How Impostors and Seducers should invest themselves with His Doctrine, and formally present themselves to Him. From the Gospel of Matthew .
30. " Beware of lying Prophets who come to you in lambs' clothing, but inwardly (are) rapacious wolves. By their fruits ye shall know them. For men do not gather grapes from thorns, nor figs from thistles. So every good tree produceth good fruit, but an evil tree giveth forth evil fruit." He (here) counselled (them) by His foreknowledge, to beware of those ungodly persons, who, availing themselves of the opinions of others, and of the words of the Scriptures of His Divinity, should in after times formally assume the name of Christianity. He also shews the marks and vouchers of the evil concealed within them, and which should deceive the many, when saying, " By their fruits ye shall know them ." Now the fruits of such are these ; the ungodly words uttered by them; their unrighteous and perverse manner of life. These things then, when uttered and foretold by our Saviour, afforded at that time no visible testimony whatever to those who heard them, (as to their truth) ; but, in after times, the facts (so) declared became openly visible to all: the followers accordingly of |268 Marcion , Valentinus , Basilides , and those other corrupters of souls, sprang up, (viz.) Bardesanes , and that madman in opinion of yesterday, and of our own times, whose name became the titular badge of the Manichean |269 heresy; who all became the sources of lying and ungodly doctrine. Nor did they otherwise come to light, but as outwardly clothed with the skins of our Saviour's lambs. And He plainly styled His Disciples "sheep;" saying, "My sheep hear my voice : " and again, " Behold, I send you as sheep among wolves ." Of these then they outwardly assumed the manner, while in themselves they were "rapacious wolves." (And), How many thousands of the sheep of our Saviour, did these Deceivers snatch away ? Who, presenting their persons in form as to Christ, attached themselves to His instruction, and to the terms of the doctrines relating to His Godhead, and exhibited themselves as (His) lambs ! But, that ungodly bitterness which lay (as) in ambush within them, adhered secretly to those who had been ensnared by them. These, therefore, who were now thought to be " sheep," because of their (thus) drawing near (to Him), openly appeared afterwards to be "rapacious wolves." |270 And hence, our Saviour taught us previously to beware of them, when He said by way of instruction, " By their fruits ye shall know them."
How even He and His Disciples should be thought to have taken men, by means of Magicians, and of intercourse with Demons.
31. " The disciple is not greater than his master, nor the servant than his lord. It is sufficient for the disciple that he be as his master, and for the servant, as his lord. And, if they have called the Lord of the house Beelzebub, How much more the children of his household? Fear them not therefore, for there is nothing hidden that shall not be revealed; nor concealed that shall not be made known ." The Jews held that Beelzebub was an evil Demon, and prince of the Demons: they blasphemed our Saviour accordingly, (affirming) that by the power of this, He expelled the rest of the Demons from men . But, He returned the true answer to those who thought this, which is also written among His words. He foretold too, to His Disciples, that they also should be thought to overcome men, through intercourse with Demons and Magicians: which very thing, now affirmed by the many, has sealed and confirmed the prediction of our Saviour. He also gave His testimony, that this notion, (so) ascribed to them, should come to nothing, from (the consideration) of their lives, and conduct; their purity of doctrine, and that (inculcating) |271 the worship of God. He said therefore, " Fear them not; for there is nothing hidden that shall not be revealed, nor concealed that shall not be made known." He therefore reproved these (Disciples), for a considerable time, because the things formerly escaping the many, had, on this account, been supposed (by them) to be incapable of publication; as also those, belonging to the doctrines of the (true) worship of God, of being made openly known. But, His ordinances and precepts have now been made known to every man ; and He has extinguished that (injurious) opinion respecting them, (His Disciples) which had formerly been held by the many .
On those who should remain in complete holiness in His Church, and in the life inexperienced (in conjugal) Society. From the Gospel of Matthew.
