WEBVTT

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Book One, Part Three, of Eusebius' Church
History.

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CHAPTER VIII.

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THE CRUELTY OF HEROD TOWARD THE INFANTS
AND THE MANNER OF HIS DEATH.

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When Christ was born, according to the
prophecies, in Bethlehem of Judea,

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at the time indicated, Herod was not a
little disturbed by the inquiry of the

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Magi who came from the east, asking where
he who was born king of the Jews was to be

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found.

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For they had seen his star, and this was
their reason for taking so long a journey,

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for they earnestly desired to worship the
infant as God.

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For he imagined that his kingdom might be
endangered, and he inquired therefore of

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the doctors of the law, who belonged to
the Jewish nation, where they expected

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Christ to be born.

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When he learned that the prophecy of Micah
announced that Bethlehem was to be his

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birthplace, he commanded, in a single
edict, all the male infants in Bethlehem

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and all its borders that were two years of
age or less, according to the time which

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he had accurately ascertained from the
Magi, to be slain, supposing that Jesus,

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as was indeed likely, would share the same
fate as the others of his own age.

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But the child anticipated the snare,
being carried into Egypt by his parents,

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who had learned from an angel that
appeared unto them what was about to

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happen.

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These things are recorded by the Holy
Scriptures in the Gospel.

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It is worthwhile, in addition to this,
to observe the reward which Herod received

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for his daring crime against Christ and
those of the same age.

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For immediately, without the least delay,
the divine vengeance overtook him while he

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was still alive, and gave him a foretaste
of what he was to receive after death.

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It is not possible to relate here how he
tarnished the supposed felicity of his

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reign by successive calamities in his
family, by the murder of wife and

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children, and others of his nearest
relatives and dearest friends.

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The account, which casts every other
tragic drama into the shade, is detailed

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at length in the Histories of Josephus.

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How, immediately after his crime against
our Savior and the other infants,

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the punishment sent by God drove him on to
his death, we can best learn from the

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words of that historian, who, in the
seventeenth book of his Antiquities of the

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Jews, writes as follows concerning his
end.

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But the disease of Herod grew more severe,
God inflicting punishment for his crimes.

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For a slow fire burned in him which was
not so apparent to those who touched him,

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but augmented his internal distress.

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For he had a terrible desire for food
which it was not possible to resist.

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He was affected also with ulceration of
the intestines, and with especially severe

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pains in the colon, while a watery and
transparent humor settled about his feet.

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He suffered also from a similar trouble in
his abdomen.

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Nay more, his privy member was putrefied
and produced worms.

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He found also excessive difficulty in
breathing, and it was particularly

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disagreeable because of the offensiveness
of the odor and the rapidity of

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respiration.

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He had convulsions also in every limb
which gave him uncontrollable strength.

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It was said, indeed, by those who
possessed the power of divination and

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wisdom to explain such events,
that God had inflicted this punishment

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upon the king on account of his great
impiety.

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The writer mentioned above recounts these
things in the work referred to.

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And in the second book of his history,
he gives a similar account of the same

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Herod, which runs as follows.

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The disease then seized upon his whole
body and distracted it by various

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torments.

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For he had a slow fever, and the itching
of the skin of his whole body was

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insupportable.

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He suffered also from continuous pains in
his colon, and there were swellings on his

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feet like those of a person suffering from
dropsy, while his abdomen was inflamed and

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his privy member so putrefied as to
produce worms.

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Besides this, he could breathe only in an
upright posture, and then only with

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difficulty.

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And he had convulsions in all his limbs,
so that the diviners said that his

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diseases were a punishment.

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But he, although wrestling with such
sufferings, nevertheless clung to life and

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hoped for safety, and devised methods of
cure.

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For instance, crossing over Jordan,
he used the warm baths at Kalarho,

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which flow into the lake as faulteties,
but are themselves sweet enough to drink.

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His physicians here thought that they
could warm his whole body again by means

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of heated oil, but when they had let him
down into a tub filled with oil,

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his eyes became weak and turned up like
the eyes of a dead person.

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But when his attendants raised an outcry,
he recovered at the noise.

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But finally, despairing of a cure,
he commanded about fifty drachmas to be

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distributed among the soldiers,
and great sums to be given to his generals

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and friends.

