prayed, and they all came to life [again]. And he marked out a church upon the ground and commanded them to build [one there], and he gave unto them the commandments of the Law, and said unto them, "Stand ye in these, and after ye have kept these I will give unto you the hidden things of God; at this present I cannot

48 Cc "give them unto you, because your works are more [evil] than those of all other men, but when I return I will give them unto you." And they made supplication unto him, saying, "We beseech thee to be graciously pleased to abide with us for a few days, so that we may flourish in the faith, for [at this present] we are new plants." And although they besought him to do so he refused them, saying, "I must go forthwith unto my disciples and children," and although they followed after him, and made supplication unto him, and cast ashes upon their heads, he did not consent. Then he said unto them, "I must go unto my disciples, but afterwards I will come [again] unto you;" and so Andrew departed on his way. 49 Then Jesus Christ came down from heaven in the form of a little child, and He said unto Andrew, "Why dost thou depart from and forsake these little children who make supplication unto thee, and the men of the city who cry out unto thee, saying, 'Stay with us a few days'? Behold, their voice, and their cry, and their weeping, have ascended into heaven, and when I heard their cry and their weeping I came down, and Mine eyes shed tears before My Father because of their repentance. And now, come back into the city, and tarry there seven days, until the faith of the people shall wax strong; after this time thou shalt go forth from their city, and depart unto the country Barbárós, both thou and thy disciples, and after thou hast entered into that country thou shalt depart and come hither, and bring out those people who are in Sheol." Then Andrew returned [to the city], saying, "Blessed art Thou, O my Lord Jesus Christ, Who dost desire the salvation of all created beings, and Who hast not permitted me to depart in mine anger." So Andrew came into the city, and when the people saw him they rejoiced with a great joy, and they [i. e., Andrew and his disciples] dwelt there for seven days, teaching them and strengthening them [in the faith] of our Lord Jesus Christ. And when the [seven] days were fulfilled Andrew set out upon his way, and all the people, from the greatest unto the least, came together and sent him and his disciples on their way, saying, "Praise be unto the God of Andrew for ever and for ever! Amen."

50 CC*

The Acts of Saint Thomas in India: the First Act

1 Of what happened unto Thomas, the Apostle, when 151. he went to teach, and to preach, and to journey in the country of India. 2 And it came to pass in those days that all we Apostles were in Jerusalem, that is to say, Simon who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James, the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, and Philip and Bartholomew, and Thomas and Matthew, and Thaddeus and James, the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the son of James. And we counted up the countries [of the world] together and divided them among us, and we departed unto that which had come unto us by lot when our Lord sent us forth among the nations. Now the country of India had fallen to the share of Judas Thomas, who [is surnamed] Didymus, and he was unwilling to go there, and said, "I cannot go [there] because of the weariness of the flesh, for I am a Hebrew. How can I possibly depart to India and preach the faith [there]? And whilst he was thinking in this wise and saying [these words], our Redeemer appeared unto him by night, and said unto him, "Fear thou not, O Thomas; depart unto India, and preach thou My word [therein], for I Myself am with thee. Then Thomas said unto Him, "I do not wish to go, but if Thou wilt, I desire that Thou wouldst send me unto another country, for unto the country of India I cannot go.

3 Now whilst Thomas was speaking in this wise a certain merchant who was from the county of India came nigh unto them, and his name was Abnès, and he was from the king of Gônâ, who had sent him to bring [back to India] workmen and tools. And as our Lord was standing by his side He saw Abnès in the market, and he was going to his workshop. Then He said unto him, "Dost thou wish to obtain a workman? And Abnès said unto Him, "Yea, my Lord, I wish to buy a workman. Now when he had said these words unto Him, our Lord shewed him Thomas in the distance, and He made a covenant with Abnès to sell him for one pound of silver. Then He wrote for him a deed, saying, "I [Jesus], the Son of Joseph, hand over to thee to keep, and I sell unto thee my slave the workman Thomas, to journey unto Gônâ. And when the deed was finished according to the law [of the land] the Saviour took Judas, and gave him unto Abnès, and said unto him, "Behold thy master. Then the Apostle answered and said unto Him, "Yea, he is my master;"