32. When He determined for them, that (one) should not leave his wife except in the matter of fornication , and His Disciples said to Him, " If the cause of a man with the wife be thus, it is not advantageous to take wives; " It is written, that He said upon these things, "Every man is not sufficient for this matter, except those to whom it is given. There are eunuchs, who were, thus from their mothers' womb; and there are eunuchs, who were (made) eunuchs by men ; and there are eunuchs, who have made themselves eunuchs, for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who can bear (it) let him bear (it)." It is evident from the context of the Scriptures, that there never was among men, and particularly among the Jews, any one who uttered by revelation any thing like this ; or, who did any thing like it: or that, throughout the whole creation and among all nations, whether in the cities or villages, there were multitudes, not of men (only), but also of women, who |272 kept themselves in perfect holiness, and the state of virginity, through the hope and expectation of the kingdom of heaven. We have seen in the very experiment itself, that they learned they should soon be prepared for this. The fulfilment however, of the claim to foreknowledge, was not simply (realized here); for we have seen many men, well known to us, who (actually) availed themselves of the iron (knife,) and made eunuchs of themselves for no other cause, except that of the hope of the kingdom of heaven: who neither hesitated, nor were weak in the doctrine of our Saviour, but simply and boldly betook themselves to the thing itself . So that the foreknowledge of our Saviour, even respecting these things, sets to its seal, that His word was in truth the word of God. |273
On the distinction of those who should not worthily receive the seed of His doctrine. From the Gospel of Matthew.
33. When a great multitude of men had come near Him, He thus foretold by a parable what those should be, who should receive the seed of His doctrine, saying : " Behold, a sower went forth to sow: and, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of heaven came and devoured it: and some fell on the rock, where there was not much earth, and immediately it sprang forth ; and, because there was no depth of earth beneath its root, it dried up. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up, and choked it: and some fell upon good ground, and it gave forth fruit, some an hundred, some sixty, and some thirty-fold. After these things He cried out and said, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear" After this also, He was asked by His Disciples, what the interpretation of the parable should be; and He taught them, saying, " Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. Every one that heareth the word of the kingdom, but understandeth it not,--the Evil one cometh, and snatcheth the seed out of his heart. This is that which is sown by the ivay side. And that which is sown upon the rock, is he who heareth the word, and with readiness receiveth it: but, not being confirmed therein, he is offended by a little affliction. And that which fell among the thorns, is he who heareth the word, but the care of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and it remaineth without fruit. But that which is sown on good ground, is he who heareth the word, and understandeth it, and produceth fruit, some an hundred, some sixty, and some thirty-fold." Now, Whence could it have happened to human nature, not only to declare bv (one's) foreknowledge something that should come into being; but also, to determine the kinds and sorts of persons (who should), unless indeed He were truly THE WORD of God ?--He (I say), who at that time (so) prophesied and taught;--of whom it is said, " The WORD OF GOD is lively (energetic), and more sharp and cutting than the two-edged sword, and passeth even to the parts of the |274 soul and of the body, and of the joints and marrow; and is the Judge of the thoughts and intentions of the heart, and from whom no creature is hidden ? " He well declared therefore, the distinguishing marks of those who should afterwards receive His doctrines; and He also foretold, that those who should in impurity receive the seed of His instruction, should be of three kinds; as should in like manner the good, who should like good ground hear much, and give great increase to the word itself. Of those corrupters of the seed too, which should fall into their souls, He declared there should be three (moving) causes : Either from the considerations of life, and the care of things not (absolutely) necessary, and from riches and pleasures, immersing (as it were) the seed sown within them, and making it resemble the seed choked by thorns: or, others not receiving it into the depth of the mind, but immediately extinguishing it when affliction overtakes them: or, the third cause may be, that the source of the destructions of the seed within them is, the surrendering of a lax and ready hearing to (men) wishing to seduce them, and to snatch away the seed that had fallen into their souls. And these same are, in no other way cut off from bearing the fruit that is of God, except as by one or other of the means just mentioned. But those who are opposed to these, and receive the seed of salvation into a soul that is pure, and a mind that is devoted, do again, as their power may be, greatly increase their fruits. He moreover assimilates the distinctions of these, to those of good and excellent lands which bring forth some thirty, some sixty, and some an hundred-fold. For such as these powers are, are those occasionally found in the souls of men. These things therefore, He prophesied on these matters. But, of the |275 multitude of those who should in after-times bear (much) fruit, through the instruction of His words, He thus cried out and said, " The harvest is great, but the labourers are few. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth labourers into His harvest ." And again, of these same He said on another occasion : " Do not ye yourselves say, that there are yet four months, and the harvest cometh ? Lift up your eyes, and see the fields that they are white for the harvest !" And, Who does not wonder, that He should shew even the fewness of those who should in purity be the chiefs of His word, for He said, " The labourers are few ?" And, as prayer was necessary for the obtaining of these, He said therefore, " Pray ye the Lord of the harvest, that He send forth labourers into His harvest." When He said therefore, " The sower went out to sow," He also said, that there was another sower, and another seed ; and He also shewed and taught, whence, and whither, he went forth by the things said in the parable immediately following this, which is in this form:--
On the teaching of Heterodoxy , which should be sown together with His word in the souls of men. From the Gospel of Matthew.
34. He added another Parable, and said: " The kingdom of heaven is like to a man, who sowed good seed in his field. But, when men slept, the Enemy came and sowed Tares among the wheat, and departed. When therefore, the wheat sprang forth and produced fruit, the Tares appeared in like manner. And his servants drew near and said to him : Our Lord, Didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence are there Tares in it ? But he said to them, The man (who is) the Enemy hath done this. They say to him: Is it thy will therefore, that we go (and) gather them ? But he |276 said to them, No; lest, while ye gather the Tares, ye also root up the wheat with them. Let them both grow until the harvest. And at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the Tares, and bind them in bundles for burning; but gather ye the wheat into the granaries " (lit. treasuries). This same Parable too, He explained to His Disciples in the house, when they drew near to Him and said, " Explain to us the Parable of the Tares of the field. And He answered them, and said: The sower of the good seed is the Son of man; and the field is the world. (As to) the good seed, these are the children of the kingdom; and the Tares, those are the children of the wicked one; and the Enemy, who sowed them, is the Accuser. And the harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are the Angels. Even therefore, as the Tares are gathered up, and fall into the fire; so shall it be at the end of this world. The Son of man shall send His Angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all offences, and those that do evil, and shall cast them into the Gehenna of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And then shall the righteous shine in the kingdom of their Father. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear ." Our Saviour shewed therefore, by His explanation of the Parable, these things (viz.), who the sower that went out to sow the seed was, and what the seed was which He cast forth, in the expressions: " The sower of the good seed is the Son of man ; and the field is the world." For He usually called Himself the " Son of man," on account of His going about among men . He therefore went forth from |277 within , and came out. Where then was He within, but above the world ? where (indeed) He existed; and in the end of the world He came forth, and came down to us, who were without (out of) the kingdom of heaven. And with Him He brought the heavenly seed, which He sowed in the souls of men as in distinguished lands. For the Parable placed before us teaches respecting the field, as of what sort it is, into which He cast the seed;--which says, " The field is the world ;" and it shews of this field, that it belongs to none but Himself;--to Him who came forth from the inner part of His kingdom, to those who were " without " (out of it), when saying, " the servants drew near and said to Him, "Our Lord, didst not thou sow good seed in THY field ?" He therefore taught plainly, that even this field is His own : and this He interpreted and shewed, was the world. In the former