Demonstration of the Gospel 3.7.1–4.4.2

Eusebius of Caesarea · Demonstration of the Gospel · ca. 314–324 · Caesarea · 65 passages

Greek text: Dindorf, Eusebii Opera 3 (Greek text: W. Dindorf, Eusebii Caesariensis Opera 3 (Leipzig: Teubner, 1867), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0).English: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), public domain (CC0). Compare: W. J. Ferrar, The Proof of the Gospel (1920).

preface 3, chapter 7

3.7.1Dindorf 3:200

“ Παράδοξον ἴσως δόξειεν ἄν τισιν εἶναι τὸ μέλλον λέγεσθαι ὑφʼ ἡμῶν. τὸν γὰρ Χριστὸν οἱ θεοὶ εὐσεβέστατον ἀπεφήναντο καὶ ἀθάνατον γεγονότα, εὐφήμως τε αὐτοῦ μνημονεύουσι.” καὶ ὑποβὰς ἐπιλέγει ‘‘περὶ γοῦν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐρωτησάντων εἰ ἔστι θεὸς ἡ Ἑκάτη φησὶν ὅττι μὲν ἀθανάτη ψυχὴ μετὰ σῶμα προβαίνει γιγνώσκεις, σοφίης δὲ τετμημένη αἰὲν ἀλᾶται· ἀνέρος εὐσεβίῃ προφερεστάτου ἐστὶν ἐκείνη ψυχή· εὐσεβέστατον ἄρα ἔφη αὐτὸν καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ, καθάπερ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, μετὰ θάνατον ἀπαθανατισθῆναι, ἣν σέβειν ἀγνοοῦντας τοὺς Χριστιανούς. ἐπερωτησάντων δὲ διὰ τί ἐκολάσθη ἔχρησεν Σῶμα μὲν ἀδρανέσιν βασάνοις αἰεὶ προβέβληται· ψυχὴ δʼ εὐσεβέων εἰς οὐράνιον πέδον ἵζει, ”

“ Paradoxon isōs doxeien an tisin einai to mellon legesthai hyphʼ hēmōn. ton gar Christon hoi theoi eusebestaton apephēnanto kai athanaton gegonota, euphēmōs te autou mnēmoneuousi.” kai hypobas epilegei ‘‘peri goun tou Christou erōtēsantōn ei esti theos hē Hekatē phēsin hotti men athanatē psychē meta sōma probainei gignōskeis, sophiēs de tetmēmenē aien alatai; aneros eusebię̄ propherestatou estin ekeinē psychē; eusebestaton ara ephē auton kai tēn psychēn autou, kathaper kai tōn allōn, meta thanaton apathanatisthēnai, hēn sebein agnoountas tous Christianous. eperōtēsantōn de dia ti ekolasthē echrēsen Sōma men adranesin basanois aiei probeblētai; psychē dʼ eusebeōn eis ouranion pedon hizei, ”

“What we are about to say may perhaps seem paradoxical to some. For the gods have declared Christ to have been most pious and to have become immortal, and they speak of him with praise.” And lower down he adds: “At any rate, when some asked about Christ whether he is a god, Hecate says: ‘That the immortal soul goes on after the body, you know; but when cut off from wisdom it wanders forever. That soul belongs to a man foremost in piety.’ So she said he was most pious, and that his soul, like those of others, was made immortal after death, and that the Christians worship it in ignorance. And when they asked further why he was punished, she gave the oracle: ‘The body is ever exposed to feeble torments; but the soul of the pious sits in the heavenly plain.’”

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius quotes Porphyry's oracle of Hecate calling Christ most pious and his soul immortal in heaven.

Quoted from Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragment; also cited by Augustine, City of God 19.23). The oracle’s verses are obscure and translated literally. Porphyry’s words that Christians worship Christ’s soul “in ignorance” are his polemical view, translated as written.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (stray bracket): ἡ Ἑκάτη] → ἡ Ἑκάτη.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments); quotation)

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.1 (Dindorf 3:200; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Dindorf (Teubner, 1867); made independently of existing English translations and compared afterwards with W. J. Ferrar, The Proof of the Gospel (1920).

3.7.2Dindorf 3:200

καὶ ἐπιλέγει μετὰ τὸν χρησμὸν ἑξῆς ‘‘αὐτὸς οὖν εὐσεβὴς καὶ εἰς οὐρανοὺς, ὥσπερ οἱ εὐσεβεῖς, χωρή- σὰς. ὥστε τοῦτον μὲν οὐ βλασφημήσεις, ἐλεήσεις δὲ τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὴν ἄνοιαν.”

kai epilegei meta ton chrēsmon hexēs ‘‘autos oun eusebēs kai eis ouranous, hōsper hoi eusebeis, chōrē- sas. hōste touton men ou blasphēmēseis, eleēseis de tōn anthrōpōn tēn anoian.”

And after the oracle he adds next: “He himself, then, was pious and went to heaven, as the pious do. So you will not blaspheme him, but you will pity the folly of men.”

Notes and citation

Summary: Porphyry concludes that Christ was pious and went to heaven, and should not be blasphemed.

Continuation of the quotation from Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip): αὐτὁς οὖν → αὐτὸς οὖν.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Porphyry, Phil. orac. (Porphyry, Philosophy from Oracles (fragments); quotation)

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.2 (Dindorf 3:200; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.3Dindorf 3:200–201

Ταῦτα καὶ νῦν ὁ Πορφύριος. ἆρʼ οὖν ἀπατεὼν οὗτος; κἂν τὰ φίλα σε δυσωπείτω τῶν οἰκείων ῥήματα. ἔχεις τοιγαροῦν τὸν ἡμέτερον σωτῆρα Ἰησοῦν, τὸν Χριστὸν τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ παρὰ τοῖς σαυτοῦ ὡμολογημένον οὐ γόητα οὐδὲ φαρμακέα, ἀλλʼ εὐσεβῆ καὶ δικαιότατον καὶ σοφὸν καὶ οὐρανίων ἀψίδων οἰκήτορα.

Tauta kai nyn ho Porphyrios. arʼ oun apateōn houtos? kan ta phila se dysōpeitō tōn oikeiōn rhēmata. echeis toigaroun ton hēmeteron sōtēra Iēsoun, ton Christon tou theou, kai para tois sautou hōmologēmenon ou goēta oude pharmakea, allʼ eusebē kai dikaiotaton kai sophon kai ouraniōn apsidōn oikētora.

So says Porphyry even now. Was this man, then, a deceiver? Let at least the friendly words of your own people put you to shame. You have, therefore, our Savior Jesus, the Christ of God, acknowledged even by your own people not as a sorcerer or poisoner, but as pious, most righteous, wise, and a dweller in the vaults of heaven.

Notes and citation

Summary: Even Porphyry's oracles acknowledge Jesus as pious and heavenly, not a sorcerer.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.3 (Dindorf 3:200–201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-3). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.4Dindorf 3:201

ὁ δὴ οὖν τοιοῦτος πῶς ἂν ἄλλως τῶν παραδόξων ἔργων γεγόνει ποιητὴς ἢ δυνάμει θείᾳ, ἣν καὶ τὰ ἱερὰ λόγια μαρτυροῦσιν αὐτῷ, θεοῦ λόγον καὶ θεοῦ δύναμιν τὴν ἀνωτάτω ἐν ἀνθρώπου μορφῇ καὶ σχήματι, μᾶλλον δʼ ἐν αὐτῇ σαρκὶ καὶ σώματι κατοικῆσαι, καὶ πάσαν τὴν ἐν ἀνθρώποις οἰκονομίαν ἐπιτελέσαι μαρτυροῦντα;

ho dē oun toioutos pōs an allōs tōn paradoxōn ergōn gegonei poiētēs ē dynamei theią, hēn kai ta hiera logia martyrousin autǭ, theou logon kai theou dynamin tēn anōtatō en anthrōpou morphę̄ kai schēmati, mallon dʼ en autę̄ sarki kai sōmati katoikēsai, kai pasan tēn en anthrōpois oikonomian epitelesai martyrounta?

How, then, could such a one have become the doer of astonishing works otherwise than by divine power? The sacred oracles bear him witness to this, testifying that the Word of God and the supreme Power of God dwelt in human form and shape, or rather in flesh and body itself, and accomplished the whole saving dispensation among men.

John 1:14 (echo, medium confidence) · 1 Cor 1:24 (echo, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus worked his wonders by divine power, as Scripture testifies that the Word of God dwelt in flesh.

“Word of God and Power of God” echoes John 1:14 and 1 Cor 1:24.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.4 (Dindorf 3:201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-4). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.5Dindorf 3:201

καὶ σὺ δʼ ἂν αὐτὸς καταμάθοις τὸ ἔνθεον τῆς περὶ αὐτοῦ δυνάμεως, εἰ λογίσαιο τίς ποτε ὢν ἄρα τὴν φύσιν καὶ πηλίκος ἄνδρας εὐτελεῖς ἐξ ἁλείας καὶ ταπεινοῦ βίου προσοικειωσάμενος, τούτοις κέχρηται διακόνοις ἐπὶ κατορθώσει πράγματος πάντα καλύπτοντος λόγον.

kai sy dʼ an autos katamathois to entheon tēs peri autou dynameōs, ei logisaio tis pote ōn ara tēn physin kai pēlikos andras euteleis ex haleias kai tapeinou biou prosoikeiōsamenos, toutois kechrētai diakonois epi katorthōsei pragmatos panta kalyptontos logon.

You yourself would learn the divine character of his power if you considered who and how great he must be by nature, who took to himself humble men from fishing and a lowly life and used them as ministers for achieving a thing that surpasses all words.

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus' use of humble fishermen to accomplish an indescribable work shows his divine power.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.5 (Dindorf 3:201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-5). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.6Dindorf 3:201

διανοηθεὶς γὰρ ὃ μηδεὶς πώποτε νόμους οἰκείους καὶ ξένην διδασκαλίαν εἰς πάντα κατασπεῖραι τὰ ἔθνη, καὶ παντὸς γένους ἀνθρώπων διδάσκαλον εὐσεβείας ἑνὸς τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ ἑαυτὸν ἀποφῆναι, τοῖς πάντων ἀγροικοτάτοις καὶ εὐτελεστάτοις ἡγήσατο χρῆσθαι τῆς οἰκείας βουλῆς ὑπηρέταις, εἰκός τινα παραλογώτατα ταῦτα αὐτὸν πεποιηκέναι νομίσαι.

dianoētheis gar ho mēdeis pōpote nomous oikeious kai xenēn didaskalian eis panta kataspeirai ta ethnē, kai pantos genous anthrōpōn didaskalon eusebeias henos tou epi pantōn theou heauton apophēnai, tois pantōn agroikotatois kai eutelestatois hēgēsato chrēsthai tēs oikeias boulēs hypēretais, eikos tina paralogōtata tauta auton pepoiēkenai nomisai.

For having conceived what no one ever had, to sow his own laws and a strange teaching among all the nations and to show himself the teacher of every race of men in the worship of the one God over all, he thought fit to use the most rustic and humble men of all as servants of his plan. One might well suppose that he did this in a most unreasonable way.

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus chose the humblest men to carry his universal teaching, which seems at first most unreasonable.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip): διανοηθὶς γὰρ → διανοηθεὶς γὰρ.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.6 (Dindorf 3:201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-6). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.7Dindorf 3:201

πῶς γὰρ οἱ μηδὲ διᾶραι δυνάμενοι στόμα, κἂν ἑνός τινος διδάσκαλοι κατέστησαν, οὐχί γε ἀνδρῶν συλλόγου; πῶς δʼ ἂν πλήθει διειλέχθησαν οἱ πάσης ἐκτὸς γεγονότες παιδείας; ἀλλὰ τοῦτʼ ἦν ἄρα τὸ τῆς ἐνθέου βουλῆς καὶ τῆς ἐνεργούσης ἐν αὐτοῖς θείας δυνάμεως παραστατικόν. ἀνακαλέσας γοῦν αὐτοὺς τὰ μὲν πρῶτά φησι ‟δεῦτε, ἀκολουθεῖτέ μοι, καὶ ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων.”

pōs gar hoi mēde diarai dynamenoi stoma, kan henos tinos didaskaloi katestēsan, ouchi ge andrōn syllogou? pōs dʼ an plēthei dieilechthēsan hoi pasēs ektos gegonotes paideias? alla toutʼ ēn ara to tēs entheou boulēs kai tēs energousēs en autois theias dynameōs parastatikon. anakalesas goun autous ta men prōta phēsi ‟deute, akoloutheite moi, kai hymas halieis anthrōpōn.”

For how could men who could not even open their mouths become teachers even of a single person, let alone of an assembly of men? How could those who had had no education at all speak to a crowd? But this, then, was what displayed the divine plan and the divine power at work in them. At any rate, when he called them first he said, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Matt 4:19 (quotation, high confidence) · Mark 1:17 (quotation, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Uneducated fishermen could not teach crowds except by divine power, as Jesus' call showed.

The quotation is Matt 4:19 (Mark 1:17), abridged; the digital text omits the verb “I will make.”

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): διειλέχθησαν οἶ πάσης → διειλέχθησαν οἱ πάσης.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.7 (Dindorf 3:201; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-7). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.8Dindorf 3:201–202

ἐπειδὴ δὲ λοιπὸν αὐτοὺς ἀκολούθους ἐκτήσατο, ἐμπνεύσας αὐτοῖς δυνάμεως θείας, μένους τε καὶ θάρσους ἐμπλήσας, καὶ δὴ οἷά τις ἀληθῶς θεοῦ λόγος καὶ αὐτὸς θεὸς, τηλικούτων θαυμάτων ποιητὴς, νοερῶν αὐτοὺς καὶ λογικῶν ψυχῶν θηρευτὰς ποιήσας, ἔργον τε ἐπιθεὶς τῇ φωνῇ τῇ ‟δεῦτε, ἀκολουθεῖτέ μοι, καὶ ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων φησάσῃ, ὁμοῦ τε ἐργάτας καὶ διδασκάλους αὐτοὺς εὐσεβείας ἀπειργασμένους ἤδη καὶ εἰς πάντα τὰ ἔθνη διεπέμπετο, κήρυκας ἀναδεί- ξας τῆς αὑτοῦ διδασκαλίας.

epeidē de loipon autous akolouthous ektēsato, empneusas autois dynameōs theias, menous te kai tharsous emplēsas, kai dē hoia tis alēthōs theou logos kai autos theos, tēlikoutōn thaumatōn poiētēs, noerōn autous kai logikōn psychōn thēreutas poiēsas, ergon te epitheis tę̄ phōnę̄ tę̄ ‟deute, akoloutheite moi, kai hymas halieis anthrōpōn phēsasę̄, homou te ergatas kai didaskalous autous eusebeias apeirgasmenous ēdē kai eis panta ta ethnē diepempeto, kērykas anadei- xas tēs hautou didaskalias.