4 and Abnès said unto him, "I have taken thee," and the Apostle held his peace. 5 And when the morrow had dawned the Apostle prayed unto the Lord and said, "I will go whithersoever Thou wishest, O Jesus, and Thy will be done; then he departed with Abnès the merchant, who took nothing whatsoever with him except what he had bought. And our Lord gave him [the salutation of peace], and said unto him, "Behold, thou hast thy merchandize with thee, and My grace shall be with thee wheresoever thou goest. Now the Apostle found Abnès taking his goods into a ship, and he was his slave. And when they had gone up into the ship and had sat down therein Abnès enquired of the Apostle, and said unto him, "In what handicraft art thou skilled? Then the Apostle said unto him, "In wood I can make the things which are used in ploughing, such as yokes [for cattle], and the bent ends of ploughs, and oars and steering poles for ships, and wheels; and in stone I can make picks(?), and spades(?), and columns, round ornaments for pillars, and tombs, and sepulchres for kings. And Abnès the merchant said unto him, "Thy knowledge of thy handicraft is sufficient for my needs. So they put forth and travelled on their journey with fair winds, and they sailed on happily until they arrived in the country of India, and came to the city of the king.

6 And when they had come down from the ship and had entered into the city, they heard the sounds of flutes and organs which rent the heavens, and they were mingled with the blasts of horns, and the blare of trumpets, and the sounds of the harp, and voices singing sweet songs of divers kinds. Then the Apostle enquired, and said, "What is the festival which [they are celebrating] in this city to-day? And the men said unto him, "The angels have brought thee hither so that thou mayest take part [in it with the people of] this city. Now the king hath a daughter, and he hath married her and given her unto the bridegroom, and so there is great rejoicing this day; this is the cause of the festival concerning which thou didst speak and make enquiries. The king hath sent a herald round to proclaim and to publish abroad to everyone [that they shall come] unto the marriage feast, [both rich and] poor, and bondman and freeman, and stranger and citizen; and if there be any who will not come unto the feast he shall be doomed to suffer punishment according to the king's pleasure. Now when Abnès the merchant heard this, he said unto the Apostle, "Come, let us also go [to the feast], lest we be punished by the king; and besides, we are men recently come. And the Apostle said unto him, Yea, let us go;

7 and having gone into the house for strangers they rested there for a little, and then they went to the feast. Now those who had taken their seats looked at the Apostle as he took his place among them, and they all saw that he had the manner of a stranger [who was poor], and of one who had come from another country; and Abnès having the manner of a noble took 1532. 8 his seat in another place, and having eaten their meal they drank their wine, but the Apostle tasted no food whatsoever. Then those who were sitting with him said unto him, "Why hast thou come hither? for thou neither eatest nor drinkest." And the Apostle answered and said unto him, "I did not come hither for the sake of the meat and drink, but because it was the will of the king that I should do so, for the herald who went round crying said, 'If there be any man who doth not come to the feast he shall be punished with the punishment of the king.'"

9 And when they had eaten and drunk [the servants brought] unto them sweet scents, and unguents, and garlands, and crowns of flowers; and they came and every man took one, and some of them anointed their faces, and some their beards, and some their bodies. And the Apostle anointed the top of his head, and his head, and he placed a little of the unguent in each of his nostrils, and in each of his ears. Now the flowers in the garland which had come to the Apostle were the flowers of the lentil plant, and of other sweet smelling herbs, and he took the garland and put it on his head; and he took the reed, and held it in his hand. Then a certain singing woman took her tambourine in her hand, and went round about among the company singing, and when she came unto the place where the Apostle was she stood still near him, and sang a song before him; now the singing woman was of the people of the Hebrews. And as the Apostle was keeping his gaze [fixed] upon the ground, one of those who had eaten with him lifted up his hand and smote him; and the Apostle lifted up his eyes, and looked at the man who had struck him, and said, "My God may set aside (i. e., keep) for thee the hand wherewith thou hast smitten me in the world which is to come, [and may He forgive thee] this injury; but in the present world He will shew thee His wonders, and I shall see the dogs dragging away the hand wherewith thou didst smite me." And having thus spoken unto him the Apostle began to sing this song concerning the congregation (i. e., the Church): —