Parable therefore, He shewed His foreknowledge as to what the distinctions of those would be, who should receive the seed into their souls; but in this, which is placed before us, the perverse doctrines and errors of the ungodly Hereticks: when not one of them had yet so established himself among men! Nevertheless, it was not unknown to Him that this should come to pass. For, as false scriptures were scattered as seed in succeeding times throughout the whole earth, with enouncements assimilated to those of His doctrine, by an opposing nature, not unlike the Tares (sown) among His pure words and life-giving doctrines ;--and there are myriads even to this time, some of whom make their boast of Manes, some of Marcion, and some of others, of those (I say) who put forth ungodly heterodoxy, and " Tares" (as it were), assimilated to the doctrine of our Saviour; making use of His name, and holding false books of the Gospels:--but he who was the Father of these things; |278 --he who first sowed them in the souls of those who received him, was the Accuser himself: so He (our Saviour) well evinced, by the Divine power, the foreknowledge of what should come to pass; and these things He previously testified, which have been thus fulfilled in fact; and accordingly their fulfilment was, as His words (had foreshewn). As He therefore truly shewed forth these things, and as we see in the facts themselves, the fulfilment of these predictions of our Saviour; so ought we also to think, that the rest shall come to pass. And these are, "the harvest,"" "the end," and "the angels the reapers:" also that the Tares shall be gathered, and shall fall into the fire:--the extreme good things too of those, who shall have preserved and multiplied the living, pure, and life-giving seed ; of whom it is said, " Then shall the righteous shine as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father."
On those who should falsely name themselves the Christ . From the Gospel of Matthew .
35. " When He sat on the mount of Olives, His Disciples drew near, saying between themselves and Him, Tell us, When shall these things be ? and What is the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world ? And Jesus answered them, and said, See that no man deceive you: for many shall come in my name, and shall say, I am the Christ; and shall deceive many" And again, after a few things He said, " If at that time any one say to you, the Christ is here, or there; believe ye not. For false Christs shall arise, and false Prophets, and shall give great signs and wonders, so that if it were possible they should deceive even the elect. Behold, I have foretold (it) to you . If therefore they shall say to you, Behold, He is in the desert, go not forth; or, Behold, He is in the chamber, (it) not. For, as the lightning shineth from the |279 East, and is seen even to the West; so shall the coming of the Son of Man be" And on another occasion, when speaking with the Jews, He added these things and said, " I am come in the name of my Father, and ye receive me not; but, if another come in his own name, him ye will receive." These things He foretold when warning His Disciples against the lying Antichrist, whom they were expecting: and one (of these) shewed of another in the Epistle to the Thessalonians, who (should be) in (the time of) the end . But, that others also should be before this, our Saviour Himself foretold in several places: " For many," said He, " shall come in my name, and shall say, I am the Christ, and shall deceive many." And there were many (such) after (these) His words. And so the Samaritans were forthwith persuaded that Dositheus , who was after the times of our Saviour, was the prophet of whom |280 Moses predicted . And he so deceived them, that they declared he was the Christ. Others again, in the times of the Apostles, named Simon Magus " the great power of God " and thought that he was the Christ. Others (thought the same) of Montanus in Phrygia: and others again, of others, in another place. Nor did the deceivers cease. And it is necessary we should suppose, that there were many such as these; so that even from them, testimony may be had, as to the reality of our Saviour's foreknowledge. Our Saviour taught moreover, that His glorious second coming should not again be, as it was at the first, in some one place, so that it may be supposed to be visible in some corner of the earth: and, that no one should thus think, He said, " If any one shall say to you, Behold, the Christ is here, or is there, believe ye not." For opinions such as these comport by no means with Him, but with those false Christs and false Prophets. He indeed appeared once in the form of man, and in a certain district. But, of what sort his glorious second coming from heaven should be, He taught and said, " For, as the lightning goeth forth |281 from the East, and is seen even to the West; so also shall the coming of the Son of Man be."
On the events that should happen at the end of things. From the Gospel of Matthew .