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Then returning, he came to Jericho,
where, being seized with melancholy,

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he planned to commit an impious deed,
as if challenging death itself.

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For collecting from every town the most
illustrious men of all Judea, he commanded

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that they be shut up in the so-called
Hippodrome.

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And having summoned Salome, his sister,
and her husband Alexander, he said,

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I know that the Jews will rejoice at my
death, but I may be lamented by others and

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have a splendid funeral, if you are
willing to perform my commands.

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When I shall expire, surround these men,
who are now under guard, as quickly as

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possible with soldiers, and slay them,
in order that all Judea and every house

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may weep for me even against their will.

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And after a little, Josephus says,
and again he was so tortured by want of

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food and by a convulsive cough that,
overcome by his pains, he planned to

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anticipate his fate.

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Taking an apple, he asked also for a
knife, for he was accustomed to cut apples

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and eat them.

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Then looking round to see that there was
no one to hinder, he raised his right hand

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as if to stab himself.

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In addition to these things, the same
writer records that he slew another of his

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own sons before his death, the third one
slain by his command, and that immediately

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afterward he breathed his last,
not without excessive pain.

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Such was the end of Herod, who suffered a
just punishment for his slaughter of the

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children of Bethlehem, which was the
result of his plots against our Savior.

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After this, an angel appeared in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt, and commanded him to

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go to Judea with the child and its mother,
revealing to him that those who had sought

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the life of the child were dead.

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To this the evangelist adds, but when he
heard that Archelaus did reign in the room

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of his father Herod, he was afraid to go
thither.

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Notwithstanding being warned of God in a
dream, he turned aside into the parts of

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Galilee.

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Chapter 9 The Times of Pilate The
historian already mentioned agrees with

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the evangelist in regard to the fact that
Archelaus succeeded to the government

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after Herod.

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He records the manner in which he received
the kingdom of the Jews by the will of his

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father Herod and by the decree of Caesar
Augustus, and how, after he had reigned

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ten years, he lost his kingdom,
and his brothers Philip and Herod the

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Younger, with Lysanias, still ruled their
own tetrarchies.

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The same writer, in the eighteenth book of
his Antiquities, says that about the

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twelfth year of the reign of Tiberius,
who had succeeded to the empire after

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Augustus had ruled fifty-seven years,
Pontius Pilate was entrusted with the

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government of Judea, and that he remained
there ten full years, almost until the

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death of Tiberius.

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Accordingly, the forgery of those who have
recently given currency to acts against

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our Savior is clearly proved, for the very
date given in them shows the falsehood of

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their fabricators.

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For the things which they have dared to
say concerning the passion of the Savior

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are put into the fourth consulship of
Tiberius, which occurred in the seventh

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year of his reign, at which time it is
plain that Pilate was not yet ruling in

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Judea, if the testimony of Josephus is to
be believed, who clearly shows in the

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above-mentioned work that Pilate was made
procurator of Judea by Tiberius in the

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twelfth year of his reign.

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Chapter 10 The High Priests of the Jews
Under Whom Christ Taught It was in the

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fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius,
according to the evangelist, and in the

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fourth year of the governorship of Pontius
Pilate, while Herod and Lysanias and

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Philip were ruling the rest of Judea,
that our Savior and Lord, Jesus the Christ

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of God, being about thirty years of age,
came to John for baptism and began the

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promulgation of the gospel.

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The divine scripture says, moreover,
that he passed the entire time of his

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ministry under the high priests Annas and
Caiaphas, showing that in the time which

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belonged to the priesthood of those two
men, the whole period of his teaching was

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completed.

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Since he began his work during the high
priesthood of Annas, and taught until

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Caiaphas held the office, the entire time
does not comprise quite four years.

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For the rights of the law, having been
already abolished since that time,

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the customary usages in connection with
the worship of God, according to which the

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high priest acquired his office by
hereditary descent and held it for life,

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were also annulled, and there were
appointed to the high priesthood by the

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Roman governors, now one and now another
person, who continued in office not more

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than one year.

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Josephus relates that there were four high
priests in succession from Annas to

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Caiaphas.

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Thus, in the same Book of the Antiquities,
he writes as follows.

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Valerius Gradus, having put an end to the
priesthood of Annanus, appoints Ishmael,

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the son of Fabi, high priest.