And when he had gained them as followers, he breathed divine power into them and filled them with strength and courage. And, as one who was truly the Word of God and himself God, the doer of such great wonders, he made them hunters of intelligent and rational souls, adding the deed to the saying, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Having now made them both workers and teachers of piety, he sent them out to all the nations, appointing them heralds of his teaching.

Matt 4:19 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus filled the disciples with divine power, made them fishers of souls, and sent them to all nations.

Matt 4:19 again. Eusebius calls the Word “himself God” (αὐτὸς θεός); translated as written.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.8 (Dindorf 3:201–202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-8). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.9Dindorf 3:202

καὶ τίς οὐκ ἂν ἐξεπλάγη καὶ ἠπίστησεν ἂν εἰκότως τῷ παραδόξῳ τοῦ θαύματος, ὅτε μηδεὶς μὲν τῶν πώποτε ἐν ἀνθρώποις γενομένων διαφανῶν, μὴ βασιλεὺς, μὴ νομοθέτης, μὴ φιλόσοφος, μὴ Ἕλλην, μὴ βάρβαρος, τοιοῦτόν τι διανοηθεὶς ἱστορεῖται, ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ εἰς φαντασίαν ἐλθων τοῦ παραπλησίου; ἀγαπητὸν γὰρ ἑκάστῳ ἦν, εἰ καὶ ἐπὶ μόνης τῆς οἰκείας γῆς τὸ οἰκεῖον ἐπάγγελμα συνεστήσατο, καὶ τοὺς καλῶς ἔχειν φανέντας νόμους κἂν ἐφʼ ἑνὸς τοῦ οἰκείου ἔθνους κρατῦναι οἶός τε ἦν· ὁ δὲ μηδὲν θνητὸν καὶ ἀνθρώπινον διανοηθεὶς ὅρα εἰ μὴ ὡς ἀληθῶς θεοῦ πάλιν προήκατο φωνὴν, αὐτολεξεὶ φήσας τοῖς εὐτελεστάτοις ἐκείνοις αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς “πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη.”

kai tis ouk an exeplagē kai ēpistēsen an eikotōs tǭ paradoxǭ tou thaumatos, hote mēdeis men tōn pōpote en anthrōpois genomenōn diaphanōn, mē basileus, mē nomothetēs, mē philosophos, mē Hellēn, mē barbaros, toiouton ti dianoētheis historeitai, allʼ oudʼ eis phantasian elthōn tou paraplēsiou? agapēton gar hekastǭ ēn, ei kai epi monēs tēs oikeias gēs to oikeion epangelma synestēsato, kai tous kalōs echein phanentas nomous kan ephʼ henos tou oikeiou ethnous kratynai oios te ēn; ho de mēden thnēton kai anthrōpinon dianoētheis hora ei mē hōs alēthōs theou palin proēkato phōnēn, autolexei phēsas tois eutelestatois ekeinois autou mathētais “poreuthentes mathēteusate panta ta ethnē.”

And who would not be astonished, and reasonably disbelieve, at the strangeness of the wonder? For no one of all the distinguished men who ever lived, no king, no lawgiver, no philosopher, no Greek, no barbarian, is recorded to have conceived anything like this, or even to have imagined anything similar. Each would have been content if he had established his own profession in his own land alone, and could make the laws he thought good prevail even in his own single nation. But he, who conceived nothing mortal and human, see whether he did not truly again utter the voice of God, saying word for word to those most humble disciples of his, “Go and make disciples of all the nations.”

Matt 28:19 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: No king or philosopher ever dreamed of a mission to all nations, but Jesus commanded it to humble disciples.

The quotation is Matt 28:19.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip; OCR breathing slip; OCR dropped letter): ἑκάστῳ ἣν → ἑκάστῳ ἦν; αύτολεξεὶ → αὐτολεξεὶ; πορευθένες → πορευθέντες.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.9 (Dindorf 3:202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-9). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.10Dindorf 3:202

καὶ πῶς, εἶπον ἂν οἱ μαθηταὶ τῷ διδασκάλῳ πάντως που ἀποκρινάμενοι, τοῦθʼ ἡμῖν ἔσται δυνατόν; πῶς γὰρ Ῥωμαίοις, φέρε, κηρύξομεν; πῶς δὲ Αἰγυπτίοις διαλεχθησόμεθα; ποίᾳ δὲ χρησόμεθα λέξει πρὸς Ἕλληνας, ἄνδρες τῇ Σύρων ἐντραφέντες μόνῃ φωνῇ;

kai pōs, eipon an hoi mathētai tǭ didaskalǭ pantōs pou apokrinamenoi, touthʼ hēmin estai dynaton? pōs gar Rhōmaiois, phere, kēryxomen? pōs de Aigyptiois dialechthēsometha? poią de chrēsometha lexei pros Hellēnas, andres tę̄ Syrōn entraphentes monę̄ phōnę̄?

“And how,” the disciples would surely have answered their Teacher, “will this be possible for us? How, tell us, shall we preach to the Romans? How shall we converse with the Egyptians? What language shall we use with the Greeks, men brought up in the Syrian tongue alone?

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius imagines the disciples objecting that they, speaking only Syriac, cannot preach to Romans, Egyptians, and Greeks.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.10 (Dindorf 3:202; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-10). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.11Dindorf 3:202–203

Πέρσας δὲ καὶ Ἀρμενίους, καὶ Χαλδαίους, καὶ Σκύθας, καὶ Ἰνδοὺς, καὶ εἴ τινα βαρβάρων γένοιτο ἔθνη, πῶς πείσομεν τῶν μὲν πατρίων θεῶν ἀφίστα- σθαι, ἕνα δὲ τὸν πάντων δημιουργὸν σέβειν; ποίᾳ δὲ λόγων ἱκανότητι θαρσοῦντες ἐπὶ τοῦτο παρελευσόμεθα; ἢ τίς ἡμῖν ἐλπὶς ἔσται τοῦ κατορθώματος ἀντινομοθετεῖν τολμῶσι τοῖς πάντων ἐθνῶν περὶ τῶν οἰκείων θεῶν ἐξ αἰῶνος κειμένοις νόμοις; ἐπὶ ποίᾳ δὲ καὶ δυνάμει περιέσεσθαι ἔστι τοῦ τολμήματος;

Persas de kai Armenious, kai Chaldaious, kai Skythas, kai Indous, kai ei tina barbarōn genoito ethnē, pōs peisomen tōn men patriōn theōn aphista- sthai, hena de ton pantōn dēmiourgon sebein? poią de logōn hikanotēti tharsountes epi touto pareleusometha? ē tis hēmin elpis estai tou katorthōmatos antinomothetein tolmōsi tois pantōn ethnōn peri tōn oikeiōn theōn ex aiōnos keimenois nomois? epi poią de kai dynamei periesesthai esti tou tolmēmatos?

And the Persians, Armenians, Chaldeans, Scythians, Indians, and whatever barbarian nations there may be, how shall we persuade them to depart from their ancestral gods and to worship the one Maker of all? With what sufficiency of speech shall we take courage and set out on this? Or what hope of success shall we have when we dare to legislate against the laws laid down from all ages among all the nations about their own gods? And by what power can we prevail in so bold an undertaking?”

Notes and citation

Summary: The imagined disciples ask how they can persuade the barbarian nations to leave their ancestral gods.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing/accent slip (“the one Maker”)): ἴνα δὲ τὸν → ἕνα δὲ τὸν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.11 (Dindorf 3:202–203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-11). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.12Dindorf 3:203

ταῦτα ἢ φησάντων ἂν κατὰ τὸ εἰκὸς ἢ διανοηθέντων τῶν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθητῶν, μιᾶς προσθήκῃ λέξεως αὐτοῖς ὁ διδάσκαλος λύσιν τῶν ἀπορηθέντων ὑπέθετο, φήσας κατόρθωσιν ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου· οὐ γὰρ δὴ ἀπλῶς καὶ ἀδιορίστως μαθητεῦσαι πάντα τὰ ἔθνη προσέταττεν, μετὰ προσθήκης δὲ ἀναγκαίας τῆς ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ.

tauta ē phēsantōn an kata to eikos ē dianoēthentōn tōn tou Iēsou mathētōn, mias prosthēkę̄ lexeōs autois ho didaskalos lysin tōn aporēthentōn hypetheto, phēsas katorthōsin en tǭ onomati mou; ou gar dē aplōs kai adioristōs mathēteusai panta ta ethnē prosetatten, meta prosthēkēs de anankaias tēs en tǭ onomati autou.

When the disciples of Jesus would likely have said or thought these things, the Teacher gave them the solution of their difficulties by adding a single phrase, saying they would succeed “in my name.” For he did not command them simply and without qualification to make disciples of all the nations, but with the necessary addition, “in his name.”

Matt 28:19 (allusion, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus answered the disciples' difficulty by adding that they would make disciples “in my name.”

The phrase φήσας κατόρθωσιν ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου is awkward in the digital text (perhaps a word is missing); translated by sense. The reference is to Eusebius’s short form of Matt 28:19.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.12 (Dindorf 3:203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-12). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.13Dindorf 3:203

ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ δύναμις τῆς αὐτοῦ προσηγορίας τοιαύτη τις ἦν ὡς φάναι τὸν ἀπόστολον “ὅτι δὴ ἐχαρίσατο αὐτῷ ὁ θεὸς τὸ ὄνομα τὸ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ὄνομα ἵνα ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ πᾶν γόνυ κάμψῃ ἐπουρανίων καὶ ἐπιγείων καὶ καταχθονίων”, εἰκότως τῆς τοὺς πολλοὺς λανθανούσης ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ δυνάμεως τὴν ἀρετὴν ἐμφαίνων, τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς ἔφησεν ‘‘πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου.’

epeidē gar hē dynamis tēs autou prosēgorias toiautē tis ēn hōs phanai ton apostolon “hoti dē echarisato autǭ ho theos to onoma to hyper pan onoma hina en tǭ onomati Iēsou pan gony kampsę̄ epouraniōn kai epigeiōn kai katachthoniōn”, eikotōs tēs tous pollous lanthanousēs en tǭ onomati autou dynameōs tēn aretēn emphainōn, tois autou mathētais ephēsen ‘‘poreuthentes mathēteusate panta ta ethnē en tǭ onomati mou.’

For since the power of his name was such that the apostle said, “God has given him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and on earth and under the earth,” he rightly showed the excellence of the power in his name, hidden from most people, when he said to his disciples, “Go and make disciples of all the nations in my name.”

Phil 2:9–10 (quotation, high confidence) · Matt 28:19 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The power of Jesus' name, which Paul says is above every name, is why he sent the disciples out “in my name.”

The quotations are Phil 2:9–10 and Matt 28:19 (in Eusebius’s short form).

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip; stray line number and OCR slip): πᾶν ὄνομα 5 ἔνα → πᾶν ὄνομα ἵνα; καταχθοωίων → καταχθονίων.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.13 (Dindorf 3:203; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-13). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.14Dindorf 3:203–204

εἶτα καὶ θεσπίζει εὖ μάλα ἀκριβῶς τὸ μέλλον, εἰπών ‟δεῖ κηρυχθῆναι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦτο ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ εἰς μαρτύριον πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν.’ ὁ δὲ λόγος εἴρητο μὲν ἐν γωνίᾳ γῆς τότε, καὶ οἱ παρόντες ἤκουον μόνοι. πῶς οὖν ἄρα πιστὸς ἦν αὐτοῖς τοῦτο λέγων, εἰ μὴ ἐξ ἑτέρων τῶν ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ πεπραγμένων ἐνθέων ἔργων τῆς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις ἀληθείας αὐτοῦ τὴν πεῖραν εἰλήφεσαν; ὅτι γὰρ ἐπίστευσαν λέγοντι συλλογιζομένῳ σοι ὁμολογεῖν ἀνάγκη.

eita kai thespizei eu mala akribōs to mellon, eipōn ‟dei kērychthēnai to euangelion touto en holę̄ tę̄ oikoumenę̄ eis martyrion pasi tois ethnesin.’ ho de logos eirēto men en gōnią gēs tote, kai hoi parontes ēkouon monoi. pōs oun ara pistos ēn autois touto legōn, ei mē ex heterōn tōn hypʼ autou pepragmenōn entheōn ergōn tēs en tois logois alētheias autou tēn peiran eilēphesan? hoti gar episteusan legonti syllogizomenǭ soi homologein anankē.

Then he also foretold the future very exactly, saying, “This gospel must be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations.” Yet the word was spoken then in a corner of the earth, and only those present heard it. How, then, was he believed when he said this to them, unless they had gained proof of the truth of his words from the other divine works he had done? For if you reason it out, you must admit that they believed what he said.

Matt 24:14 (quotation, high confidence) · Mark 13:10 (allusion, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus foretold the worldwide preaching of the gospel, and the disciples believed him because of his works.

The quotation combines Matt 24:14 with Mark 13:10 (“must be preached”).

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): καὶ οἶ παρόντες → καὶ οἱ παρόντες.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.14 (Dindorf 3:203–204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-14). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.15Dindorf 3:204

προστάξαντι γὰρ οὐδεὶς ἠπείθει, ἀλλὰ πειθαρχήσαντες αὐτοῦ τῷ νεύματι κατὰ τὰ παρηγγελμένα πᾶν γένος ἀνθρώπων ἐμαθήτευον, ἐκ τῆς οἰκείας γῆς ἐπὶ πάντα στειλάμενοι τὰ ἔθνη, ἐν ὀλίγῳ τε ἦν ἔργα θεωρῆσαι τοὺς λόγους. κεκή- ρυκτο γοῦν τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἐν βραχεῖ χρόνῳ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ εἰς μαρτύριον τοῖς ἔθνεσι, καὶ βάρβα- ροι καὶ Ἕλληνες τὰς περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ γραφὰς πατρίοις χαρακτῆρσιν καὶ πατρίῳ φωνῇ μετελάμβανον.

prostaxanti gar oudeis ēpeithei, alla peitharchēsantes autou tǭ neumati kata ta parēngelmena pan genos anthrōpōn emathēteuon, ek tēs oikeias gēs epi panta steilamenoi ta ethnē, en oligǭ te ēn erga theōrēsai tous logous. kekē- rykto goun to euangelion en brachei chronǭ en holę̄ tę̄ oikoumenę̄ eis martyrion tois ethnesi, kai barba- roi kai Hellēnes tas peri tou Iēsou graphas patriois charaktērsin kai patriǭ phōnę̄ metelambanon.

For no one disobeyed his command; but obeying his nod, they made disciples of every race of men according to what had been commanded, setting out from their own land to all the nations, and in a short time the words could be seen as deeds. The gospel, at any rate, was preached in a short time in the whole world as a testimony to the nations, and barbarians and Greeks received the writings about Jesus in their native characters and native speech.

