issued

And the other issued out of the city against them; so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side: and they smote them, so that they let none of them remain or escape.

Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb?

Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.

And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.

A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.

By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

For in his time things prospered in his hands, so that the heathen were taken out of their country, and they also that were in the city of David in Jerusalem, who had made themselves a tower, out of which they issued, and polluted all about the sanctuary, and did much hurt in the holy place:

Now, wherefore did Moses say, “Thou shalt not eat the swine, nor the eagle, nor the hawk, nor the raven, nor any fish which is not possessed of scales?” He embraced three doctrines in his mind [in doing so]. Moreover, the Lord saith to them in Deuteronomy, “And I will establish my ordinances among this people.” Is there then not a command of God that they should not eat [these things]? There is, but Moses spoke with a spiritual reference. For this reason he named the swine, as much as to say, “Thou shalt not join thyself to men who resemble swine.” For when they live in pleasure, they forget their Lord; but when they come to want, they acknowledge the Lord. And [in like manner] the swine, when it has eaten, does not recognise its master; but when hungry it cries out, and on receiving food is quiet again. “Neither shalt thou eat,” says he, “the eagle, nor the hawk, nor the kite, nor the raven.” “Thou shalt not join thyself,” he means, “to such men as know not how to procure food for themselves by labour and sweat, but seize on that of others in their iniquity, and although wearing an aspect of simplicity, are on the watch to plunder others.” So these birds, while they sit idle, inquire how they may devour the flesh of others, proving themselves pests [to all] by their wickedness. “And thou shalt not eat,” he says, “the lamprey, or the polypus, or the cuttle-fish.” He means, “Thou shalt not join thyself or be like to such men as are ungodly to the end, and are condemned to death.” In like manner as those fishes, above accursed, float in the deep, not swimming [on the surface] like the rest, but make their abode in the mud which lies at the bottom. Moreover, “Thou shalt not,” he says, “eat the hare.” Wherefore? “Thou shalt not be a corrupter of boys, nor like unto such.” Because the hare multiplies, year by year, the places of its conception; for as many years as it lives so many it has. Moreover, “Thou shalt not eat the hyena.” He means, “Thou shalt not be an adulterer, nor a corrupter, nor be like to them that are such.” Wherefore? Because that animal annually changes its sex, and is at one time male, and at another female. Moreover, he has rightly detested the weasel. For he means, “Thou shalt not be like to those whom we hear of as committing wickedness with the mouth, on account of their uncleanness; nor shalt thou be joined to those impure women who commit iniquity with the mouth. For this animal conceives by the mouth.” Moses then issued three doctrines concerning meats with a spiritual significance; but they received them according to fleshly desire, as if he had merely spoken of [literal] meats. David, however, comprehends the knowledge of the three doctrines, and speaks in like manner: “Blessed is the man who hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly,” even as the fishes [referred to] go in darkness to the depths [of the sea]; “and hath not stood in the way of sinners,” even as those who profess to fear the Lord, but go astray like swine; “and hath not sat in the seat of the scorners,” even as those birds that lie in wait for prey. Take a full and firm grasp of this spiritual knowledge. But Moses says still further, “Ye shall eat every animal that is cloven-footed and ruminant.” What does he mean? [The ruminant animal denotes him] who, on receiving food, recognises Him that nourishes him, and being satisfied by Him, is visibly made glad. Well spake [Moses], having respect to the commandment. What, then, does he mean? That we ought to join ourselves to those that fear the Lord, those who meditate in their heart on the commandment which they have received, those who both utter the judgments of the Lord and observe them, those who know that meditation is a work of gladness, and who ruminate upon the word of the Lord. But what means the cloven-footed? That the righteous man also walks in this world, yet looks forward to the holy state [to come]. Behold how well Moses legislated. But how was it possible for them to understand or comprehend these things? We then, rightly understanding his commandments, explain them as the Lord intended. For this purpose He circumcised our ears and our hearts, that we might understand these things.

And Pharaoh, king of Egypt, issued a command regarding them that they should cast all their male children which were born into the river.

