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History of the Martyrs in Palestine
Eusebius of Caesarea, tr. Cureton, 1861; longer recension
The Confession of Paulus (Gr. Peleus) and Nilus, and Patrimytheas (Gr. Patermutheus) and…
It was the nineteenth day of Ilul, and during the same wonderful conflict of the martyrs of God, that a great spectacle was assembled in Phæno,1 in this same Palestine; and all the combatants were perfect, and in number they were about a hundred and fifty. Many of them, also, were Egyptians, amounting to more than a hundred. And the same in the first place had their right eyes and their left legs in their sinews destroyed by cautery of fire and by the sword. And then after these things they were delivered over to dig copper in the mines. Those, also, who belonged to Palestine had to endure afflictions in the same manner as the Egyptians; and they were all assembled together in a place called Zauara,2 as a congregation consisting of many persons. There was also much people with them, who came from other places to see them, and many others who ministered to them in their necessities, and visited them in love, and filled up their lack. And all the day they were occupied in the ministry of prayer, and in the service of God, and in teaching and reading; and all the afflictions which passed over them were esteemed by them as pleasures, and they spent all that time as if it had been in a festive assembly. But the enemy of God and wicked envier was not able to bear these things, so there was immediately sent out against them one of those generals of the Romans that is styled Dux; and first of all he separated them one by one from each other, and some of them were sent to that wretched place Zauara, and some not; and some of them to Phæno, the place where the copper is dug; and the others went to different places. Afterwards he selected from among those in Phæno four of them who were of great excellence, in order that by them he might terrify the rest. Having, therefore, brought them to the trial, and not one of them having shewn any signs of dismay, this merciless judge, thinking that no punishment was so severe as that by fire, delivered up God’s holy martyrs to this kind of death. When, therefore, they were brought to the fire, they cast themselves into the flames without fear, and dedicated themselves as an offering more acceptable than all incense and oblations; and presented their own bodies to God as a holocaust more excellent than all sacrifices. And two of these were Bishops Paulus3 and Nilus; and the other two were selected of the laity, Patermytheus4 and Elias; and by race they were all of them Egyptians. They were pure lovers of that exalted philosophy which is of God,5 and offered themselves like gold to the fire to be purified. But He who giveth strength to the weak, and multiplieth comfort to the afflicted, deemed them worthy of that life which is in heaven, and associated them with the company of angels.
Notes
- “Phæno.” Eusebius has described this place thus in his book, De locis Hebraicis:—Φινων, ην κατῳκησεν Ισραηλ επι του ερημου· ην δε και πολις Εδωμ. αυτη εστι Φαινων, ενθα τα μεταλλα του χαλκου, μεταξυ κειμενη Πετρης πολεως και Ζουρων. And Athanasius:—μεταλλον ουχ απλως, αλλα εις το του Φαινω, ενθα και φονευς καταδικαζομενος ολυγας ημερας μογις δυναται ζησαι. See Reading’s Note on Eusebius at this place.
- “Zauara.” This is Ζουρα, mentioned by Eusebius in the preceding note, now Zara, Zora, or Zoara. See Van de Velde, Memoir to Map of the Holy Land, p. 354.
- “The confession of Paulus,” &c. The name in the Greek is Πηλευς, both in this place and in Ecc. Hist., Book 8, ch. 13.
- “Patermytheus.” Above, Patrimytheas, with the usual inconsistency in writing proper names in Syriac.
- “Lovers of that exalted philosophy which is of God.” That is, the Christian religion. See Ecc. Hist. passim.