Matt 24:14 (echo, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The disciples obeyed, and soon the gospel was preached everywhere and the writings about Jesus translated into many languages.

Echo of Matt 24:14.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip; joined words and dropped letter): τῷνεύματικατὰ → τῷ νεύματι κατὰ; περὶ τοὐ Ἰησοῦ → περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ.

Topics: Scripture and canon

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.15 (Dindorf 3:204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-15). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.16Dindorf 3:204

καί- τοι τίς οὐκ ἂν ἀπορήσειεν εὐλόγως τίς ἦν ἄρα ὁ τῆς τῶν μαθητῶν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ διδασκαλίας τρόπος; ἆρα γὰρ εἰς μέσην παρελθόντες πόλιν, ἔπειτʼ ἐν ἀγορᾷ στάντες καὶ βοῇ μείζονι χρησάμενοι συνεκάλουν τοὺς παριόντας, κἄπειτα ἐδημηγόρουν; καὶ τίς ἦν ἄρα αὐ- τοῖς τῆς δημηγορίας ὁ λόγος, ᾧ πεπεῖσθαι εἰκὸς ἦν τοὺς ἀκροωμένους; πῶς δὲ καὶ ἐδημηγόρουν ἄνδρες λόγων; ἄπειροι καὶ πάσης ἀμέτοχοι παιδείας;

kai- toi tis ouk an aporēseien eulogōs tis ēn ara ho tēs tōn mathētōn tou Iēsou didaskalias tropos? ara gar eis mesēn parelthontes polin, epeitʼ en agorą stantes kai boę̄ meizoni chrēsamenoi synekaloun tous pariontas, kapeita edēmēgoroun? kai tis ēn ara au- tois tēs dēmēgorias ho logos, hǭ pepeisthai eikos ēn tous akroōmenous? pōs de kai edēmēgoroun andres logōn? apeiroi kai pasēs ametochoi paideias?

And yet who would not reasonably be puzzled as to what, then, was the manner of teaching of Jesus’ disciples? Did they go into the middle of a city, then stand in the marketplace, raise their voices and call together the passers-by, and then address the people? And what, then, was the speech of their address, by which the hearers could plausibly have been persuaded? And how could men address the people who were unskilled in speaking and had no share in any education?

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius asks how uneducated disciples could have preached publicly and persuaded anyone.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.16 (Dindorf 3:204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-16). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.17Dindorf 3:204

ἀλλὰ μὴν οὐ κατὰ πλῆθος, κατὰ μέρος δὲ τοῖς προστυ- χοῦσι διελέγοντο. τίσιν οὖν καὶ ὁποίοις ἐχρῶντο λό- γοις ἐπὶ πειθὼ τῶν ἀκουόντων, ἐπεὶ μηδὲ μικρὸς ἦν αὐτοῖς ὁ ἀγὼν, μὴ ἀρνουμένοις τὸν ἐπονείδιστον θάνατον τοῦ καταγγελλομένου;

alla mēn ou kata plēthos, kata meros de tois prosty- chousi dielegonto. tisin oun kai hopoiois echrōnto lo- gois epi peithō tōn akouontōn, epei mēde mikros ēn autois ho agōn, mē arnoumenois ton eponeidiston thanaton tou katangellomenou?

But suppose they did not speak to crowds but individually to whoever they met. What words, then, and of what kind, did they use to persuade their hearers, since their struggle was no small one if they did not deny the shameful death of the one they proclaimed?

Notes and citation

Summary: Even speaking one on one, the disciples faced a hard task if they did not hide the shameful death of the one they proclaimed.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.17 (Dindorf 3:204; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-17). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.18Dindorf 3:204–205

εἰ μὲν γὰρ τοὐ- ’τον ἐπικρυψάμενοι, καὶ μὴ ὁμολογοῦντες εἰς πάντας οἷα καὶ ὁπόσα πέπονθεν ὑπὸ Ἰουδαίων, τὰ σεμνὰ μόνα καὶ ἔνδοξα προσεκόμιζον, (λέγω δὲ τὰς θαυμα- τουργίας καὶ τὰς παραδοξοποιίας αὐτοῦ τάς τε φι- λοσόφους διδασκαλίας αὐτοῦ) οὐδʼ οὕτως ἦν αὐτοῖς εὐχερὴς ὁ λόγος πρὸς τὸ ποιῆσαι ῥᾳδίως συγκαταθέ- σθαι τοὺς ἀκούοντας ξενοφωνουμένους ^ καὶ ἄρτι πρῶτον ἐπακούοντας καινῶν ῥημάτων ὑπʼ ἀνδρῶν οὐδὲν ἐπαγομένων ἀξιόπιστον εἰς τὴν τῶν λεγομένων μαρτυρίαν ’ πλὴν ἀλλʼ ἔδοξεν ἂν πιθανώτερον λέγε- σθαι τὰ εἰρημένα.

ei men gar tou- ’ton epikrypsamenoi, kai mē homologountes eis pantas hoia kai hoposa peponthen hypo Ioudaiōn, ta semna mona kai endoxa prosekomizon, (legō de tas thauma- tourgias kai tas paradoxopoiias autou tas te phi- losophous didaskalias autou) oudʼ houtōs ēn autois eucherēs ho logos pros to poiēsai rhądiōs synkatathe- sthai tous akouontas xenophōnoumenous ^ kai arti prōton epakouontas kainōn rhēmatōn hypʼ andrōn ouden epagomenōn axiopiston eis tēn tōn legomenōn martyrian ’ plēn allʼ edoxen an pithanōteron lege- sthai ta eirēmena.

For if they had concealed this, and had not confessed to everyone what things and how many he suffered at the hands of the Jews, and had brought forward only the dignified and glorious things (I mean his wonders, his astonishing deeds, and his philosophical teachings), even so their message would not have been easy, to make their hearers readily assent, when they heard a foreign speech and were hearing new words for the first time from men who offered nothing trustworthy in witness of what they said. Still, what they said would have seemed more plausible.

Notes and citation

Summary: Even preaching only Jesus' miracles and teachings, foreign strangers would have found it hard to persuade anyone.

“At the hands of the Jews” reflects the Gospel accounts of the Passion; translated as written.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.18 (Dindorf 3:204–205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-18). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.19Dindorf 3:205

νῦν δὲ τοτὲ μὲν τὸν πρεσβευόμενον θεὸν ἐν ἀνθρώπου γεγονέναι σώματι, καὶ οὐδὲν ἄλλο τὴν φύσιν εἶναι ἢ θεοῦ λόγον, διὸ καὶ τοιαύτας τεραστίας δυνάμεις πεποιηκέναι οἶα θεόν· τοτὲ δὲ τούτοις ἐναντίως ὕβρεις αὐτὸν καὶ ἀτιμίας ὑπομεῖναι, καὶ τέλος τὴν αἰσχίστην καὶ τοῖς πάντων ἀνθρώπων κακουργοτάτοις ἐπηρτημένην διὰ σταυροῦ τιμωρίαν τίς οὐκ ἂν ὡς ἐναντία λεγόντων κατέπτυσεν εἰκότως;

nyn de tote men ton presbeuomenon theon en anthrōpou gegonenai sōmati, kai ouden allo tēn physin einai ē theou logon, dio kai toiautas terastias dynameis pepoiēkenai oia theon; tote de toutois enantiōs hybreis auton kai atimias hypomeinai, kai telos tēn aischistēn kai tois pantōn anthrōpōn kakourgotatois epērtēmenēn dia staurou timōrian tis ouk an hōs enantia legontōn kateptysen eikotōs?

But as it was, at one time they said that the God they proclaimed had come to be in a human body and was by nature nothing other than the Word of God, and therefore had done such astonishing mighty works as God; and at another time, in contrast, that he had endured insults and dishonor, and finally the most shameful punishment of the cross, reserved for the worst criminals of all. Who would not reasonably have spat on them as men contradicting themselves?

Notes and citation

Summary: Preaching both a divine Word and a crucified man would have seemed self-contradictory to hearers.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (stray line number): τιμωρίαν 5 τίς → τιμωρίαν τίς.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.19 (Dindorf 3:205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-19). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.20Dindorf 3:205

τίς δʼ οὕτως ἠλίθιος ὑπῆρχεν ὡς εὐχερῶς πιστεῦσαι λέγουσιν ἑωρακέναι μετὰ τὸν θάνατον ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναβεβιωκότα, τὸν μηδὲ ὅτε ἐν ζῶσιν ἦν ἐπαμῦναι ἑαυτῷ δεδυνημένον; τίς δὲ τοῖς ἰδιώταις καὶ εὐτελέσιν ἐκείνοις ἐπείσθη ποτʼ ἂν λέγουσι χρῆναι τῶν μὲν πατρῴων θεῶν καταφρονῆσαι, καὶ μωρίαν μὲν τῶν ἐξ αἰῶνος καταγνῶναι πάντων, μόνοις δὲ αὑτοῖς πείθεσθαι καὶ τοῖς ὑπὸ τοῦ σταυρωθέντος παρηγγελμένοις; τοῦτον γὰρ εἶναι τοῦ μόνου καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ μόνον ἀγαπητὸν καὶ μονογενῆ παῖδα.

tis dʼ houtōs ēlithios hypērchen hōs eucherōs pisteusai legousin heōrakenai meta ton thanaton ek nekrōn anabebiōkota, ton mēde hote en zōsin ēn epamynai heautǭ dedynēmenon? tis de tois idiōtais kai eutelesin ekeinois epeisthē potʼ an legousi chrēnai tōn men patrǭōn theōn kataphronēsai, kai mōrian men tōn ex aiōnos katagnōnai pantōn, monois de hautois peithesthai kai tois hypo tou staurōthentos parēngelmenois? touton gar einai tou monou kai epi pantōn theou monon agapēton kai monogenē paida.

Who was so foolish as easily to believe men who said they had seen him come back to life from the dead after his death, one who could not even defend himself while he was among the living? And who would ever have been persuaded by those unlearned and humble men when they said that one must despise the ancestral gods, condemn as folly everything held from all ages, and trust only them and what the crucified one had commanded, saying that he was the only beloved and only-begotten Son of the only God over all?

Notes and citation

Summary: Who would believe humble men proclaiming a risen crucified man as the only Son of God and calling for rejection of ancestral gods?

παῖς is rendered “Son” here, as the context (“only-begotten”) requires.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip): ζῶσιν ἢν → ζῶσιν ἦν.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.20 (Dindorf 3:205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-20). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.21Dindorf 3:205

ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν ἐξετάζων παρʼ ἐμαυτῷ φιλαλήθως τὸν λόγον οὐδεμίαν πειστικὴν δύναμιν ἐν αὐτῷ, οὐδέ τι σεμνὸν, οὐδʼ ἀξιόπιστον, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ πιθανὸν εἰς τὸ κἂν ἕνα τινὰ τῶν ἠλιθίων πεῖσαι δύνασθαι εὑρίσκω.

egō men oun exetazōn parʼ emautǭ philalēthōs ton logon oudemian peistikēn dynamin en autǭ, oude ti semnon, oudʼ axiopiston, allʼ oude pithanon eis to kan hena tina tōn ēlithiōn peisai dynasthai heuriskō.

For my part, then, examining the message by myself with love of truth, I find in it no persuasive power, nothing dignified, nothing trustworthy, nor even anything plausible enough to be able to persuade even one of the foolish.

Notes and citation

Summary: Judged on its own terms, Eusebius says, the message had no persuasive power at all.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): κἂν ἔνα τινὰ → κἂν ἕνα τινὰ.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.21 (Dindorf 3:205; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-21). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.22Dindorf 3:205–206

ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἀφορῶν εἰς τὴν τοῦ λόγου δύναμιν ὡς μυρία πλήθη πέπεικεν, καὶ ὡς συνέστησαν μυρίανδροι ἐκκλησίαι πρὸς αὐτῶν ἐκείνων τῶν εὐτελεστάτων καὶ ἀγροίκων τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθητῶν, οὐκ ἐν ἀδήλοις που καὶ ἀφανέσι τόποις, ἀλλʼ ἐν ταῖς μάλιστα διαπρεπεστάταις πόλεσιν ἱδρυθεῖσαι, ἐπʼ αὐτῆς λέγω τῆς ῾Ρωμαίων βασιλευούσης, ἐπί τε τῆς Ἀλεξανδρέων καὶ Ἀντιοχέων, καθʼ ὅλης τε τῆς Αἰγύπτου καὶ Λιβύης, Εὐρώπης τε καὶ Ἀσίας, ἔν τε κώμαις τε καὶ χώραις καὶ παντοίοις ἔθνεσι, πάλιν ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἀνατρέχειν ἐκβιάζομαι ἐπὶ τὴν τοῦ αἰτίου ζήτησιν, καὶ συνομολογεῖν μὴ ἄλλως αὐτοὺς κεκρατηκέναι τοῦ τολμήματος ἢ θειοτέρᾳ καὶ ὑπὲρ ἄνθρωπον δυνάμει καὶ συνεργίᾳ τοῦ φήσαντος αὐτοῖς ‟μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου.”

alla palin aphorōn eis tēn tou logou dynamin hōs myria plēthē pepeiken, kai hōs synestēsan myriandroi ekklēsiai pros autōn ekeinōn tōn eutelestatōn kai agroikōn tou Iēsou mathētōn, ouk en adēlois pou kai aphanesi topois, allʼ en tais malista diaprepestatais polesin hidrytheisai, epʼ autēs legō tēs ῾Rōmaiōn basileuousēs, epi te tēs Alexandreōn kai Antiocheōn, kathʼ holēs te tēs Aigyptou kai Libyēs, Eurōpēs te kai Asias, en te kōmais te kai chōrais kai pantoiois ethnesi, palin ex anankēs anatrechein ekbiazomai epi tēn tou aitiou zētēsin, kai synomologein mē allōs autous kekratēkenai tou tolmēmatos ē theioterą kai hyper anthrōpon dynamei kai synergią tou phēsantos autois ‟mathēteusate panta ta ethnē en tǭ onomati mou.”

But when I look again at the power of the message, how it has persuaded countless multitudes, and how churches of tens of thousands were founded by those very humble and rustic disciples of Jesus, established not in obscure and unknown places but in the most distinguished cities, I mean in imperial Rome itself, in Alexandria and Antioch, throughout all Egypt and Libya, Europe and Asia, in villages and countryside and among all kinds of nations, I am compelled of necessity to go back to the search for the cause, and to admit that they could not have succeeded in their bold venture otherwise than by a more divine and superhuman power, and by the cooperation of the one who said to them, “Make disciples of all the nations in my name.”