For there issued from their countenance a ray as of the sun, and their raiment was shining so as the eye of man never saw the like: for no mouth is able to declare nor heart to conceive the glory wherewith they were clad and the beauty of their countenance.

And I saw another man in the river of fire sunk up to the knees: and his hands were stretched out and bloody, and worms issued out of his mouth and his nostrils, and he was groaning and lamenting and crying out, and said: Have mercy on me for I suffer hurt more than the rest that are in this torment. And I asked: Who is this, Lord? And he said unto me: This whom thou seest was a deacon, who devoured the offerings and committed fornication and did not right in the sight of God: therefore without ceasing he payeth the penalty. And I looked and saw beside him another man whom they brought with haste and cast him into the river of fire, and he was there up to the knees; and the angel that was over the torments came, having a great razor, red-hot, and therewith he cut the lips of that man and the tongue likewise. And I sighed and wept and asked: Who is this man, Lord? And he said unto me: This that thou seest was a reader and read unto the people: but he kept not the commandments of God: now also he payeth his own penalty.

It is read that rays issued from his eyes whereby they were terrified and put to flight.

And the apostle said unto her: Relate unto us where thou hast been. And she answered: Dost thou who wast with me and unto whom I was delivered desire to hear? And she began to say: A man took me who was hateful to look upon altogether black, and his raiment exceedingly foul, and took me away to a place wherein were many pits (chasms), and a great stench and hateful odour issued thence. And he caused me to look into every pit, and I saw in the (first) pit flaming fire, and wheels of fire ran round there, and souls were hanged upon those wheels, and were dashed (broken) against each other; and very great crying and howling was there, and there was none to deliver. And that man said to me: These souls are of thy tribe, and when the number of their days is accomplished (lit. in the days of the number) they are (were) delivered unto torment and affliction, and then are others brought in in their stead, and likewise these into another place. These are they that have reversed the intercourse of male and female. And I looked and saw infants heaped one upon another and struggling with each other as they lay on them. And he answered and said to me: These are the children of those others, and therefore are they set here for a testimony against them.

And as she was saying this, fire issued out of her mouth; and the world was at the point to come to an end: but Jesus appeared quickly and said unto Mary: Utter not this mystery, or this day my whole creation will come to an end. And the apostles were taken with fear lest haply the Lord should be wroth with them.

Extremely pleased with these arguments he gave orders that an addition should be made to the wages of the soldiers by the amount of the redemption money, that twenty drachmae should be paid to the owners for every slave, that a public order should be issued and that registers of the captives should be attached to it.

Country people by migrating from the rural districts and settling in the city brought agriculture into disrepute: and so to prevent them from settling in the city, the king issued orders that they should not stay in it for more than twenty days.