10 "The Church is she who hath become the splendour of the kingdom; and she is pleasant of aspect, and lovely, and beautiful unto him that beholdeth [her]. Her garments are like unto flowers of every kind, and the odour thereof goeth forth and anointeth the crown of the head. The King giveth food with joy unto those who are with him, the mighty ones; Truth is upon His head, and joy is at His feet, and appeareth in His mouth, which openeth as becometh it. And two-fold are the praises with which she is praised by this tongue in this wise; whosoever shall forget [so to do] shall become... straightway, and he who rejoiceth according to the mind.... [Her] neck, which towereth upwards, [is like unto brass, which the God thereof hath made. Her two hands make manifest and reveal the places of beauty which He hath made, and proclaim where they are; and her fingers shew where the ante-chamber [thereof] is. The bride chamber is made of light, and the sweet 1412.

11 "smell thereof is on the tongue, together with beautiful odour of divers kinds, and incense, and sweet spice, and every sweet whatsoever the savour of which ariseth from its essence. And the Bridegroom shall be adorned, and He shall hold the reed of the Seven whom He hath chosen; and the guardians of the Bride are Seven [also]. Those who follow her and [those who] are before her every[where] are twelve [in number]; and they hope to see the Bridegroom, and to be baptized, and to live with Him for ever. And they shall go and wait for Him in that great assembly with righteousness; and it is meet for them to array themselves in the apparel of the kingdom; and they shall dress themselves in shining raiment with joy and gladness; and they all shall belong unto Him to Whom belongeth great splendour. And they shall be received in heaven and shall shine through (or in) the Divinity of God; and [they shall be changed], and shall receive food which is without spot or blemish of any kind whatsoever, and they shall drink wine which never causeth them to suffer thirst again. And He (i. e., the King) shall give them the desire of their souls, and they shall sing praises and glorify [Him] with the living ones, and with the souls of the fathers who have gone to their rest in the confidence which is of wisdom, and henceforth they shall praise [Him] with perfect praise."

12 1542. 13 And when he had [said] these words all those who were there were looking at him, and they saw that the form of his visage was different, and his whole aspect appeared unto them to be changed; but what he was saying unto them they did not understand, for he was a Hebrew and his speech was Hebrew, and the singing woman alone heard (i. e., understood) everything which he was saying, for she was a Hebrew. Then having withdrawn herself from near him she continued to sing and to beat the tambourine; and she was thinking about him, and she was looking at him continually, and was watching him at every moment, and she loved him because she found him to be a man of her own nation; now he was more handsome in appearance than all those who were there. And it came to pass that when the singing woman had finished her song everyone gave signs of his approval [except the Apostle], and she went and sat down in front of him, and she continued to look at him, and to watch him with great care; but the Apostle never allowed his eyes to wander away from the ground for a moment, and he waited for the opportunity when he might escape from the place.

14 Then the man who had sat at me at with him and who had struck him went down to the fountain to draw some water, and a lion came there by chance and slew him, and left him [lying] there torn limb from limb. And the dogs carried away the members of his body, and one of them, a black dog, took his right hand in his mouth, and brought it into the feast chamber unto those who were sitting at me at there. Now when they saw this they were all dismayed, and they were asking questions, and saying, "Who is he that hath died? And they knew that it was the hand of the man who had ministered unto them, and who had smitten the Apostle. Then the singing woman took her tambourine and cast it away from her, and she went and sat down at the feet of the Apostle, saying, "This man is either God or the Apostle of God. For I 141b.