Matt 28:19 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The founding of great churches everywhere by humble disciples shows a superhuman power was at work.

Matt 28:19 in Eusebius’s short form.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip): τοῦ αἰτίον ζήτησιν → τοῦ αἰτίου ζήτησιν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.22 (Dindorf 3:205–206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-22). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.23Dindorf 3:206

τοῦτο δʼ οὖν εἰπὼν ἐπισυνῆψεν ἐπαγγελίαν, διʼ ἧς ἔμελλον ἐπιθαρρεῖν καὶ προθύμως ἐπιδιδόναι σφᾶς αὐτοὺς τοῖς παρηγγελμένοις. φησὶ γοῦν αὐτοῖς καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθʼ ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας, ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος.” ἀλλὰ καὶ πνεύματος αὐτοῖς ἐμπνεῦσαι λέγεται θείου, ἀλλὰ καὶ δύναμιν αὐτοῖς ἔνθεον καὶ παραδοξοποιὸν πεποιηκέναι, τοτὲ μὲν φήσας ‟λάβετε πνεῦμα ἅγιον, ” τοτὲ θεραπεύετε, λεπροὺς καθαρίζετε, δαίμονας ἐκβάλλετε· δωρεὰν ἐλάβετε, δωρεὰν δότε.”

touto dʼ oun eipōn episynēpsen epangelian, diʼ hēs emellon epitharrein kai prothymōs epididonai sphas autous tois parēngelmenois. phēsi goun autois kai idou egō methʼ hymōn eimi pasas tas hēmeras, heōs tēs synteleias tou aiōnos.” alla kai pneumatos autois empneusai legetai theiou, alla kai dynamin autois entheon kai paradoxopoion pepoiēkenai, tote men phēsas ‟labete pneuma hagion, ” tote therapeuete, leprous katharizete, daimonas ekballete; dōrean elabete, dōrean dote.”

Having said this, he added a promise by which they would take courage and eagerly give themselves to what they had been commanded. He says to them, “And behold, I am with you all the days, until the end of the age.” And he is also said to have breathed the divine Spirit into them, and to have given them a divine power to work wonders, saying at one time, “Receive the Holy Spirit,” and at another, “Heal …, cleanse lepers, cast out demons; freely you received, freely give.”

Matt 28:20 (quotation, high confidence) · John 20:22 (quotation, high confidence) · Matt 10:8 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Jesus promised to be with the disciples, breathed the Spirit into them, and gave them power to heal.

The quotations are Matt 28:20, John 20:22, and Matt 10:8. In the last, the digital text lacks a word after “heal” (Matthew has “the sick”) and the particle δέ; marked “…”.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.23 (Dindorf 3:206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-23). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.24Dindorf 3:206

συνορᾷς τοιγαροῦν καὶ αὐτὸς ὅπως κεκράτηκεν ὁ διʼ αὐτῶν λόγος, ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτῶν ἡ βίβλος τῶν Πραξέων συνῳδὰ τούτοις καὶ σύμφωνα μαρτυρεῖ· ἔνθα ἱστοροῦνται καὶ αὐτοὶ τῇ τῶν παραδόξων ἐνεργείᾳ διʼ ὀνόματος τοῦ Ἰησοῦ πρὸς αὐτῶν ἐπιτελουμένῃ τοὺς παρόντας καὶ τοὺς θεωμένους ἐκπλῆξαι.

synorąs toigaroun kai autos hopōs kekratēken ho diʼ autōn logos, epei kai autōn hē biblos tōn Praxeōn synǭda toutois kai symphōna martyrei; entha historountai kai autoi tę̄ tōn paradoxōn energeią diʼ onomatos tou Iēsou pros autōn epiteloumenę̄ tous parontas kai tous theōmenous ekplēxai.

You see for yourself, then, how the message spread through them prevailed, since their own book of the Acts bears witness in agreement and harmony with this. There they themselves are recorded to have astonished those present and watching by the working of wonders accomplished by them through the name of Jesus.

Acts 3:6 (allusion, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The book of Acts shows the apostles astonishing onlookers with wonders done in Jesus' name.

Compare Acts 3:6–10 and 4:30.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip): ἱδτοροῦνται → ἱστοροῦνται.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.24 (Dindorf 3:206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-24). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.25Dindorf 3:206

ἐξέπληττον γὰρ, ὡς εἰκὸς, διὰ τῶν ἔργων τοὺς θεωμένους πρότερον· εἶθʼ οὕτως προθύμους εἶχον αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τὸ φιλοπευστεῖν τίς ποτʼ ἦν οὗτος οὗ τῇ δυνάμει καὶ προσηγορίᾳ τὸ θαῦμα γέγονεν· εἶτα διδάσκοντες ηὕρισκον τῇ πίστει φθάνοντας τὴν παρʼ αὐτῶν διδασκαλίαν.

exeplētton gar, hōs eikos, dia tōn ergōn tous theōmenous proteron; eithʼ houtōs prothymous eichon autous epi to philopeustein tis potʼ ēn houtos hou tę̄ dynamei kai prosēgorią to thauma gegonen; eita didaskontes hēuriskon tę̄ pistei phthanontas tēn parʼ autōn didaskalian.

For, as is likely, they first astonished the onlookers by their works; then in this way they made them eager to find out who this was by whose power and name the wonder had happened; then, as they taught, they found them already ahead of their teaching by faith.

Notes and citation

Summary: The apostles' wonders made people eager to learn about Jesus, and they believed even before being taught.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.25 (Dindorf 3:206; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-25). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.26Dindorf 3:206–207

οὐ γὰρ τοῖς λόγοις πεισθέντες, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἔργοις προκαταληφθέντες ῥᾴδιον ἐποιοῦντο τὴν ἐν τοῖς λόγοις διάθεσιν. λέγονται γοῦν ἤδη τινὲς βουθυσίας καὶ σπονδὰς, ὡς ἂν ἤδη θεοῖς οὖσιν, τοῖς τοῦ Ἰησοῦ προσαγηοχέναι· καὶ τινὰ μὲν αὐτῶν τὸν Ἑρμῆν εἶναι, τινὰ δὲ τὸν Δία νενομικέναι, τοσοῦτον αὐτῶν τὰς διανοίας ἐξέπληττεν ἡ τῶν παραδόξων ἔργων ἐπίδειξις.

ou gar tois logois peisthentes, alla tois ergois prokatalēphthentes rhądion epoiounto tēn en tois logois diathesin. legontai goun ēdē tines bouthysias kai spondas, hōs an ēdē theois ousin, tois tou Iēsou prosagēochenai; kai tina men autōn ton Hermēn einai, tina de ton Dia nenomikenai, tosouton autōn tas dianoias exeplētten hē tōn paradoxōn ergōn epideixis.

For they were not persuaded by words, but, being won over beforehand by the works, they readily accepted what was said. Some, at any rate, are said to have already brought sacrifices of oxen and libations to the disciples of Jesus as if they were gods, and to have thought one of them was Hermes and another Zeus, so much did the display of wonderful works astonish their minds.

Acts 14:11–13 (allusion, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: People were so struck by the apostles' miracles that some took them for Hermes and Zeus.

The episode at Lystra, Acts 14:11–13.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (stray punctuation mark): τὸν Ἑρμῆν. εἶναι → τὸν Ἑρμῆν εἶναι.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.26 (Dindorf 3:206–207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-26). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.27Dindorf 3:207

καὶ δὴ οὕτω διακειμένοις πάνθʼ ὅσα περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ κατήγγελλον ἤδη λοιπὸν ἀληθεύειν εὐλόγως ἐνομίζοντο, καὶ τῇ μετὰ τὸν θάνατον ἀναβιώσει αὐτοῦ οὐχ ἁπλοῖς οὐδʼ ἀναποδείκτοις ἐμαρτύρουν λόγοις, διʼ αὐτῆς δʼ ἐνεργείας ἔπειθον, ζῶντος ἔργα παριστῶντες.

kai dē houtō diakeimenois panthʼ hosa peri tou Iēsou katēngellon ēdē loipon alētheuein eulogōs enomizonto, kai tę̄ meta ton thanaton anabiōsei autou ouch haplois oudʼ anapodeiktois emartyroun logois, diʼ autēs dʼ energeias epeithon, zōntos erga paristōntes.

And to people so disposed, everything the disciples proclaimed about Jesus was then reasonably believed to be true. And they bore witness to his coming back to life after death not with bare and unproven words, but persuaded by its very working, presenting the works of one who lives.

Notes and citation

Summary: The apostles proved the resurrection not by words alone but by works showing that Jesus lives.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR slip (δέ for διʼ)): δέ αὐτῆς δʼ ἐνεργείας → διʼ αὐτῆς δʼ ἐνεργείας.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.27 (Dindorf 3:207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-27). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.28Dindorf 3:207

εἰ δὲ καὶ θεὸν αὐτὸν καὶ θεοῦ παῖδα πρὸ τῆς εἰς ἀνθρώπους ἀφίξεως παρὰ τῷ πατρὶ τυγχάνοντα κατήγγελλον, καὶ τούτῳ πῶς οὐκ ἂν προσέθεντο μᾶλλον, τὸ ἐναντίον ἄπιστον εἶναι καὶ ἀδύνατον ἡγούμενοι εἰκότως, λογισάμενοι μὴ δύνασθαι θνητῆς ἔργα φύσεως εἶναι νομίζειν τὰ δρώμενα, ἀλλὰ θεοῦ, κἂν μὴ λέγῃ τις;

ei de kai theon auton kai theou paida pro tēs eis anthrōpous aphixeōs para tǭ patri tynchanonta katēngellon, kai toutǭ pōs ouk an prosethento mallon, to enantion apiston einai kai adynaton hēgoumenoi eikotōs, logisamenoi mē dynasthai thnētēs erga physeōs einai nomizein ta drōmena, alla theou, kan mē legę̄ tis?

And if they also proclaimed him to be God and the Son of God, existing with the Father before his coming among men, how would the hearers not have assented to this all the more? They would reasonably have thought the opposite incredible and impossible, reckoning that what was being done could not be thought the work of a mortal nature, but of God, even if no one said so.

Notes and citation

Summary: Seeing such works, hearers readily accepted that Jesus was God and the preexistent Son.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.28 (Dindorf 3:207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-28). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.29Dindorf 3:207

τοῦτʼ ἦν ἄρα καὶ οὐδὲν ἄλλο τὸ ζητηθὲν αὐτὸ ἐκεῖνο, ὁποίᾳ δυνάμει περιγεγόνασι τῶν ἐν ἀρχαῖς ἀκροωμένων οἱ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθηταὶ, καὶ ὅπως Ἕλληνας ὁμοῦ καὶ βαρβάρους ὡς περὶ λόγου θεοῦ περὶ αὐτοῦ φρονεῖν ἔπεισαν, ὅπως τε ἐν μέσαις ταῖς πόλεσιν καὶ ἀνὰ τὰς χώρας εὐσεβείας ἑνὸς τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ συνεστήσαντο διδασκαλεῖα.

toutʼ ēn ara kai ouden allo to zētēthen auto ekeino, hopoią dynamei perigegonasi tōn en archais akroōmenōn hoi tou Iēsou mathētai, kai hopōs Hellēnas homou kai barbarous hōs peri logou theou peri autou phronein epeisan, hopōs te en mesais tais polesin kai ana tas chōras eusebeias henos tou epi pantōn theou synestēsanto didaskaleia.

This, then, and nothing else, was the very thing we were asking: by what power the disciples of Jesus prevailed over their first hearers, how they persuaded Greeks and barbarians alike to think of him as the Word of God, and how in the midst of cities and throughout the countryside they established schools of the worship of the one God over all.

Notes and citation

Summary: This explains how the disciples won their first hearers and founded schools of true worship everywhere.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip; OCR letter slip): ἀκροωμένων οἶ τοῦ → ἀκροωμένων οἱ τοῦ; συνεδτήσαντο → συνεστήσαντο.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.29 (Dindorf 3:207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-29). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.30Dindorf 3:207

καίτοι τίς οὐκ ἂν θαυμάσειε πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ἐπιλογισάμενος καὶ ἐνθυμηθεὶς ὡς οὐκ ἀνθρώπινον ἦν τὸ μηδʼ ἄλλοτε ὑπὸ μίαν τὴν ῾Ρωμαίων γενέσθαι τὰ πλεῖστα τῆς οἰκουμένης ἔθνη, ἀλλʼ ἀπὸ τῶν τοῦ Ἰησοῦ χρόνων.

kaitoi tis ouk an thaumaseie pros heauton epilogisamenos kai enthymētheis hōs ouk anthrōpinon ēn to mēdʼ allote hypo mian tēn ῾Rōmaiōn genesthai ta pleista tēs oikoumenēs ethnē, allʼ apo tōn tou Iēsou chronōn.

And yet who would not marvel, reckoning with himself and considering that it was not a human thing that most of the nations of the world never at any other time came under the single rule of the Romans, but only from the times of Jesus?

Notes and citation

Summary: It is remarkable that the world's nations came under Roman rule precisely from the time of Jesus.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.30 (Dindorf 3:207; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-30). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.31Dindorf 3:207–208

ἅμα γὰρ τῇ εἰς ἀνθρώπους αὐτοῦ παραδόξῳ ἐπιδημίᾳ καὶ τὰ ῾Ρωμαίων ἀκμάσαι συνηνέχθη, τότε πρῶτον Αὐγούστου τῶν πλείστων ἐθνῶν μοναρχήσαντος, καθʼ ὃν Κλεοπάτρας ἁλούσης ἡ κατʼ Αἴγυπτον τῶν Πτολεμαίων διαδοχὴ λέλυτο· ἐξ ἐκείνου τε καὶ εἰς δεῦρο τὸ ἀπʼ αἰῶνος καὶ ἀπʼ αὐτῆς ὡς εἰπεῖν τῆς πρώτης ἀνθρωπείας συστὰν Αἰγύπτου βασίλειον καθῄρητο.

hama gar tę̄ eis anthrōpous autou paradoxǭ epidēmią kai ta ῾Rōmaiōn akmasai synēnechthē, tote prōton Augoustou tōn pleistōn ethnōn monarchēsantos, kathʼ hon Kleopatras halousēs hē katʼ Aigypton tōn Ptolemaiōn diadochē lelyto; ex ekeinou te kai eis deuro to apʼ aiōnos kai apʼ autēs hōs eipein tēs prōtēs anthrōpeias systan Aigyptou basileion kathę̄rēto.

For at the same time as his wonderful coming among men, the power of Rome happened to reach its height, when Augustus first became sole ruler over most of the nations. In his time, when Cleopatra was captured, the succession of the Ptolemies in Egypt came to an end, and from then until now the kingdom of Egypt, established from all ages and, so to speak, from the very first beginnings of mankind, has been destroyed.