36. " Ye shall hear indeed of wars, and rumours of wars: see that ye be not moved, for it is necessary they should be; but the End is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there shall be famines and pestilences, and commotions in divers places. And all these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they give you up to affliction, and shall kill you in divers places. And all these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they give you up to affliction, and shall kill you ; and ye shall be hated by all nations for my name's sake." And after this He added, and said, " Then shall many stumble, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many. And, because of the abundance of iniquity, the love of many shall wax cold. But he, who shall bear until the End, shall live. And the Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world, for the testimony of all nations; and then cometh the End." He clearly foretold also by these things, that His |282 Gospel should, of necessity, first be preached in the whole creation, for the testimony of all nations, " and then should the END come ." For the END of the world should not come, before (the Gospel) had been preached; but, when His word should have so taken effect among all nations, that the people should be few, among whom His Gospel had not been preached; so also should the time of the END be short (in its coming). He further teaches and |283 says, " Ye shall hear of wars, and rumours of wars: see that ye be not moved, for it is necessary they should be; but the End is not yet." He also shews when this shall be, for He says, "The Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole creation, for the testimony of all nations: and then cometh the end." When also, "famines and pestilences, and commotions (shall be) in divers places, and nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom" and there shall be overwhelming persecutions, and great afflictions. After these things too, He says, " And ye shall be hated of all nations" not on account of any other hateful acts, but "for my name's sake ."
37. These proofs of the Divine manifestation of our Saviour, which we have thus far seen, are at the same time demonstrative, that both the words and deeds (had in view) are Divine. For in former times, the words were simply heard; but now, in our times, the fulfilment of these words is openly visible in deed, together with powers eclipsing those of all mortal nature. And, if men will not be persuaded by these, we ought not to wonder: because it is usual with man so to resist things the most plain, as even to dare to oppose by his words the existence of an universal Providence; and hence also, to deny God himself! And thus also, will he disingenuously contend against many other things, to which the truth bears testimony. But, as the injurious conduct of these detracts in no respect from the word, which is in its own nature true; so also will the wicked unbelief of men, in no way injure the evident excellency of the Godhead of our Saviour. But, if it is right |284 that we should compose, for these also, a form (of prescription) conducing to intellectual health ; it is time that we should here again present, for their use, (other) proofs of the (truth of the) Gospel, and now also recite the things, which have formerly been investigated with reference to other (objectors), as to those who will not be persuaded by the things (hitherto) said.
The End of the Fourth Book (of Eusebius) of Caesarea.
[Selected footnotes. Notes concerned only with points of the Syriac and large chunks of Greek have been omitted]
1. Syr. [Syriac], lit. his child: but, as this is probably a translation of the Greek pai~j , which signifies boy, and thence either child or servant-boy, I have thought it best to render it by the English, boy, which is equally indefinite with the Greek.
2. Alluding, perhaps, to Gen. xxxii. 25-28, comp. with Hos. xii. 4.
3. This and the following recital are taken, in the main, from Matt, viii. 5. seq. with the addition of "beloved," (Syr. [Syriac]) from the parallel passage in Luke vii. 2. It differs considerably from the Peschito, and is probably the rendering of our Syriac Translator, with the words of the Peschito, however, in his memory. The greatest variety consists in this, that our text has here, Chiliarch (Syr. [Syriac]) Captain of a thousand, instead of Centurion of the Greek and Syriac Scriptures. I have accordingly given Chiliarch in my translation. This reading is certainly extraordinary.
4. I have not thought it necessary here to follow the verbiage of the Syriac, which gives, [Syriac]. Of those who reside at the risings of the day, and in quarters of the East, and at the settings of the Sun. I add this merely for the sake of the Student of the Syriac.
5. Lit. Spaniards and Gauls.
6. It is commonly assumed by the Roman Catholics, that Christianity was unknown in Britain until Austin the Monk introduced it at the command of Gregory the Great. With how much truth this is done the reader will see, when he finds that the Fathers generally asserted the contrary. See the "Lux Evangelica" of Fabricius, and Stillingfleet's " Origines Ecclesiae Britannicae."
7. Matt. viii. 11.
8. Luke xiii. 28, 29.