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And having removed him after a little,
he appoints Eleazar, the son of Annanus,

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the high priest, to the same office.

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And having removed him also at the end of
a year, he gives the high priesthood to

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Simon, the son of Camathus.

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But he likewise held the honor no more
than a year, when Josephus, also called

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Caiaphas, succeeded him.

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Accordingly, the whole time of our
Savior's ministry is shown to have been

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not quite four full years.

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Four high priests, from Annas to the
accession of Caiaphas, having held office

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a year each.

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The Gospel, therefore, has rightly
indicated Caiaphas as the high priest

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under whom the Savior suffered.

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From which also we can see that the time
of our Savior's ministry does not disagree

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with the foregoing investigation.

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Our Savior and Lord, not long after the
beginning of His ministry, called the

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twelve apostles, and these alone of all
His disciples He named apostles,

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as in a special honor.

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And again He appointed seventy others,
whom He sent out two by two, before His

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face, into every place and city,
whither He Himself was about to come.

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Chapter 11.

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Testimonies in regard to John the Baptist
and Christ.

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Not long after this, John the Baptist was
beheaded by the younger Herod,

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as is stated in the Gospels.

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Josephus also records the same fact,
making mention of Herodias by name,

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and stating that, although she was the
wife of his brother, Herod made her his

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own wife after divorcing his former lawful
wife, who was the daughter of Aretas,

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king of Petra, and separating Herodias
from her husband while he was still alive.

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It was on her account also that he slew
John and waged war with Aretas because of

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the disgrace inflicted on the daughter of
the latter.

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Josephus relates that in this war,
when they came to battle, Herod's entire

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army was destroyed, and that he suffered
this calamity on account of his crime

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against John.

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The same Josephus confesses in this
account that John the Baptist was an

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exceedingly righteous man, and thus agrees
with the things written of him in the

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Gospels.

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He records also that Herod lost his
kingdom on account of the same Herodias,

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and that he was driven into banishment
with her, and condemned to live at Vienne

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in Gaul.

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He relates these things in the 18th book
of the Antiquities, where he writes of

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John in the following words, It seemed to
some of the Jews that the army of Herod

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was destroyed by God, who most justly
avenged John, called the Baptist.

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For Herod slew him, a good man and one who
exhorted the Jews to come and receive

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baptism, practicing virtue and exercising
righteousness toward each other and toward

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God.

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For baptism would appear acceptable unto
him when they employed it, not for the

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remission of certain sins, but for the
purification of the body, as the soul had

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been already purified in righteousness.

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And when others gathered about him,
for they found much pleasure in listening

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to his words, Herod feared that his great
influence might lead to some sedition,

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for they appeared ready to do whatever he
might advise.

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He therefore considered it much better,
before any new thing should be done under

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John's influence, to anticipate it by
slaying him, than to repent after

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revolution had come, and when he found
himself in the midst of difficulties.

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On account of Herod's suspicion,
John was sent in bonds to the

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above-mentioned citadel of Machairah,
and there slain.

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After relating these things concerning
John, he makes mention of our Savior in

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the same work, in the following words.

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And there lived at that time Jesus,
a wise man, if indeed it be proper to call

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him a man.

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For he was a doer of wonderful works,
and a teacher of such men as received the

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truth in gladness.

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And he attached to himself many of the
Jews, and many also of the Greeks.

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He was the Christ.

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When Pilate, on the accusation of our
principal men, condemned him to the cross,

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those who had loved him in the beginning
did not cease loving him.

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For he appeared unto them again,
alive on the third day, the divine

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prophets having told these and countless
other wonderful things concerning him.

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Moreover, the race of Christians,
named after him, continues down to the

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present day.

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Since an historian, who is one of the
Hebrews themselves, has recorded in his

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work these things concerning John the
Baptist and our Savior, what excuse is

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there left for not convicting them of
being destitute of all shame, who have

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forged the acts against them?

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But let this suffice here.

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Chapter 12 The Disciples of Our Savior The
names of the apostles of our Savior are

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known to everyone from the Gospels.

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But there exists no catalogue of the
seventy disciples.

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Barnabas, indeed, is said to have been one
of them, of whom the Acts of the Apostles

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makes mention in various places,
and especially Paul in his epistle to the

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Galatians.

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They say that Sosthenes also, who wrote to
the Corinthians with Paul, was one of

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them.