Notes and citation

Summary: Christ's coming coincided with Augustus's sole rule and the end of the Ptolemaic kingdom of Egypt.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip; OCR dropped letter): καθʼ ὂν Κλεοπάτρας → καθʼ ὃν Κλεοπάτρας; Αἴγυπον → Αἴγυπτον.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.31 (Dindorf 3:207–208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-31). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.32Dindorf 3:208

ἐξ ἐκείνου τε καὶ τὸ Ἰουδαίων ἔθνος Ῥωμαίων δοῦλον γέγονεν, καὶ τὸ Σύρων ὠσαύτως, Καππαδόκων τε καὶ Μακεδόνων, καὶ Βιθυνῶν, καὶ Ἑλλήνων, καὶ συνελόντι φάναι τῶν λοιπῶν τῶν ὑπὸ τὴν ῥωμαίων ἀρχὴν ἁπάντων.

ex ekeinou te kai to Ioudaiōn ethnos Rhōmaiōn doulon gegonen, kai to Syrōn ōsautōs, Kappadokōn te kai Makedonōn, kai Bithynōn, kai Hellēnōn, kai synelonti phanai tōn loipōn tōn hypo tēn rhōmaiōn archēn hapantōn.

From then on the Jewish nation too became subject to the Romans, and likewise the Syrians, Cappadocians, Macedonians, Bithynians, and Greeks, and, in a word, all the rest who are under the Roman rule.

Notes and citation

Summary: From that time the Jews and many other peoples became subject to Rome.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): ῥωμαίων ἁρχὴν → ῥωμαίων ἀρχὴν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.32 (Dindorf 3:208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-32). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.33Dindorf 3:208

τοῦτο δὲ ὅτι μὴ ἀθεεὶ τῇ περὶ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν διδασκαλίᾳ συνεισῆλθεν τίς οὐκ ἂν ὁμολογήσειε, διανοηθεὶς ὡς οὐ ῥᾴδιον ἦν τοῖς μαθητοῖς ταῖς αὐτοῦ πορείαν ἐπὶ τῆς ἀλλοδαπῆς στείλασθαι, διεστώτων πρὸς ἄλληλα τῶν ἐθνῶν, καὶ μηδεμιᾶς οὔσης ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐπιμιξίας διὰ τὰς πολλὰς ἐθναρχίας· ὧν περιῃρημένων ἀφόβως ἤδη καὶ ἐπʼ ἀδείας τὸ προκείμενον ἥνυον, τὴν πορείαν αὐτοῖς προεξευμαρίσαντος τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων θεοῦ, καὶ τοὺς θυμοὺς τῶν κατὰ πόλεις δεισιδαιμόνων φόβῳ τῆς μείζονος ἀρχῆς καταστείλαντος.

touto de hoti mē atheei tę̄ peri tou sōtēros hēmōn didaskalią syneisēlthen tis ouk an homologēseie, dianoētheis hōs ou rhądion ēn tois mathētois tais autou poreian epi tēs allodapēs steilasthai, diestōtōn pros allēla tōn ethnōn, kai mēdemias ousēs en autois epimixias dia tas pollas ethnarchias; hōn perię̄rēmenōn aphobōs ēdē kai epʼ adeias to prokeimenon hēnyon, tēn poreian autois proexeumarisantos tou epi pantōn theou, kai tous thymous tōn kata poleis deisidaimonōn phobǭ tēs meizonos archēs katasteilantos.

Who would not admit that this coincided not without God with the teaching about our Savior, considering that it would not have been easy for his disciples to make their journeys to foreign lands while the nations were divided from one another and had no intercourse among them because of their many separate rulers? When these were removed, they accomplished their task now without fear and in safety, since the God over all had made their journey easy beforehand and had restrained the passions of the superstitious in the cities by fear of the greater empire.

Notes and citation

Summary: God arranged the unified Roman empire so the apostles could travel safely and hostile locals were restrained.

The phrase τοῖς μαθητοῖς ταῖς αὐτοῦ πορείαν is garbled in the digital text (probably τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ τὴν πορείαν); translated by sense.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip): συνειςῆλθεν → συνεισῆλθεν; ἀφύβως → ἀφόβως.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.33 (Dindorf 3:208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-33). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.34Dindorf 3:208

λόγισαι γὰρ ὡς εἰ μηδὲν τὸ κωλῦον ἦν τοὺς περὶ τὴν πολύθεον πλάνην ἐπτοημένους τῇ τοῦ Χριστοῦ πολεμεῖν διδασκαλίᾳ, πάλαι ἂν ἑώρας κατὰ πόλεις καὶ κατὰ ἀγροὺς ἐμφυλίους στάσεις, διωγμούς τε καὶ πολέμους οὐ τοὺς τυχόντας, εἰ δὴ ἐφʼ ἑαυτοῖς εἶχον οἱ δεισιδαίμονες τὴν ἐπʼ αὐτῶν ἐξουσίαν.

logisai gar hōs ei mēden to kōlyon ēn tous peri tēn polytheon planēn eptoēmenous tę̄ tou Christou polemein didaskalią, palai an heōras kata poleis kai kata agrous emphylious staseis, diōgmous te kai polemous ou tous tychontas, ei dē ephʼ heautois eichon hoi deisidaimones tēn epʼ autōn exousian.

For reckon that if nothing had prevented those infatuated with the error of many gods from warring against the teaching of Christ, you would long ago have seen civil strife in cities and countryside, and persecutions and wars of no ordinary kind, if the superstitious had held power over the Christians in their own hands.

Notes and citation

Summary: Without Rome's restraint, pagans would have waged constant war and persecution against Christ's teaching.

Topics: Persecution

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.34 (Dindorf 3:208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-34). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.35Dindorf 3:208

νῦν δὲ καὶ τοῦτο θεοῦ τοῦ ἐπὶ πάντων ἔργον ἦν, τὸ μείζονι φόβῳ τῆς ἀνωτάτω ἀρχῆς τοὺς ἐχθροὺς τοῦ οἰκείου λόγου καταδουλῶσαι· προκόπτειν γὰρ αὐτὸν ὁσημέραι καὶ εἰς πάντας ἀνθρώπους αὔξειν βούλεται.

nyn de kai touto theou tou epi pantōn ergon ēn, to meizoni phobǭ tēs anōtatō archēs tous echthrous tou oikeiou logou katadoulōsai; prokoptein gar auton hosēmerai kai eis pantas anthrōpous auxein bouletai.

But as it was, this too was the work of the God over all, to subdue the enemies of his own word by a greater fear of the supreme authority; for he wills it to advance daily and to grow among all men.

Notes and citation

Summary: God used fear of imperial authority to restrain the enemies of his word so that it might grow.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR letter slip): τοῦτο δεοῦ τοῦ → τοῦτο θεοῦ τοῦ.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.35 (Dindorf 3:208; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-35). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.36Dindorf 3:208–209

πάλιν τε αὖ ὡς μὴ νομισθείη κατὰ συγχώρησιν τῶν κρατούντων διαρκέσειν, εἴποτέ τις τούτων πονηρίᾳ ληφθεὶς τῷ τοῦ Χριστοῦ λόγῳ πολεμεῖν προύθετο, καὶ τοῦτο πράτ- τειν ἐνεδίδου τὸ καταθύμιον, ὁμοῦ μὲν εἰς ἔνδειξιν τῶν τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀθλητῶν, ὁμοῦ δὲ καὶ εἰς τὸ τοῖς πάσι φανερὸν καταστῆναι ὅτι μὴ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἦν βουλῆς, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεως ἡ τοῦ λόγου σύστασις.

palin te au hōs mē nomistheiē kata synchōrēsin tōn kratountōn diarkesein, eipote tis toutōn ponērią lēphtheis tǭ tou Christou logǭ polemein proutheto, kai touto prat- tein enedidou to katathymion, homou men eis endeixin tōn tēs eusebeias athlētōn, homou de kai eis to tois pasi phaneron katastēnai hoti mē ex anthrōpōn ēn boulēs, allʼ ek tēs tou theou dynameōs hē tou logou systasis.

And again, so that it should not be thought to survive only by the permission of the rulers, whenever one of them, seized by wickedness, set himself to war against the word of Christ, God also allowed him to do what he desired, both to display the athletes of piety and to make it plain to all that the establishment of the word came not from human counsel but from the power of God.

Notes and citation

Summary: God sometimes allowed rulers to persecute, to display the martyrs and to show that the church's growth was God's doing.

Topics: Persecution, Martyrdom

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.36 (Dindorf 3:208–209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-36). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.37Dindorf 3:209

αὐτίκα τίς οὐκ ἂν θαυμάσειε τὰ συμβαίνειν κατὰ τοὺς τοιούσδε καιροὺς εἰωθότα; οἱ μὲν γὰρ τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀθληταὶ τὸ πρὶν ἀνθρώποις γε τοῖς πᾶσι διάδηλοι καὶ διαπρεπεῖς ἐγίνοντο, τῶν παρὰ τῷ θεῷ κατηξιωμένοι βραβείων· οἱ δὲ τῆς εὐσεβείας πολέμιοι τὰς προσηκούσας ἐξέτινον δίκας, θεηλάτοις μάστιξιν οἰστρούμενοι καὶ πᾶν τὸ σῶμα δεινοῖς καὶ ἀνιαροῖς πάθεσι διαφθειρόμενοι, ὥστε ἤδη καὶ εἰς ὁμολογίαν τῆς κατὰ Χριστοῦ δυσσεβείας ἥκειν περιελαθῆναι.

autika tis ouk an thaumaseie ta symbainein kata tous toiousde kairous eiōthota? hoi men gar tēs eusebeias athlētai to prin anthrōpois ge tois pasi diadēloi kai diaprepeis eginonto, tōn para tǭ theǭ katēxiōmenoi brabeiōn; hoi de tēs eusebeias polemioi tas prosēkousas exetinon dikas, theēlatois mastixin oistroumenoi kai pan to sōma deinois kai aniarois pathesi diaphtheiromenoi, hōste ēdē kai eis homologian tēs kata Christou dyssebeias hēkein perielathēnai.

Indeed, who would not marvel at what usually happens in such times? In earlier times the athletes of piety became conspicuous and distinguished before all men, being counted worthy of the prizes from God; while the enemies of piety paid the fitting penalties, driven mad by heaven-sent scourges and wasting away in their whole body with terrible and painful diseases, so that they were driven even to confess their impiety against Christ.

Notes and citation

Summary: In persecutions the martyrs became famous and the persecutors suffered divine punishment and confessed their guilt.

Eusebius probably has in mind persecutors such as Galerius (compare Hist. eccl. 8.16–17).

Topics: Persecution, Martyrdom

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.37 (Dindorf 3:209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-37). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.38Dindorf 3:209

οἱ δέ γε λοιποὶ πάντες τῆς ἐνθέου προσηγορίας ἠξιωμένοι καὶ τὰ Χριστοῦ φρονεῖν αὐχοῦντες, ἐπʼ ὀλίγον γεγυμνασμένοι τοῖς πειρατηρίοις, τὸ δὲ γνήσιον καὶ εἰλικρινὲς τοῦ φρονήματος ἐπιδειξάμενοι, τὴν οἰκείαν αὖθις ἀπελάμβανον ἐλευθερίαν, εἰς μεῖζον ὁσημέραι διʼ αὐτῶν ἐκλάμποντος τοῦ σωτηρίου λόγου, καὶ ἐν αὐτοῖς γε μέσοις τοῖς ἐχθροῖς κατακρατοῦντος,

hoi de ge loipoi pantes tēs entheou prosēgorias ēxiōmenoi kai ta Christou phronein auchountes, epʼ oligon gegymnasmenoi tois peiratēriois, to de gnēsion kai eilikrines tou phronēmatos epideixamenoi, tēn oikeian authis apelambanon eleutherian, eis meizon hosēmerai diʼ autōn eklampontos tou sōtēriou logou, kai en autois ge mesois tois echthrois katakratountos,

And all the rest who had been counted worthy of the divine name and boasted of holding the doctrines of Christ, after being exercised for a short while by the trials and having shown the genuineness and sincerity of their conviction, received back their own freedom, while the saving word shone out more brightly every day through them and prevailed in the very midst of its enemies,

Notes and citation

Summary: The remaining Christians, tested briefly, regained their freedom, and the gospel shone brighter amid its enemies.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): οἶ δέ γε λοιποὶ → οἱ δέ γε λοιποὶ.

Topics: Persecution

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.38 (Dindorf 3:209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-38). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.39Dindorf 3:209

μὴ μόνον τε τῶν ὁρατῶν πολεμίων κατεξανισταμένους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀοράτων, εἴ τινες ἄρα εἶεν ἀμφὶ τὸν περὶ γῆν ἀέρα ζοφώδη πονηροὶ δαίμονες καὶ ἄρχοντες τούτων, οὓς καὶ αὐτοὺς οἱ γνήσιοι τοῦ Χριστοῦ μαθηταὶ διʼ ἁγνείας βίου καὶ τῶν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν εὐχῶν διά τε τῆς αὐτοῦ ἐνθέου προσηγορίας ἐξελαύνοντες, σημείων τῶν πάλαι ἱστορουμένων ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ γεγονέναι παραδόξων, καὶ ἐν τούτῳ τοῖς συνορᾶν δυναμένοις τὰ τεκμήρια τῆς ἐνθέου ἀρετῆς αὐτοῦ διαδεικνύντες.

mē monon te tōn horatōn polemiōn katexanistamenous, alla kai tōn aoratōn, ei tines ara eien amphi ton peri gēn aera zophōdē ponēroi daimones kai archontes toutōn, hous kai autous hoi gnēsioi tou Christou mathētai diʼ hagneias biou kai tōn pros ton theon euchōn dia te tēs autou entheou prosēgorias exelaunontes, sēmeiōn tōn palai historoumenōn hypʼ autou gegonenai paradoxōn, kai en toutǭ tois synoran dynamenois ta tekmēria tēs entheou aretēs autou diadeiknyntes.

rising up not only against visible enemies but also against invisible ones, whatever evil demons and their rulers there may be about the dark air around the earth. These too the genuine disciples of Christ drive out through purity of life, prayers to God, and his divine name, [giving proofs] of the wonderful signs long ago recorded as done by him, and in this showing to those able to perceive it the proofs of his divine excellence.

Eph 2:2 (echo, medium confidence) · Eph 6:12 (echo, low confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Christians also defeat invisible demonic powers by purity, prayer, and Christ's name, showing his divine power.

The sentence continues from 3.7.38; its grammar is incomplete in the digital text, and the words “giving proofs” are supplied in brackets. “Rulers” of the air echoes Eph 2:2 and 6:12.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR breathing slip): οὓς καὶ αὐτοὺς οἶ γνήσιοι → οὓς καὶ αὐτοὺς οἱ γνήσιοι.