THAT WE CHRISTIANS OUGHT TO UNDERSTAND TO OBSERVE THE PASCHAL SEASON AND NOT KEEP IT IN ERROR ON ANY OTHER DAYS, BUT IN THE WEEK IN WHICH THE PASSOVER COMES ON THE FOURTEENTH DAY (OF THE MONTH). [v., 17.] Ye, beloved brethren, who have been bought with the precious blood of Christ, ought to keep the feast of the holy Passover with all exactness and understanding. For day and night are equal on the twenty-fifth (day) of the month Magabit. Make your reckoning sure, for our Lord did not suffer twice in one year. Do you also take heed to keep the memorial of His sufferings once only every year. For our sakes He died, and (therefore) consent not to keep the feast along with the Jews, for there is no love between us and them. [or they in folly have erred in their reckoning, though they think they are exact. Wherefore they are dishonoured in all the earth, and have departed from the truth. But do you take heed to the reckoning of the day on the twenty-fifth (day) of Magabit, which is the twenty-second (day) of the month Magabit according to the reckoning of the Hebrews, and observe this reckoning until the twenty-first (day). And further make no mistake in the reckoning of the Passover, lest it be celebrated before the (festival of) Hosanna, that the Passover may not fall twice in one year through inaccurate reckoning. But let the holy day of the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ be celebrated on the holy Christian Sabbath. (v., 18.) And further let the fast of the holy Passover be from the second day of the week until the first Sabbath, the vigil of the Passover. And in the week of the Passion cat nothing except bread, and water and salt. Abstain on these days of the Fast from eating flesh and drinking wine, for they are days of mourning and sorrow. Above all in these six days, if any one be able to fast, let him patiently endure for two days; but if he be not able, let him fast on one day, and keep himself from evil-doing. For our Lord saith, “The sons of the bridegroom cannot fast so long as the bridegroom is with them, but days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken from them; then shall they fast.’ [v., 19.] For in these six days the Jews took our Lord from us, and crucified Him on the Cross, and reckoned Him with the transgressors. Wherefore we command you to fast, even as we ourselves have done since He ascended into heaven. And as for the other days, let them fast on the fourth and sixth days of the week until the ninth hour, and whoso wisheth let him fast till the sun set. And keep vigil at night until the cock crow, being: gathered together in the church for praise and prayer, (and) reading the Law, and the prophets, and the psalms of David. And after ye have baptized (the catechumens), read the Gospel with fear and trembling, and teach the people things tending to profit and the salvation of their souls; and pray ye to God that Israel may turn to repentance, and be saved from ungodliness. For the Governor washed his hands, and said, “I am innocent of the blood of this just man,” but (they of) Israel cried out, and said, “His blood be on us, and on our children.” Then Pilate said unto them, “Shall I crucify your king? And they answered, and said, we have no king but Caesar: crucify him, crucify him, for everyone that maketh himself a king is a rebel against Caesar. And they answered, and said, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar’s friend.” Pilate the governor and Herod the King commanded that He should be crucified, that it might be fulfilled which was written, saying, ‘“ Why have the nations raged, and the peoples spoken vain things? The kings of the earth have risen up, and the rulers also have assembled together against the Lord and against his anointed.” And again it is said, “ And they have cast away their brother as an unclean corpse.”! Then they crucified Him on the sixth day of the week and He rose again on the Sabbath day. The Scripture was fulfilled which saith, “Arise, O God, and judge the earth, for thou shalt have inheritance among all the nations.” " And moreover it is said, “Now will I arise, saith the Lord, and will appoint salvation, and deal boldly in him.” And again it is said, ‘Arise, O Lord, in thine anger, and be thou exalted above mine enemies.” And moreover it is said, ‘Render to them their recompense upon their heads.”. And for this cause offer ye also your sacrifice as the Lord hath commanded you. For He said, “Thus do ye in remembrance of me.” Finish the fast, then, with joy and gladness, and keep the feast, for our Lord Jesus Christ hath risen from the dead, and His resurrection hath given us hope. Let this ordinance be unto you a law for ever until He come again in glory. For the Jews have not believed in the resurrection of our Saviour, but we Christians believe in His resurrection, for all who hope in His holy resurrection shall find life eternal. [v., 20.) Keep, then, a feast on the eighth day, for on it the Lord appeared. Thomas said, To me also He appeared, and made me glad, (shewing me) the marks in His hands and His feet, and the wound in His holy side. Though before was faithless, and believed not in His resurrection, He shewed me openly the wound in His right side. On the fortieth day keep a feast, for on it He finished all (His) dispensation and ascended into heaven to the Father who had raised Him (from the dead), and He sat down on the right hand of power, and subjected His enemies under the footstool of His feet; and He shall