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This is the account of Clement in the
fifth book of his Hypotipuses,

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in which he also says that Cephas was one
of the seventy disciples, a man who bore

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the same name as the apostle Peter,
and the one concerning whom Paul says,

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When Cephas came to Antioch, I withstood
him to his face.

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Matthias, also, who was numbered with the
apostles in the place of Judas,

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and the one who was honored by being made
a candidate with him, are likewise said to

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have been deemed worthy of the same
calling with the seventy.

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They say that Thaddeus also was one of
them, concerning whom I shall presently

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relate an account which has come down to
us.

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And upon examination you will find that
our Savior had more than seventy

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disciples, according to the testimony of
Paul, who says that after his resurrection

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from the dead he appeared first to Cephas,
then to the twelve, and after them to

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above five hundred brethren at once,
of whom some had fallen asleep,

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but the majority were still living at the
time he wrote.

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Afterwards, he says he appeared unto
James, who was one of the so-called

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brethren of the Savior.

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But, since in addition to these there were
many others who were called apostles,

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in imitation of the twelve, as was Paul
himself, he adds, afterward he appeared to

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all the apostles.

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So much in regard to these persons.

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But the story concerning Thaddeus is as
follows.

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CHAPTER XIII.

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NARRATIVE CONCERNING THE PRINCE OF THE
EDESCENES The divinity of our Lord and

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Savior Jesus Christ, being noised abroad
among all men on account of his

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wonder-working power, he attracted
countless numbers from foreign countries

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lying far away from Judea, who had the
hope of being cured of their diseases and

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of all kinds of sufferings.

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For instance, the king Abgaras,
who ruled with great glory the nations

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beyond the Euphrates, being afflicted with
a terrible disease which it was beyond the

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power of human skill to cure, when he
heard of the name of Jesus, and of his

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miracles, which were attested by all with
one accord, sent a message to him by a

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courier, and begged him to heal his
disease.

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But he did not at that time comply with
his request.

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Yet he deemed him worthy of a personal
letter in which he said that he would send

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one of his disciples to cure his disease,
and at the same time promised salvation to

18:43.450 --> 18:45.030
himself and all his house.

18:46.470 --> 18:49.450
Not long afterward his promise was
fulfilled.

18:50.090 --> 18:53.930
For after his resurrection from the dead
and his ascent into heaven, Thomas,

18:54.270 --> 18:58.910
one of the twelve apostles, under divine
impulse sent Thaddeus, who was also

18:58.910 --> 19:03.550
numbered among the seventy disciples of
Christ, to Edessa as a preacher and

19:03.550 --> 19:05.430
evangelist of the teaching of Christ.

19:06.810 --> 19:10.990
And all that our Savior had promised
received through him its fulfillment.

19:11.610 --> 19:15.210
You have written evidence of these things
taken from the archives of Edessa,

19:15.750 --> 19:17.670
which was at that time a royal city.

19:18.290 --> 19:22.130
For in the public registers there,
which contain accounts of ancient times

19:22.130 --> 19:26.390
and the acts of Abgaras, these things have
been found preserved down to the present

19:26.390 --> 19:26.890
time.

19:27.590 --> 19:31.150
But there is no better way than to hear
the epistles themselves, which we have

19:31.150 --> 19:35.070
taken from the archives, and have
literally translated from the Syriac

19:35.070 --> 19:36.650
language in the following manner.

19:38.350 --> 19:43.530
Copy of an epistle written by Abgaras the
ruler to Jesus, and sent to him at

19:43.530 --> 19:46.070
Jerusalem by Ananias the swift courier.

19:47.690 --> 19:52.070
Abgaras, ruler of Edessa, to Jesus the
excellent Savior who has appeared in the

19:52.070 --> 19:53.710
country of Jerusalem, greeting.

19:54.110 --> 19:58.570
I have heard the reports of thee and of
thy cures as performed by thee without

19:58.570 --> 19:59.790
medicines or herbs.

20:00.390 --> 20:04.470
For it is said that thou makest the blind
to see and the lame to walk, that thou

20:04.470 --> 20:09.310
cleansest lepers, and castest out impure
spirits and demons, and that thou healest

20:09.310 --> 20:12.610
those afflicted with lingering disease,
and raisest the dead.