Topics: Prayer

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.39 (Dindorf 3:209; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-39). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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3.7.40Dindorf 3:209–210

Ἀλλὰ γὰρ τῶνδε κατὰ καιρὸν προγεγυμνασμένων καιρὸς ἤδη καλεῖ τῆς μυστικωτέρας περὶ αὐ- τοῦ θεολογίας ἐφάψασθαι, καὶ τὸν θεὸν λόγον, ὅστις ποτʼ ἦν ὁ διὰ τοῦ φαινομένου ἀνδρὸς τὰς θαυματουργίας ἐκτελῶν, ἐποπτεῦσαι.

Alla gar tōnde kata kairon progegymnasmenōn kairos ēdē kalei tēs mystikōteras peri au- tou theologias ephapsasthai, kai ton theon logon, hostis potʼ ēn ho dia tou phainomenou andros tas thaumatourgias ektelōn, epopteusai.

But now that these matters have been treated beforehand in due season, the time calls us to take up the more mystical theology about him, and to contemplate the divine Word, whoever he was who performed the wonders through the man who appeared.

Notes and citation

Summary: Having finished the defense of Jesus' works, Eusebius turns to the deeper theology of the divine Word.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR accent slip; OCR breathing slip): ποτʼ ἣν ὁ διὰ → ποτʼ ἦν ὁ διὰ; τἀς θαυματουργίας → τὰς θαυματουργίας.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 3.7.40 (Dindorf 3:209–210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-3-7-40). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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preface 4, chapter 1

4.1.1Dindorf 3:210

ἐπειδὴ τὰ προσήκοντα περὶ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐν τῷ πρὸ τούτου συγγράμ- ματι, τρίτῳ ὄντι τῆς Εὐαγγελικῆς Ἀποδείξεως, αὐτάρκως ἡμῖν διαπεπόνηται, καιρὸς ἤδη καὶ ἀπορρητοτέρων ἐφάψασθαι λόγων τῶν περὶ τῆς κατʼ αὐτὸν μυστικωτέρας θεολογίας.

epeidē ta prosēkonta peri tēs enanthrōpēseōs tou sōtēros hēmōn en tǭ pro toutou syngram- mati, tritǭ onti tēs Euangelikēs Apodeixeōs, autarkōs hēmin diapeponētai, kairos ēdē kai aporrētoterōn ephapsasthai logōn tōn peri tēs katʼ auton mystikōteras theologias.

Since what pertains to the incarnation of our Savior has been worked out sufficiently in the preceding book, the third of the Demonstration of the Gospel, it is now time to take up more secret matters as well: the more mystical theology concerning him.

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius turns from the incarnation (Book 3) to the deeper theology of Christ.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.1 (Dindorf 3:210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.2Dindorf 3:210

ὁ μὲν οὖν περὶ τοῦ πρώτου καὶ ἀïδίου, μόνου τε ἀγεννήτου καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων αἰτίου τῶν ὅλων, πανηγεμόνος τε καὶ παμβασιλέως θεοῦ κοινὸς ἅπασιν ἀνθρώποις ἐστὶ λόγος· ἴδιος δὲ καὶ κοινὸς αὖθις Ἑβραίων καὶ ἡμῶν ὁ περὶ Χριστοῦ· ὃν πὴ μὲν ὁμοίως ἡμῖν ταῖς παρʼ αὐτοῖς ἑπόμενοι γραφαῖς ἔτι νῦν ὁμολογοῦσι, πῆ δὲ μακρὰν ἀποπίπτουσι, μήτε τὴν θεότητα συνορῶντες αὐτοῦ, μήτε τὰ αἴτια τῆς παρουσίας εἰδότες, μήτε μὴν τοὺς χρόνους καθʼ οὓς ἥξειν ἀνείρηται εἰς ἀνθρώπους περιδρασσόμενοι.

ho men oun peri tou prōtou kai aidiou, monou te agennētou kai epi pantōn aitiou tōn holōn, panēgemonos te kai pambasileōs theou koinos hapasin anthrōpois esti logos; idios de kai koinos authis Hebraiōn kai hēmōn ho peri Christou; hon pē men homoiōs hēmin tais parʼ autois hepomenoi graphais eti nyn homologousi, pē de makran apopiptousi, mēte tēn theotēta synorōntes autou, mēte ta aitia tēs parousias eidotes, mēte mēn tous chronous kathʼ hous hēxein aneirētai eis anthrōpous peridrassomenoi.

The doctrine concerning the first and eternal God, alone unbegotten, cause of the universe over all, ruler of all and king of all, is common to all human beings. But the doctrine concerning Christ is peculiar to the Hebrews and to us, and shared between us. In part they confess him as we do even now, following the Scriptures they possess; in part they fall far away, neither perceiving his divinity, nor knowing the reasons for his coming, nor grasping the times at which it was foretold that he would come among men.

Notes and citation

Summary: Knowledge of the supreme God is common to all, but the doctrine of Christ belongs to Jews and Christians, and the Jews miss his divinity and the time of his coming.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.2 (Dindorf 3:210; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.3Dindorf 3:210–211

οἶ μὲν γὰρ ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἥξειν μέλλοντα προσδοκῶσιν, ἡμεῖς δʼ ἤδη μὲν εἰς ἅπαξ ἀποδείκνυμεν ἐλθόντα, καὶ δευτέραν δʼ αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῆς ἐνθέου δόξης παρουσίαν ταῖς τῶν θεοφόρων προφητῶν προρρήσεσί τε καὶ διδασκαλίαις πειθόμενοι ἰδεῖν εὐχό- μέθᾳ. διττοῦ δʼ ὄντος τοῦ κατʼ αὐτὸν λόγου ὁ μὲν νεώτερος ἂν εἴη, χθὲς καὶ πρώην εἰς ἀνθρώπους εἰσηγμένος· ὁ δὲ παντὸς χρόνου καὶ πάντων αἰώνων πρεσβύτερος.

oi men gar eti kai nyn hēxein mellonta prosdokōsin, hēmeis dʼ ēdē men eis hapax apodeiknymen elthonta, kai deuteran dʼ autou meta tēs entheou doxēs parousian tais tōn theophorōn prophētōn prorrēsesi te kai didaskaliais peithomenoi idein eucho- methą. dittou dʼ ontos tou katʼ auton logou ho men neōteros an eiē, chthes kai prōēn eis anthrōpous eisēgmenos; ho de pantos chronou kai pantōn aiōnōn presbyteros.

For they still expect him to come in the future, while we show that he has already come once; and, trusting the predictions and teachings of the God-inspired prophets, we pray to see his second coming with divine glory. Since the account of him is twofold, the one part would be recent, introduced among men only yesterday or the day before; the other is older than all time and all ages.

Notes and citation

Summary: Christians hold that Christ has come once and will come again; his story has a recent part and an eternal part.

Topics: Christology, Eschatology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.3 (Dindorf 3:210–211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-3). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.4Dindorf 3:211

βουληθεὶς γὰρ ὁ θεὸς, ἅτε μόνος ὢν ἀγαθὸς ἀγαθοῦ τε παντὸς ἀρχὴ καὶ πηγὴ, τῶν αὐτοῦ θησαυρῶν πλείους ἀποφῆναι κοινωνοὺς, ἄρτι τε μέλλων τὴν λογικὴν πᾶσαν προβάλλεσθαι κτίσιν, ἀσωμάτους τινὰς νοερὰς καὶ θείας δυνάμεις, ἀγγέλους τε καὶ ἀρχαγγέλους, ἄϋλά τε καὶ πάντη καθαρὰ πνεύματα, προσέτι δὲ ψυχὰς ἀνθρώπων ἄφετον καὶ ἐλεύθερον τῆς αὐθεκουσίου περὶ τὸ καλὸν ἢ τοὐναντίον αἱρέσεως τὴν φύσιν ἐπαγομένας, ὅσα τε τούτοις ὄργανα σωμάτων ἔμελλεν ἔσεσθαι ποικίλων ἀγωγῆ κατάλληλα βίων, χώρας τε τούτοις ἅπασι καὶ τόπους διανέμειν οἰκείους· μείνασι μὲν γὰρ ἀγαθοῖς τοὺς κρείττονας, ἔμπαλιν δὲ τοὺς προσήκοντας, τῆς ἐπὶ τἀναντία ῥοπῆς τὰ σωφρονιστήρια·) προλαβὼν τὸ μέλλον, οἷα θεὸς, τῇ προγνώσει, συνιδών τε τούτων ἁπάντων πρὶν γενέσθαι ὡς ἐν μεγάλῳ σώματι κεφαλῆς δεησομένων, ἕνα τὸν τῆς δημιουργίας ἁπάσης οἰκονόμον ἡγεμόνα τε καὶ βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων προτάξασθαι ᾤετο δεῖν, ᾗ καὶ τὰ θεῖα μυσταγωγεῖ λόγια πρὸς τῶν ἄνωθεν παρʼ Ἑβραίοις θεολόγων τε καὶ προφητῶν ἀνδρῶν τεθεσπισμένα·

boulētheis gar ho theos, hate monos ōn agathos agathou te pantos archē kai pēgē, tōn autou thēsaurōn pleious apophēnai koinōnous, arti te mellōn tēn logikēn pasan proballesthai ktisin, asōmatous tinas noeras kai theias dynameis, angelous te kai archangelous, aÿla te kai pantē kathara pneumata, proseti de psychas anthrōpōn apheton kai eleutheron tēs authekousiou peri to kalon ē tounantion haireseōs tēn physin epagomenas, hosa te toutois organa sōmatōn emellen esesthai poikilōn agōgē katallēla biōn, chōras te toutois hapasi kai topous dianemein oikeious; meinasi men gar agathois tous kreittonas, empalin de tous prosēkontas, tēs epi tanantia rhopēs ta sōphronistēria;) prolabōn to mellon, hoia theos, tę̄ prognōsei, synidōn te toutōn hapantōn prin genesthai hōs en megalǭ sōmati kephalēs deēsomenōn, hena ton tēs dēmiourgias hapasēs oikonomon hēgemona te kai basilea tōn holōn protaxasthai ǭeto dein, hę̄ kai ta theia mystagōgei logia pros tōn anōthen parʼ Hebraiois theologōn te kai prophētōn andrōn tethespismena;

For God, since he alone is good and the source and fountain of all good, wished to make many sharers in his treasures. He was about to bring forth the whole rational creation: certain bodiless, intellectual, and divine powers, angels and archangels, immaterial and wholly pure spirits, and besides these human souls, endowed with a nature free and unconstrained in its own choice of good or of its opposite; and whatever bodily instruments were to serve them, suited to the conduct of various lives; and he was to assign to all of these their own regions and places (to those who remained good, the better ones; to the others, in turn, those that fitted them, correctives for their inclination toward the opposite). So, foreseeing the future by his foreknowledge, as God, and perceiving that all these, before they came to be, would need a head, as in a great body, he thought it necessary to set over them one steward of all creation, ruler and king of the universe, as the divine oracles teach, uttered by the theologians and prophetic men among the Hebrews of old.

Notes and citation

Summary: God, wishing to share his goodness with a free rational creation, foresaw that it would need a head and appointed one ruler over all creation.

“One” renders ἕνα; the digital text reads ἴνα here, an evident misreading.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR: ἴνα for ἕνα (“one”)): ἴνα τὸν τῆς δημιουργίας → ἕνα τὸν τῆς δημιουργίας.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.4 (Dindorf 3:211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-4). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.5Dindorf 3:211

παρʼ ὧν δὴ μαθεῖν ἔνεστιν ὡς ἄρα μία μὲν εἴη τῶν ὅλων ἀρχὴ, μᾶλλον δὲ τὸ καὶ ἀρχῆς ἀνώτερον, καὶ πρώτου προγενέστερον, καὶ μονάδος ἀρχεγονώτερον, καὶ πάσης κρεῖττον προσηγορίας, ἄρρητον, ἀνέκφραστον, ἀπερινόητον, ἀγαθὸν, τὸ πάντων αἴτιον, τὸ ποιητικὸν, τὸ εὐεργετικὸν, τὸ προνοητικὸν, τὸ σωτήριον, αὐτὸς ὢν ὁ εἷς καὶ μόνος θεὸς, ἐξ οὗ τὰ πάντα, διʼ ὃν τὰ πάντα ἐστίν· ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ ζῶμεν καὶ κινούμεθα καὶ ἐσμέν.

parʼ hōn dē mathein enestin hōs ara mia men eiē tōn holōn archē, mallon de to kai archēs anōteron, kai prōtou progenesteron, kai monados archegonōteron, kai pasēs kreitton prosēgorias, arrēton, anekphraston, aperinoēton, agathon, to pantōn aition, to poiētikon, to euergetikon, to pronoētikon, to sōtērion, autos ōn ho heis kai monos theos, ex hou ta panta, diʼ hon ta panta estin; en autǭ gar zōmen kai kinoumetha kai esmen.

From them one may learn that there is one principle of all things; or rather, that which is above even a principle, prior to the first, more original than the monad, beyond every name: ineffable, inexpressible, incomprehensible, good, the cause of all, the maker, the benefactor, the provider, the savior, he himself being the one and only God, from whom are all things and on account of whom all things are; “for in him we live and move and have our being.”

Acts 17:28 (quotation, high confidence) · 1 Cor 8:6 (allusion, medium confidence) · Rom 11:36 (allusion, medium confidence) · Heb 2:10 (allusion, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The prophets teach that there is one God, beyond every name, the source and cause of all things.

“From whom are all things” echoes 1 Cor 8:6 and Rom 11:36; “on account of whom all things are” echoes Heb 2:10; the last clause quotes Acts 17:28.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.5 (Dindorf 3:211; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-5). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.6Dindorf 3:211–212

ὅ τι δὴ θέλει, τοῦτο γοῦν καὶ εἴη ἂν τὸ μόνον τῆς τῶν γεννητῶν ἁπάντων οὐσιώσεως τε καὶ ὑπάρξεως αἴ- τιον· θέλοντος γάρ ἐστι, θέλει δὲ, ὅτι τὴν φύσιν ἀγαθὸς ὢν τυγχάνει. ἀγαθῷ δὲ οὐδὲν ὅτι μὴ τὸ θέλειν τὰ ἀγαθὰ προσφυές.

ho ti dē thelei, touto goun kai eiē an to monon tēs tōn gennētōn hapantōn ousiōseōs te kai hyparxeōs ai- tion; thelontos gar esti, thelei de, hoti tēn physin agathos ōn tynchanei. agathǭ de ouden hoti mē to thelein ta agatha prosphyes.

Whatever he wills: this would be the sole cause of the coming into being and existence of all begotten things. For they belong to one who wills; and he wills because he is good by nature. And nothing is natural to the good except to will what is good.