15 "heard him speaking in Hebrew unto him that was ministering, and I now see the dog carrying about the hand wherewith he smote him; and behold, ye all see that according to what he spake even so hath it come to pass." And some believed, but some did not believe. Now when the king heard this he drew nigh unto the Apostle, and said unto him, "Rise up, and come with me, and pray for my daughter, for she is the only child I have, and this day I have given her in marriage." Now the Apostle refused to go with him, because our Lord had, as yet, not revealed Himself unto him in that place; but the king, notwithstanding his refusal, compelled him [to go, and] he took the Apostle into the chamber of the bride that he might pray on their behalf [there]. And the Apostle stood up, and he began to pray thus: —

16 "O my Lord and God, Who art the Guide of Thy servants, Who dost lead them, and dost toil on behalf of those who believe on Thee, Thou Refuge and Restingplace of those who are afflicted, Thou Hope of the poor, Thou Deliverer of captives, Thou Healer of the souls that are sick, Thou Saviour of all created beings, Thou Life-giver of all the world, Thou Strengthener of souls Who dost give them might, Thou, O God, knowest what is about to come to pass, and what shall be fulfilled by means of us. Thou, O our Lord, art a hidden Mystery, and Thou dost teach [hidden] words unto those who know Thee not. Thou, O my Lord, art the Planter of good trees, and through Thine hands they bring to perfection good works. Thou, O my Lord, art in our every hope, Thou livest in all Thy work, and all Thy works conceal Thee, Jesus Christ, the God of mercy, the perfect Saviour, Christ, Son of the Living One, God Almighty, the Mighty One, Who canst not be conquered by the Enemy. Thou art the Word which was heard by Principalities, and which made Powers and all Dominions (or Rulers) to tremble; Thou wast sent down from on high and didst come down to Sheol, and didst at length open the gates thereof and take up from thence those who had been captive there for many years, and who had been dwelling in the mansions of darkness;

17 and to those who would be guided Thou didst shew the way whereby to return. O my Lord Jesus Christ, I entreat Thee, and I offer [unto Thee my petition on behalf of myself] and these young folk, that Thou mayest be pleased to help them, and to grant unto them the things which are good and excellent, and that Thou wilt lay Thine hand upon them. Then the Apostle said [unto them], "My Lord be with you; and he left them in their place. 18 Now when the king had gone forth he besought the friends of the bridegroom to depart from their chamber, and when they had all gone forth, and had closed the doors, the bridegroom drew back the curtains of the doors that he might take the bride to himself. And he saw our Lord Jesus Christ in the form of Judas Thomas, and He was talking with [the bride], even as did Thomas [when] he blessed the bridegroom and bride, [and he seemed] not to have gone forth [from the chamber]. [And the bridegroom said unto Him that appeared unto him, "Didst Thou not depart first of all? How then hast Thou returned, and come hither?"] Then our Lord said col. I. col. I.

19 unto him, "I am not Judas Thomas, but I am his brother. And our Lord sat down in the room, and He commanded them to sit down on the footstool, and He said unto them, "Remember, O ye my children, what my brother hath said unto you, and unto Whom he committed you. And know ye that if ye forsake the intercourse in which the polluted [indulge], ye shall afterwards become holy, and perfect in purity; and [ye shall spare] yourselves labour and sufferings, both those which are seen and those which are unseen; and ye shall be delivered from the anxiety of this world; and the children which should be your posterity shall never exist. If ye have many children, for their sakes ye will become oppressors and avaricious folk, and ye will afflict orphans and widows, and ye will become men of violence. All these things will ye do, and ye will bring yourselves under sore chastisement, for the greater number of children become evil and fall into error. And they are either attacked by devils in secret or openly, or they become mad, or foolish, or deaf, or left-handed, or lame, or paralysed. And if they escape all these things, they become doers of evil in whom there is no benefit, or they do the things which it is abominable to do, or they become the companions of avaricious men and thieves; and by reason of all these things ye suffer labour and sorrow.