20:14.430 --> 20:18.390
And having heard all these things
concerning thee, I have concluded that one

20:18.390 --> 20:23.230
of two things must be true, either thou
art God, and having come down from heaven

20:23.230 --> 20:28.010
thou doest these things, or else thou,
who doest these things, art the Son of

20:28.010 --> 20:28.350
God.

20:28.350 --> 20:33.490
I have therefore written to thee to ask
thee that thou wouldest take the trouble

20:33.490 --> 20:36.230
to come to me and heal the disease which I
have.

20:36.590 --> 20:40.490
For I have heard that the Jews are
murmuring against thee and are plotting to

20:40.490 --> 20:41.110
injure thee.

20:41.490 --> 20:46.070
But I have a very small yet noble city
which is great enough for us both.

20:47.730 --> 20:52.130
The answer of Jesus to the ruler Abgaras
by the courier Ananias.

20:52.910 --> 20:56.730
Blessed art thou who has believed in me
without having seen me.

20:57.270 --> 21:01.470
For it is written concerning me that they
who have seen me will not believe in me,

21:01.750 --> 21:05.050
and that they who have not seen me will
believe and be saved.

21:05.670 --> 21:09.250
But in regard to what thou hast written
me, that I should come to thee,

21:09.570 --> 21:13.690
it is necessary for me to fulfill all
things here for which I have been sent,

21:14.190 --> 21:18.450
and after I have fulfilled them thus,
to be taken up again to him that sent me.

21:19.010 --> 21:23.070
But after I have been taken up,
I will send to thee one of my disciples,

21:23.570 --> 21:26.990
that he may heal thy disease and give life
to thee and thine.

21:28.630 --> 21:32.990
To these epistles there was added the
following account in the Syriac language.

21:33.530 --> 21:38.170
After the ascension of Jesus, Judas,
who was also called Thomas, sent to him

21:38.170 --> 21:40.830
Thaddeus, an apostle, one of the seventy.

21:41.650 --> 21:45.290
When he was come, he lodged with Tobias,
the son of Tobias.

21:45.950 --> 21:50.370
When the report of him got abroad,
it was told Abgaras that an apostle of

21:50.370 --> 21:52.590
Jesus was come, as he had written him.

21:54.850 --> 21:59.550
Thaddeus began then, in the power of God,
to heal every disease and infirmity,

21:59.990 --> 22:01.450
insomuch that all wondered.

22:02.030 --> 22:05.590
And when Abgaras heard of the great and
wonderful things which he did,

22:05.670 --> 22:10.290
and of the cures which he performed,
he began to suspect that he was the one of

22:10.290 --> 22:14.910
whom Jesus had written him, saying,
After I have been taken up, I will send to

22:14.910 --> 22:17.030
thee one of my disciples who will heal
thee.

22:19.050 --> 22:24.090
Therefore, summoning Tobias, with whom
Thaddeus lodged, he said, I have heard

22:24.090 --> 22:27.690
that a certain man of power has come and
is lodging in thy house.

22:28.550 --> 22:29.430
Bring him to me.

22:29.890 --> 22:34.990
And Tobias coming to Thaddeus said to him,
The ruler Abgaras summoned me and told me

22:34.990 --> 22:37.650
to bring thee to him, that thou mightest
heal him.

22:38.170 --> 22:42.130
And Thaddeus said, I will go, for I have
been sent to him with power.

22:43.510 --> 22:47.750
Tobias therefore arose early on the
following day, and taking Thaddeus,

22:47.870 --> 22:48.870
came to Abgaras.

22:49.230 --> 22:52.990
And when he came, the nobles were present
and stood about Abgaras.

22:53.410 --> 22:57.310
And immediately upon his entrance a great
vision appeared to Abgaras in the

22:57.310 --> 22:59.090
countenance of the apostle Thaddeus.

22:59.670 --> 23:04.670
When Abgaras saw it, he prostrated himself
before Thaddeus, while all those who stood

23:04.670 --> 23:09.210
about were astonished, for they did not
see the vision which appeared to Abgaras

23:09.210 --> 23:09.650
alone.

23:11.370 --> 23:15.810
He then asked Thaddeus if he were in truth
a disciple of Jesus the Son of God,

23:16.110 --> 23:20.310
who had said to him, I will send thee one
of my disciples, who shall heal thee and

23:20.310 --> 23:21.070
give thee life.