Notes and citation

Summary: God’s good will is the only cause of everything that exists.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.6 (Dindorf 3:211–212; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-6). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.7Dindorf 3:212

θέλων δὲ ταῦτα καὶ δύναται· διὸ καὶ θέλων ὁμοῦ καὶ δυνάμενος, ἀκωλύτως καὶ ἀπαραποδίστως πᾶν ὅ τι καλὸν καὶ συμφέρον ἔν τε ὁρωμένοις καὶ ἀφανέσιν αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ συνεστήσατο, ὕλην ὥσπερ τινὰ καὶ οὐσίαν τῆς τῶν ὅλων γενέσεως τε καὶ συστάσεως τὴν ἑαυτοῦ βουλὴν καὶ δύναμιν προβεβλημένος, ὡς μηκέτι εὐλόγως φά- ’ναι δεῖν ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων εἶναί τι τῶν ὄντων· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν εἴη τι τὸ ἐκ μὴ ὄντος. πῶς γὰρ τὸ μὴ ὂν ἑτέρῳ τοῦ εἶναι γένοιτʼ ἂν αἴτιον; πάν δὲ ὅ τι ποτε καὶ ἔστιν ἐξ ἑνὸς τοῦ μόνου ὄντος καὶ προόντος, τοῦ δὴ καὶ φήσαντος “ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὢν, ” τὸ εἶναι λαβὸν ἔχει·

thelōn de tauta kai dynatai; dio kai thelōn homou kai dynamenos, akōlytōs kai aparapodistōs pan ho ti kalon kai sympheron en te horōmenois kai aphanesin autos heautǭ synestēsato, hylēn hōsper tina kai ousian tēs tōn holōn geneseōs te kai systaseōs tēn heautou boulēn kai dynamin probeblēmenos, hōs mēketi eulogōs pha- ’nai dein ex ouk ontōn einai ti tōn ontōn; oude gar an eiē ti to ek mē ontos. pōs gar to mē on heterǭ tou einai genoitʼ an aition? pan de ho ti pote kai estin ex henos tou monou ontos kai proontos, tou dē kai phēsantos “egō eimi ho ōn, ” to einai labon echei;

And willing these things, he is also able. Therefore, willing and able at once, he himself established for himself, without hindrance or impediment, everything good and beneficial among things seen and unseen, putting forth his own will and power as a kind of matter and substance for the coming into being and constitution of the universe. So it can no longer reasonably be said that any existing thing is from things that do not exist; for nothing could come from what is not. How could what is not become for another the cause of being? But whatever exists at all has received its being from the one who alone is and pre-exists, who also said, “I am he who is.”

Exod 3:14 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: God’s own will and power, not nonbeing, are the source from which all things exist.

Eusebius qualifies the phrase “from things that do not exist”: creation comes from God’s will and power as its ground, not from nonbeing as a kind of material. The quotation is Exod 3:14 in the Septuagint wording (ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν).

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.7 (Dindorf 3:212; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-7). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.1.8Dindorf 3:212

ὅτι δὴ μόνος ὢν καὶ ἀεὶ ὢν αὐτὸς πᾶσι τοῖς ἐξ αὐτοῦ τὸ εἶναι κτησαμένοις αἴτιος τοῦ εἶναι κατέστη τῷ θέλειν καὶ τῷ δύνασθαι, καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν τοῖς πᾶσι καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις καὶ τὰ εἴδη πλουσίως καὶ ἀνεπιφθόνως ἐξ αὑτοῦ κεχαρισμένος.

hoti dē monos ōn kai aei ōn autos pasi tois ex autou to einai ktēsamenois aitios tou einai katestē tǭ thelein kai tǭ dynasthai, kai tēn ousian tois pasi kai tas dynameis kai ta eidē plousiōs kai anepiphthonōs ex hautou kecharismenos.

For since he alone is, and always is, he became the cause of being for all who have received their being from him, by willing and by being able, bestowing on all of them, from himself, richly and ungrudgingly, their substance, their powers, and their forms.

Notes and citation

Summary: The eternal God freely gives all creatures their being, powers, and forms.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.1.8 (Dindorf 3:212; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-1-8). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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preface 4, chapter 2

4.2.1Dindorf 3:212–213

Καὶ δὴ τῶν ὄντων ἀπάντων πρῶτον ὑφίστησιν αὐτοῦ γέννημα τὴν πρωτότοκον σοφίαν, ὅλην διʼ ὅλου νοερὰν καὶ λογικὴν καὶ πάνσοφον, μᾶλλον δὲ αὐτόνουν καὶ αὐτολόγον καὶ αὐτοσοφίαν, καὶ εἴ τι δὲ αὐτάκαλον καὶ αὐτοόγαθον ἐπινοεῖν ἐν γεννητοῖς θέμις, τοῦτο πρῶτον αὐτὸς ἐξ αὐτοῦ θεμέλιον τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα γενησομένων προβάλλεται, τὸ τέλειον τελείου δημιούργημα, καὶ σοφοῦ σοφὸν ἀρχιτεκτόνημα, ἀγαθοῦ πατρὸς ἀγαθὸν γέννημα, καὶ τί γὰρ ἄλλο ἢ τῶν μετέπειτα τὸ εἶναι διʼ αὐτοῦ λαβόντων προστάτην καὶ κηδεμόνα, σωτῆρά τε καὶ ἰατρὸν, καὶ κυβερνήτην τῆς τῶν ὅλων δημιουργίας τοὺς οἴακας περιδεδραγμένον;

Kai dē tōn ontōn apantōn prōton hyphistēsin autou gennēma tēn prōtotokon sophian, holēn diʼ holou noeran kai logikēn kai pansophon, mallon de autonoun kai autologon kai autosophian, kai ei ti de autakalon kai autoogathon epinoein en gennētois themis, touto prōton autos ex autou themelion tōn meta tauta genēsomenōn proballetai, to teleion teleiou dēmiourgēma, kai sophou sophon architektonēma, agathou patros agathon gennēma, kai ti gar allo ē tōn metepeita to einai diʼ autou labontōn prostatēn kai kēdemona, sōtēra te kai iatron, kai kybernētēn tēs tōn holōn dēmiourgias tous oiakas peridedragmenon?

And so, first of all existing things, he brings into being his own offspring, the firstborn Wisdom, wholly intellectual, rational, and all-wise; or rather mind itself, reason itself, wisdom itself, and whatever it is lawful to conceive among begotten things as beauty itself and goodness itself. This he first puts forth from himself as the foundation of the things that were to come into being after it: the perfect handiwork of the perfect, the wise masterwork of the wise, the good offspring of the good Father. And what else is this but the protector and guardian of those which afterwards received their being through it, savior and physician, and pilot who has taken hold of the tillers of the whole creation?

Col 1:15 (allusion, medium confidence) · Prov 8:22 (allusion, low confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: God first begets his firstborn Wisdom, the foundation, guardian, and pilot of all creation.

Eusebius speaks of the Son as brought forth “first of all existing things” and as the first among “begotten things”; this pre-Nicene language was later at the center of the Arian controversy. “Firstborn” echoes Col 1:15; Wisdom as the beginning of creation echoes Prov 8:22.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR transposition): δημιούρηγμα → δημιούργημα; περιδεδραμγένον → περιδεδραγμένον.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.2.1 (Dindorf 3:212–213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-2-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.2.2Dindorf 3:213

ὅθεν εἰκότως οἱ χρησμοὶ θεολογουντες θεὸν γεννητὸν αὐτὸν ἀποφαίνουσιν, ὡς ἂν τῆς ἀνεκφράστου καὶ ἀπερινοήτου θεότητος μόνον ἐν αὐτῷ φέροντα τὴν εἰκόνα, διʼ ἣν καὶ θεὸν εἶναί τε αὐτὸν καὶ λέγεσθαι τῆς πρὸς τὸ πρῶτον ἐξομοιώσεως χάριν, ταύτῃ τε αὐτὸν ἀγαθόν φασιν ὑπηρέτην πρὸς τοῦ πατρὸς ὑποβεβλῆσθαι, ἵνα ὥσπερ διʼ ἑνὸς πανσόφου καὶ ζῶντος ὀργάνου τεχνικοῦ τε καὶ ἐπιστημονικοῦ κανόνος τὰ πάντα αὐτῷ ἀπευθύνοιτο, σώματα ὁμοῦ καὶ ἀσώματα, ἔμψυχά τε καὶ ἄψυχα, λογικὰ σὺν ἀλόγοις, θνητὰ σὺν ἀθανάτοις, καὶ εἴ τι τούτοις ἕτερον συνυφέστηκέ τε καὶ συνύφανται, καὶ ὡς μιᾷ τῶν ὅλων δυνάμει, ἐνί τε ζῶντι καὶ ἐμψύχῳ νόμῳ τε καὶ λόγῳ ἐν πᾶσιν ὄντι καὶ διὰ πάντων ἥκοντι τὰ πάντα συναρμόζοιτο ὑφʼ ἑνὶ πανσόφῳ δεσμῷ, αὐτῷ δὴ τῷ τοῦ θεοῦ λόγῳ τε καὶ νόμῳ, συναγόμενά τε καὶ συνδούμενα.

hothen eikotōs hoi chrēsmoi theologountes theon gennēton auton apophainousin, hōs an tēs anekphrastou kai aperinoētou theotētos monon en autǭ pheronta tēn eikona, diʼ hēn kai theon einai te auton kai legesthai tēs pros to prōton exomoiōseōs charin, tautę̄ te auton agathon phasin hypēretēn pros tou patros hypobeblēsthai, hina hōsper diʼ henos pansophou kai zōntos organou technikou te kai epistēmonikou kanonos ta panta autǭ apeuthynoito, sōmata homou kai asōmata, empsycha te kai apsycha, logika syn alogois, thnēta syn athanatois, kai ei ti toutois heteron synyphestēke te kai synyphantai, kai hōs mią tōn holōn dynamei, eni te zōnti kai empsychǭ nomǭ te kai logǭ en pasin onti kai dia pantōn hēkonti ta panta synarmozoito hyphʼ heni pansophǭ desmǭ, autǭ dē tǭ tou theou logǭ te kai nomǭ, synagomena te kai syndoumena.

Hence the oracles, speaking of God, rightly declare him to be begotten God, since he alone bears in himself the image of the ineffable and incomprehensible Godhead; because of this he both is God and is called God, on account of his likeness to the first. In this way too they say he was appointed by the Father as a good servant, so that through one all-wise and living instrument, a skilful and knowing rule, all things might be directed by him: bodies and bodiless things together, animate and inanimate, rational with irrational, mortal with immortal, and whatever else subsists and is woven together with these; and so that all things, gathered and bound together, might be joined in harmony under one all-wise bond, as by one power of the universe, one living and ensouled law and reason present in all and pervading all: the very Word and Law of God.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Son is “begotten God” as the unique image of the Father, the living instrument through whom God orders and binds together all things.

“Begotten God” (θεὸς γεννητός) and “servant” (ὑπηρέτης) are Eusebius’s own terms for the Son; he grounds the Son’s divine title in his likeness to the first God. The digital text reads ἔνα for ἵνα (“so that”).

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR: ἔνα for ἵνα): ἔνα ὥσπερ → ἵνα ὥσπερ.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.2.2 (Dindorf 3:213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-2-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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preface 4, chapter 3

4.3.1Dindorf 3:213

῾Ενὸς δὲ ὄντος τοῦ πατρὸς ἔνα χρὴ καὶ τὸν υἱὸν, ἀλλʼ οὐ πολλοὺς εἶναι, καὶ ἕνα τέλειον μόνον γεννητὸν θεὸν ἐκ θεοῦ, ἀλλʼ οὐ πλείους. ἐν γὰρ πλείοσιν ἑτερότης ἔσται καὶ διαφορὰ καὶ τοῦ χείρονος εἰσαγωγή. διὸ δὴ εἷς θεὸς ἑνὸς υἱοῦ τελείου καὶ μονογενοῦς, ἀλλʼ οὐ πλειόνων θεῶν οὐδʼ υἱῶν πατὴρ,

῾Enos de ontos tou patros ena chrē kai ton huion, allʼ ou pollous einai, kai hena teleion monon gennēton theon ek theou, allʼ ou pleious. en gar pleiosin heterotēs estai kai diaphora kai tou cheironos eisagōgē. dio dē heis theos henos huiou teleiou kai monogenous, allʼ ou pleionōn theōn oudʼ huiōn patēr,

Since the Father is one, the Son too must be one and not many: one perfect, only-begotten God from God, and not more. For among many there would be otherness and difference and the introduction of what is inferior. Therefore the one God is Father of one perfect and only-begotten Son, not of many gods or sons,

Notes and citation

Summary: Because the Father is one, the Son must be one, not many.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.1 (Dindorf 3:213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.2Dindorf 3:213

ἐπεὶ καὶ μιᾶς οὔσης φωτὸς οὐσίας μίαν καὶ τὴν ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεννωμένην τελείαν αὐτὴν πᾶσα ἀνάγκη τίθεσθαι.

epei kai mias ousēs phōtos ousias mian kai tēn ex autou gennōmenēn teleian autēn pasa anankē tithesthai.

since, where the substance of light is one, one must necessarily posit as one also the perfect radiance begotten from it.

Notes and citation

Summary: One light has one radiance.

Topics: Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.2 (Dindorf 3:213; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.3Dindorf 3:213–214

τί γὰρ ἂν καὶ ἄλλο γέννημα φωτὸς ἐπινοεὶν δυνατὸν, μὴ οὐχὶ μόνην τὴν ἐξ αὐτοῦ τὰ πάντα πληροῦσαν καὶ καταλάμπουσαν ἀκτῖνα; πὰν γὰρ τὸ ταύτης ἀλλότριον σκότος ἂν εἴη καὶ οὐ φῶς. ταύτῃ τοι καὶ τοῦ πάντων ἀνωτάτου πατρὸς, ἀρρήτου φωτὸς ὄντος, οὐδὲν μὲν προσφερὲς αὐτῷ οὐδʼ οἰκεῖον ἂν γένοιτο παράδειγμα, πλὴν ὅσον αὐτὸ τοῦτο μόνον, ὃ δὴ καὶ φάναι περὶ υἱοῦ οἶόν τε· ἀπαύγασμα γάρ ἐστι φωτὸς ἀι·δίου, καὶ ἔσοπτρον ἀκηλίδωτον τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐνεργείας, καὶ εἰκὼν τῆς ἀγαθότητος αὐτοῦ.

ti gar an kai allo gennēma phōtos epinoein dynaton, mē ouchi monēn tēn ex autou ta panta plērousan kai katalampousan aktina? pan gar to tautēs allotrion skotos an eiē kai ou phōs. tautę̄ toi kai tou pantōn anōtatou patros, arrētou phōtos ontos, ouden men prospheres autǭ oudʼ oikeion an genoito paradeigma, plēn hoson auto touto monon, ho dē kai phanai peri huiou oion te; apaugasma gar esti phōtos ai;diou, kai esoptron akēlidōton tēs tou theou energeias, kai eikōn tēs agathotētos autou.