come again in glory and great power to judge the living and the dead, and He shall render to everyone according to his works. And behold the Jews who crucified Him shall see the beloved Son of God. For even until now the Jews are gathered together on the tenth (day) of the ninth month, reading the Lamentations of Jeremiah the prophet (where it is said) “The spirit of our life, Jesus Christ they have taken from us, and have afflicted him.” And moreover they read what Baruch wrote, “This is our God; there is none other that is like unto him. He found every way of life, and gave it to Jacob his servant and to Israel his beloved. And after this he walked upon the earth.” And as they read this, they weep and mourn. And thus they do, making it seem a mourning for the desolation which Nebuchadnezzar wrought, and pretending it is the truth. And ten days after He ascended (was) the fulfilment of Pentecost, for on that day at the third hour Jesus Christ sent unto us the Paraclete, and filled us with His power, and we spake with new tongues, (declaring) that Jesus Christ is the Messiah of God, who hath authority to judge the living and the dead. And concerning Him Moses bare witness, and said, The Lord our God took fire, and caused it to come down as rain.” And in like manner Jacob saw Him in the likeness of a man, and said, “I have seen the Lord our God face to face, and my life is preserved.” And Abraham also received Him as a stranger and believed that He was God. This is the chief of the hosts of the armies of God whom Joshua the son of Nun saw; and moreover as a strong man in armour He helped him by Jericho, and then Joshua did reverence to Him as a servant doth to his lord. And again, this is He of whom Samuel the prophet knew that He was Christ the Anointed of God. And further priests and kings called Him the Anointed. And again, He it was whom David knew, and spake with fear (concerning) the glory of the Beloved. ‘My heart hath uttered a good word and I have made known my work to the king; my tongue is as the pen of a scribe that writeth speedily. His beauty is fairer than the sons of men, grace hath been poured forth from his lips; therefore God hath blessed thee for ever. Gird thee with thy sword upon thy thigh, O mighty one, in thy beauty and thy comeliness. Advance, prosper and reign, because of righteousness, and uprightness, and meekness, and the glory of thy right hand shall lead thee. Thy arrows are sharp, O mighty one—the peoples shall fall under thee—in the heart of the king’s enemies. Thy throne, O Lord, is for ever and ever, a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy Kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity; therefore the Lord thy God hath anointed (thee) with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” And concerning Him Solomon saith, ‘“‘The Lord created me in the beginning of his way for his works, before the world be founded me, in the beginning before he made the earth, and before he -made the abysses, and before the fountains of water issued forth, and before he set in order the mountains; before all the hills he begat me.” And moreover Isaiah the prophet saith, “A rod shall come forth from the root of Jesse, and a flower shall ascend from its stock, and shall be set as a ruler of the nations.” And again, Solomon saith, “Wisdom hath built herself a house.” And moreover, Zechariah saith, “Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion, and publish (it), daughter of Jerusalem; behold thy King cometh; he is righteous and bringeth salvation, and is meek, and rideth on an ass, and on the foal of an ass.”! And moreover, Daniel saith, ‘‘The Son of man came to the ancient of days. He then is the stone (that) came down from the mountain, (cut out) without hands."; We also declare (and) proclaim unto you that He is the Word of God that was before the world, and moreover is equal with Him in everything. Believe in Him that ye may find life eternal; but if ye believe not in Him, ye shall find condemnation. He who believeth not on the Son shall not see life eternal, and the wrath of God abideth on him. And after the feast of Pentecost keep a feast for seven days, and then fast; for we ought to rejoice and be glad because He hath granted us that we should receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Moses and Elijah fasted for forty days. And Daniel also fasted for three weeks, and ate no pleasant food, nor did flesh and wine enter into his mouth. And the blessed Hannah, when she made supplication to God to grant her a son [Samuel], said, “I have not drunk wine to be drunken, but my heart was strong in the Lord.” And the men of Nineveh fasted for three days and three nights. Esther, and Mordecai, and Judith were saved by fasting from the wicked Holofernes and from Haman. And David also saith, ‘My knees are weak through fasting, and my flesh is dried for want of oil.” Do ye also fast and ask of Him pardon of sin. And fast besides. on the fourth and sixth days of the week, giving alms to the poor; and honour the Sabbath being gathered together in the church with joy and gladness; and on the other Sabbaths fast not, but only on one day, the vigil of the Passover. And if there be anyone who fasteth on the Christian Sabbath which is (the day of) His holy resurrection, or at Pentecost, (that is) until the feast of Pentecost —they who do thus, and mourn on the feasts of the Lord, have no remission of sin. Do ye keep on them a spiritual feast, and never appear sad.