23:21.530 --> 23:25.750
And Thaddeus said, Because thou hast
mightily believed in him that sent me,

23:26.170 --> 23:28.070
therefore have I been sent unto thee.

23:28.590 --> 23:32.930
And still further, if thou believest in
him, the petitions of thy heart shall be

23:32.930 --> 23:34.650
granted thee as thou believest.

23:36.510 --> 23:41.430
And Abgaras said to him, So much have I
believed in him that I wished to take an

23:41.430 --> 23:46.170
army and destroy those Jews who crucified
him, had I not been deterred from it by

23:46.170 --> 23:47.890
reason of the dominion of the Romans.

23:48.610 --> 23:53.210
And Thaddeus said, Our Lord has fulfilled
the will of his father, and having

23:53.210 --> 23:55.410
fulfilled it, has been taken up to his
father.

23:55.890 --> 24:00.070
And Abgaras said to him, I too have
believed in him and in his father.

24:02.330 --> 24:06.870
And Thaddeus said to him, Therefore I
place my hand upon thee in his name.

24:07.370 --> 24:11.650
And when he had done it, immediately
Abgaras was cured of the disease and of

24:11.650 --> 24:12.990
the suffering which he had.

24:14.450 --> 24:19.870
And Abgaras marveled that as he had heard
concerning Jesus, so he had received in

24:19.870 --> 24:24.170
very deed through his disciple Thaddeus,
who healed him without medicines and

24:24.170 --> 24:29.890
herbs, and not only him, but also Abdas,
the son of Abdas, who was afflicted with

24:29.890 --> 24:34.530
the gout, for he too came to him and fell
at his feet, and having received a

24:34.530 --> 24:38.010
benediction by the imposition of his
hands, he was healed.

24:38.850 --> 24:43.690
The same Thaddeus cured also many other
inhabitants of the city, and did wonders

24:43.690 --> 24:46.670
and marvelous works, and preached the word
of God.

24:48.470 --> 24:53.410
And afterward Abgaras said, Thou,
O Thaddeus, doest these things with the

24:53.410 --> 24:55.470
power of God, and we marvel.

24:56.070 --> 25:00.610
But in addition to these things,
I pray thee to inform me in regard to the

25:00.610 --> 25:05.650
coming of Jesus, how he was born,
and in regard to his power, by what power

25:05.650 --> 25:07.930
he performed those deeds of which I have
heard.

25:08.990 --> 25:14.530
And Thaddeus said, Now indeed will I keep
silence, since I have been sent to

25:14.530 --> 25:15.830
proclaim the word publicly.

25:16.490 --> 25:20.610
But to-morrow assemble for me all thy
citizens, and I will preach in their

25:20.610 --> 25:24.870
presence and so among them the word of
God, concerning the coming of Jesus,

25:25.290 --> 25:29.290
how he was born, and concerning his
mission, for what purpose he was sent by

25:29.290 --> 25:33.590
the Father, and concerning the power of
his works, and the mysteries which he

25:33.590 --> 25:38.370
proclaimed in the world, and by what power
he did these things, and concerning his

25:38.370 --> 25:43.210
new preaching, and his abasement and
humiliation, and how he humbled himself,

25:43.670 --> 25:48.070
and died and debased his divinity,
and was crucified, and descended into

25:48.070 --> 25:53.130
Hades, and burst the bars which from
eternity had not been broken, and raised

25:53.130 --> 25:58.130
the dead, for he descended alone,
but rose with many, and thus ascended to

25:58.130 --> 25:58.730
his Father.

26:01.130 --> 26:05.290
Abgarus therefore commanded the citizens
to assemble early in the morning to hear

26:05.290 --> 26:09.510
the preaching of Thaddeus, and afterward
he ordered gold and silver to be given

26:09.510 --> 26:09.850
him.

26:10.350 --> 26:14.890
But he refused to take it, saying,
If we have forsaken that which was our

26:14.890 --> 26:17.730
own, how shall we take that which is
another's?

26:18.070 --> 26:21.390
These things were done in the three
hundred and fortieth year.

26:21.950 --> 26:26.370
I have inserted them here in their proper
place, translated from the Syriac

26:26.370 --> 26:28.870
literally, and I hope to good purpose.