20 But if ye be firm and keep yourselves pure unto God there shall be born unto you living children who shall be free from all these pains, concerning which I have spoken unto you, through your own strength. Ye shall be [at] rest, and shall not be separated in the beautiful abode(?), ye shall be without sorrow and without pain, ye shall hope for [the time when] ye shall receive (i. e., enjoy) the marriage which shall never be brought to an end. And ye shall be there the friend of the Bridegroom, by Whom ye shall be known when ye come unto that never ending marriage feast and into the perfect light." 21 And when the young man and the young woman had heard these words, they believed on our Lord, and gave themselves unto Him; and they forsook the impurity of their lust, and they remained as they were in that place the whole night praying. And our Lord passed away from their presence, saying unto them, "The grace of God be with you. Now when the morning had dawned the king came and made ready a table, and he entered into the presence of the bridegroom and bride and found them sitting and talking together; and the face of the bride was uncovered, and the bridegroom himself was exceedingly happy (literally: bright). Then the mother of the bride came and drew nigh unto her, and said unto her, "Why art thou sitting in this manner, O my daughter, and art not ashamed? Ye sit [and talk] as if ye had been in the habit of behaving like married folk for many days. And her father said unto her, "Is it because of thy love for him unto whom thou art married that thou dost not cover thy face? Then the bride answered and said unto him, "O my father, verily I am in love with God Almighty, and I pray that I may abide in this my love which I have [learned] to know this night, and that I may possess this man, concerning whom I have got understanding this day.

22 Therefore too, I am not ashamed, for the mirror of shame hath passed away from me, and from this time forth I shall never be ashamed, and I shall never veil myself, for the works of shame have departed, and they have removed themselves to a great distance and are hidden from me. Henceforth I shall not make myself a stranger, and there shall be no making strange with me, for I shall live in light and in joy. On the day of my joy I shall not be moved, for I have rejected this man, and I have not been united to him up to this present; but I shall be united unto the true Husband Who shall come at last, Whose soul is full of mercy, and I shall, moreover, henceforth have greater enjoyment." 23 And as the bride was thus speaking the bridegroom answered and said, "I give thanks unto thee, O God, because through this stranger Thou hast glorified Thyself before us, and hast revealed Thyself unto us, and hast removed me from vanity, and hast sowed life upon me, and hast taken me away from the sickness which is without healing, and which abideth for ever. Thou hast graciously bestowed upon me the life of abstinence, O Thou Who hast shewn Thyself unto me, and Thou hast revealed to me [the evil of] all the works wherein I lived, and hast delivered me from stumbling and hast guided me into that which is good. Thou hast led me out from destruction, and hast brought me into [a land] wherein I shall neither die nor be overcome. And when Thou didst abase Thyself and didst descend to my humble estate Thou didst do so that Thou mightest give me joy and gladness, O Thou Who didst not withhold Thy mercy from me, the sinner.

24 "And Thou didst shew me [how] to seek myself, for I did not know who (or where) I was, and the works which were alien unto me Thou hast now put away from me. Then again, I have become like unto one who knoweth Thee, for Thou didst seek me when I knew Thee not, and Thou wilt receive me into the place where Thou now art. And now, I am not able to forget this, for love moveth me, and I am not able to speak [against] Thee; and now I desire to speak a few mighty things concerning Thee. And my confidence [in Thee] is equal unto Thy praise; but boldness is not seemly for me before Him, yet if it were that I knew Him not I would say unto Him that which I want to say because of this my love for Him." Now when the king heard these words from the bridegroom and bride he rent his garments, and said unto those who were standing near him, "Go ye out quickly, and journey round about through the city and lay hold upon that man, and bring hither that worker of sorcery, who with evil intent hath come into this city, and whom I myself brought into my house and told to pray over my wretched daughter. And," he added, "whosoever shall find him and shall bring him hither to me to him will I give whatsoever he asketh from me." Then they departed, one and all, and they went round about the city, seeking him; [but they found him not] for he had journeyed into another city. And they went also into the house wherein he had lodged in that city, and there they found the dancing woman who was weeping and lamenting because the Apostle had refused to take her with him; and they told her of everything

25 Dd which he had done unto the young man. Now when she heard those things she rejoiced greatly, and forsook her sorrow, and said, "Now shall I find rest here." And she rose up and went unto the bridegroom and bride, and tarried with them for many days, even until the Apostle returned unto the king. And many of the brethren who were with him believed, and when they heard where the Apostle was, and that he was living in the country of India and teaching the people thereof, they departed and joined themselves unto him.