And the king commanded that a proclamation should be issued throughout the land of Egypt, saying, It is resolved by the king and his great men, that any wise man who knoweth and understandeth the interpretation of dreams, and will not come this day before the king, shall die.

And the king ordered a proclamation to be issued and a law to be made throughout the land of Egypt, saying, Every male child born to the Hebrews from this day forward shall be thrown into the water.

Then Pharaoh commanded in those days that a proclamation should be issued throughout Egypt to the children of Israel, saying, No man shall diminish any thing of his daily labor.

And Pharaoh ordered a proclamation to be issued throughout Egypt and Goshen, saying,

And all the people of Cush issued a proclamation on that day, saying, Every man must give something to Moses of what is in his possession.

So all the children of Cush heard the words of Moses, and they rose up and caused a proclamation to be issued throughout the camp, saying,

Now, if these arguments hold good, why should we not defend, in the same way, the existence of heresies in Christianity? And respecting these, Paul appears to me to speak in a very striking manner when he says, “For there must be heresies among you, that they who are approved may be made manifest among you.” For as that man is “approved” in medicine who, on account of his experience in various [medical] heresies, and his honest examination of the majority of them, has selected the preferable system,—and as the great proficient in philosophy is he who, after acquainting himself experimentally with the various views, has given in his adhesion to the best,—so I would say that the wisest Christian was he who had carefully studied the heresies both of Judaism and Christianity. Whereas he who finds fault with Christianity because of its heresies would find fault also with the teaching of Socrates, from whose school have issued many others of discordant views. Nay, the opinions of Plato might be chargeable with error, on account of Aristotle’s having separated from his school, and founded a new one,—on which subject we have remarked in the preceding book. But it appears to me that Celsus has become acquainted with certain heresies which do not possess even the name of Jesus in common with us. Perhaps he had heard of the sects called Ophites and Cainites, or some others of a similar nature, which had departed in all points from the teaching of Jesus. And yet surely this furnishes no ground for a charge against the Christian doctrine.

Celsus in the next place, producing from history other than that of the divine record, those passages which bear upon the claims to great antiquity put forth by many nations, as the Athenians, and Egyptians, and Arcadians, and Phrygians, who assert that certain individuals have existed among them who sprang from the earth, and who each adduce proofs of these assertions, says: “The Jews, then, leading a grovelling life in some corner of Palestine, and being a wholly uneducated people, who had not heard that these matters had been committed to verse long ago by Hesiod and innumerable other inspired men, wove together some most incredible and insipid stories, viz. that a certain man was formed by the hands of God, and had breathed into him the breath of life, and that a woman was taken from his side, and that God issued certain commands, and that a serpent opposed these, and gained a victory over the commandments of God; thus relating certain old wives’ fables, and most impiously representing God as weak at the very beginning [of things], and unable to convince even a single human being whom He Himself had formed.” By these instances, indeed, this deeply read and learned Celsus, who accuses Jews and Christians of ignorance and want of instruction, clearly evinces the accuracy of his knowledge of the chronology of the respective historians, whether Greek or Barbarian, since he imagines that Hesiod and the “innumerable” others, whom he styles “inspired” men, are older than Moses and his writings—that very Moses who is shown to be much older than the time of the Trojan war! It is not the Jews, then, who have composed incredible and insipid stories regarding the birth of man from the earth, but these “inspired” men of Celsus, Hesiod and his other “innumerable” companions, who, having neither learned nor heard of the far older and most venerable accounts existing in Palestine, have written such histories as their Theogonies, attributing, so far as in their power, “generation” to their deities, and innumerable other absurdities. And these are the writers whom Plato expels from his “State” as being corrupters of the youth,—Homer, viz., and those who have composed poems of a similar description! Now it is evident that Plato did not regard as “inspired” those men who had left behind them such works. But perhaps it was from a desire to cast reproach upon us, that this Epicurean Celsus, who is better able to judge than Plato (if it be the same Celsus who composed two other books against the Christians), called those individuals “inspired” whom he did not in reality regard as such.