For what other offspring of light could be conceived, except only the ray from it that fills and illumines all things? Everything foreign to it would be darkness, not light. So too of the Father who is highest of all, since he is ineffable light, no fitting or proper example could exist, except only this, which one may indeed say of the Son: “For he is a radiance of eternal light, and a spotless mirror of the activity of God, and an image of his goodness.”

Notes and citation

Summary: The Son is to the Father as the single ray is to light, as Wisdom 7:26 says.

The quotation is Wis 7:26, with “he is” for Wisdom’s “she is.”

Extrabiblical texts: Wis 7:26 (Wisdom of Solomon [in RC, EO, ETH canons]; quotation)

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.3 (Dindorf 3:213–214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-3). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.4Dindorf 3:214

διὸ εἴρηται “ὃς ὢν ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ.” ἀλλὰ τοῦ μὲν αἰσθητοῦ φωτὸς ἀχώριστος ἡ αὐγὴ, ὁ δʼ υἱὸς ἰδίως παρὰ τὸν πατέρα καθʼ ἑαυτὸν ὑφέστηκε· καὶ φωτὸς μὲν ἡ αὐγὴ χώραν ἐνεργείας ἐπέχει, ὁ δὲ υἱὸς ἕτερόν τι ἢ κατὰ ἐνέργειαν τυγχάνει, καθʼ ἑαυτὸν οὐσιωμένος.

dio eirētai “hos ōn apaugasma tēs doxēs kai charaktēr tēs hypostaseōs autou.” alla tou men aisthētou phōtos achōristos hē augē, ho dʼ huios idiōs para ton patera kathʼ heauton hyphestēke; kai phōtos men hē augē chōran energeias epechei, ho de huios heteron ti ē kata energeian tynchanei, kathʼ heauton ousiōmenos.

Hence it is said, “who, being the radiance of his glory and the exact imprint of his substance.” But the radiance of sensible light is inseparable from it, whereas the Son subsists in his own right, by himself, beside the Father. And the radiance of light occupies the place of an activity, whereas the Son is something other than an activity, having a substance of his own.

Heb 1:3 (quotation, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Hebrews calls the Son the Father’s radiance, but unlike a ray of light the Son has his own distinct existence.

The quotation is Heb 1:3. Eusebius limits the light analogy: the Son is a distinct subsistence, not an activity of the Father.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.4 (Dindorf 3:214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-4). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.5Dindorf 3:214

καὶ πάλιν ἡ μὲν αὐγὴ συνυπάρχει τῷ φωτὶ, συμπληρωτική τις οὖσα αὐτοῦ· ἄνευ γὰρ αὐγῆς οὐκ ἂν ὑποσταίη φῶς·) ὁμοῦ τε καὶ καθʼ αὑτὸ συνυφέστηκεν ὁ δὲ πατὴρ προυπάρχει τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τῆς γενέσεως αὐτοῦ προὐφέστηκεν, ᾗ μόνος ἀγέννητος ἦν.

kai palin hē men augē synyparchei tǭ phōti, symplērōtikē tis ousa autou; aneu gar augēs ouk an hypostaiē phōs;) homou te kai kathʼ hauto synyphestēken ho de patēr prouparchei tou huiou kai tēs geneseōs autou prouphestēken, hę̄ monos agennētos ēn.

Again, the radiance coexists with the light, being in a sense its completion (for without radiance light could not subsist), and subsists together with it, simultaneously; but the Father pre-exists the Son and subsisted before his generation, inasmuch as he alone was unbegotten.

Notes and citation

Summary: Unlike radiance, which exists simultaneously with light, the Father exists before the Son as the only unbegotten one.

Eusebius says the Father “pre-exists” the Son, yet in 4.3.13 he says the Son was not at any time nonexistent; he does not reconcile the two statements here. This question became central in the Arian controversy.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.5 (Dindorf 3:214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-5). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.6Dindorf 3:214

καὶ ὁ μὲν καθʼ ἑαυτὸν τέλειος καὶ πρῶτος, ὡς πατὴρ, καὶ τῆς τοῦ υἱοῦ συστάσεως αἴτιος, οὐδὲν εἰς συμπλήρωσιν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ θεότητος παρὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ λαμβάνων· ὁ δὲ, ὡς ἐξ αἰτίου γεγονὼς υἱὸς, δεύτερος οὗ ἐστιν υἱὸς καθέστηκεν, παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τὸ εἶναι καὶ τὸ τοιόσδε εἶναι εἰληφώς.

kai ho men kathʼ heauton teleios kai prōtos, hōs patēr, kai tēs tou huiou systaseōs aitios, ouden eis symplērōsin tēs heautou theotētos para tou huiou lambanōn; ho de, hōs ex aitiou gegonōs huios, deuteros hou estin huios kathestēken, para tou patros kai to einai kai to toiosde einai eilēphōs.

And the one is perfect in himself and first, as Father, and the cause of the Son’s existence, receiving nothing from the Son toward the completion of his own Godhead; but the other, as a Son who has come into being from a cause, stands second to him whose Son he is, having received from the Father both his being and his being such as he is.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Father is first and the cause; the Son is second, receiving his being and nature from the Father.

“Second” (δεύτερος) is Eusebius’s term for the Son’s rank after the Father.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.6 (Dindorf 3:214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-6). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.7Dindorf 3:214

καὶ πάλιν ἡ μὲν αὐγὴ οὐ κατὰ προαίρεσιν τοῦ φωτὸς ἐκλάμπει, κατά τι δὲ τῆς οὐσίας συμβεβηκὸς ἀχώριστον, ὁ δὲ υἱὸς κατὰ γνώμην καὶ προαίρεσιν εἰκὼν ὑπέστη τοῦ πατρός. βουληθεὶς γὰρ ὁ θεὸς γέγονεν υἱοῦ πατὴρ, καὶ φῶς δεύτερον κατὰ πάντα ἑαυτῷ ἀφωμοιωμένον ὑπεστήσατο

kai palin hē men augē ou kata proairesin tou phōtos eklampei, kata ti de tēs ousias symbebēkos achōriston, ho de huios kata gnōmēn kai proairesin eikōn hypestē tou patros. boulētheis gar ho theos gegonen huiou patēr, kai phōs deuteron kata panta heautǭ aphōmoiōmenon hypestēsato

Again, the radiance does not shine forth from the light by choice but as an inseparable property of its substance; but the Son came to subsist as the image of the Father by purpose and choice. For God willed and became Father of a Son, and established a second light, made like himself in all things.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Son exists by the Father’s will, as a second light like him in all things.

Eusebius holds that the Son was begotten by the Father’s will (κατὰ γνώμην καὶ προαίρεσιν), not by necessity of nature, a point later disputed.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.7 (Dindorf 3:214; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-7). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.8Dindorf 3:214–215

ἀγεννήτου τοιγαροῦν καὶ ἀιδίου φωτὸς ὄντος ἑνὸς, πῶς ἂν γένοιτο ἄλλο οἷά τις εἰκὼν, οὐχὶ δὲ καὶ αὐγὴ οὖσα φῶς κατὰ πάντα τὸ ἐμφερὲς τῷ πρωτοτύπῳ σώζουσα; πῶς δʼ ἂν καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἑνὸς εἴη εἰκὼν, εἰ μὴ μία καὶ ἡ αὐτὴ οὖσα; ὅπως μὴ μόνον τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ πρώτου ^ ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ κατὰ τὸ ποσὸν ἀριθμοῦ τὴν ὁμοίωσιν ἐπάγοιτο, ὥσθʼ ἑνὸς εἶναι τοῦ ἀι·δίου φωτὸς ἕν τὸ τέλειον, ἀλλʼ οὐ διά- φορα καὶ πολλὰ τὸ πρῶτον καὶ μονογενὲς ἔκγονον, αὐτὸ δὴ ἐκεῖνο τὸ καὶ ἡμῖν πρῶτον μετὰ τὴν ἄναρ- χον καὶ ἀγέννητον οὐσίαν θεολογούμενον τέλειον ἀγα- θόν.

agennētou toigaroun kai aidiou phōtos ontos henos, pōs an genoito allo hoia tis eikōn, ouchi de kai augē ousa phōs kata panta to empheres tǭ prōtotypǭ sōzousa? pōs dʼ an kai autou tou henos eiē eikōn, ei mē mia kai hē autē ousa? hopōs mē monon tēs ousias tou prōtou ^ alla kai tou kata to poson arithmou tēn homoiōsin epagoito, hōsthʼ henos einai tou ai;diou phōtos hen to teleion, allʼ ou dia- phora kai polla to prōton kai monogenes ekgonon, auto dē ekeino to kai hēmin prōton meta tēn anar- chon kai agennēton ousian theologoumenon teleion aga- thon.

Since, then, the unbegotten and eternal light is one, how could there come to be another, as a kind of image, that is not also a radiance and itself light, preserving in every respect its likeness to the archetype? And how could it be the image of the one himself unless it too were one and the same? So it bears the likeness of the first not only in substance but also in number and quantity: the perfect offspring of the one eternal light is one, and the first and only-begotten offspring is not various and many. It is that very thing which we too, in our theology, call the perfect good, first after the unoriginate and unbegotten substance.

Notes and citation

Summary: As the image of the one light, the Son must be one in number as well as like the Father in substance.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.8 (Dindorf 3:214–215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-8). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.9Dindorf 3:215

ἔνα γοῦν χρὴ ἑνὸς πατρὸς καὶ τὸν υἱὸν εἶναι. καὶ γὰρ μιᾶς εὐωδίας ἐξ ὑποκειμένης τινὸς προῖ· ού- σὴς οὐσίας, μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν προχεομένην ἡδεῖαν εἰς πάντας ὀδμὴν, ἀλλʼ οὐ διαφόρους καὶ πολλὰς προσήκοι ἂν ὁμολογεῖν. τοῦ δῆτα πρώτου καὶ μόνου ἀγαθοῦ, ὅ ἐστιν ὁ παμβασιλεὺς θεὸς, νῷ καὶ διανοίᾳ ληπτὴν ἔνθεον καὶ ζωτικὴν εὐωδίαν ὑποστηΓ, αμένου, μίαν ταύτην, ἀλλʼ οὐ πλείους ἐπινοεῖν θέμις.

ena goun chrē henos patros kai ton huion einai. kai gar mias euōdias ex hypokeimenēs tinos proi; ou- sēs ousias, mian kai tēn autēn procheomenēn hēdeian eis pantas odmēn, allʼ ou diaphorous kai pollas prosēkoi an homologein. tou dēta prōtou kai monou agathou, ho estin ho pambasileus theos, nǭ kai dianoią lēptēn entheon kai zōtikēn euōdian hypostēG, amenou, mian tautēn, allʼ ou pleious epinoein themis.

So the Son of one Father must be one. For when a single fragrance issues from some underlying substance, one should confess one and the same sweet odor poured out to all, not various and many. So when the first and only good, God the King of all, has brought into being a divine and life-giving fragrance, perceptible to mind and understanding, it is right to conceive it as this one fragrance and not many.

Notes and citation

Summary: Like a single fragrance from one source, the Son of the one Father is one.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.9 (Dindorf 3:215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-9). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.10Dindorf 3:215

τί γὰρ ἂν καὶ γένοιτο ταύτης ἕτερον κατὰ πάντα τῷ πατρὶ ἀφωμοιωμένης εἰ μή τι ἄρα ὑποβεβηκὸς καὶ χεῖρον; ὃ οὐδαμῶς ἡμῖν ἐν τῇ τοῦ υἱοῦ θεολογίᾳ πα- ρεισακτέον. ἀτμὶς γάρ ἐστι τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεως καὶ ἀπόρροια τῆς τοῦ παντοκράτορος δόξης εἰλικρι- νής.

ti gar an kai genoito tautēs heteron kata panta tǭ patri aphōmoiōmenēs ei mē ti ara hypobebēkos kai cheiron? ho oudamōs hēmin en tę̄ tou huiou theologią pa- reisakteon. atmis gar esti tēs tou theou dynameōs kai aporroia tēs tou pantokratoros doxēs eilikri- nēs.

For what other than this, made like the Father in all things, could there be, except something lower and worse? And that must in no way be brought into our theology of the Son. “For he is a breath of the power of God and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty.”

Notes and citation

Summary: Any second Son would be inferior, and the Son is the pure emanation of God’s glory.

The quotation is Wis 7:25, with “he” for Wisdom’s “she.”

Extrabiblical texts: Wis 7:25 (Wisdom of Solomon [in RC, EO, ETH canons]; quotation)

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.10 (Dindorf 3:215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-10). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.11Dindorf 3:215

ἐξ εὐώδους μὲν γὰρ σώματος, μύρου τινὸς φέρε ἢ καὶ τῶν ἀπὸ γῆς ἀκμαζόντων ἀνθῶν τε καὶ ἀρωμάτων εὐώδης τις πνοὴ παρὰ τὸ πρῶτον ὑποκεί- μένον εἰς ἅπαν τὸ ἐκτὸς περιέχον προχεῖται, καὶ πλη- ροῖ γε καὶ τὸν ἀέρα εἰς πλάτος ἀναχεομένη, οὔτι πω κατὰ στέρησιν ἢ μειῶσιν ἢ τομὴν ἢ διαίρεσιν τοῦ προυποκειμένου.

ex euōdous men gar sōmatos, myrou tinos phere ē kai tōn apo gēs akmazontōn anthōn te kai arōmatōn euōdēs tis pnoē para to prōton hypokei- menon eis hapan to ektos periechon procheitai, kai plē- roi ge kai ton aera eis platos anacheomenē, outi pō kata sterēsin ē meiōsin ē tomēn ē diairesin tou proupokeimenou.

From a fragrant body, say some ointment, or the flowers and spices that bloom from the earth, a fragrant breath pours out from the underlying source into all the surrounding space and fills the air, spreading far and wide, yet without any loss, diminution, cutting, or division of the underlying source.

Notes and citation

Summary: A fragrance spreads without diminishing its source.

Topics: Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.11 (Dindorf 3:215; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-11). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.12Dindorf 3:215–216

τούτου γὰρ ἐν οἰκείᾳ χώρᾳ μέ- νοντος καὶ τὴν ταὐτότητα πρὸς ἑαυτὸ σώζοντος, τήν τε εὐώδη δύναμιν ἀπογεννῶντος, οὐδὲν τοῦ προτέ- προτέρου χεῖρον καὶ τὸ γεννώμενον εὐῶδες οἰκείαν ἔχον ὑπόστασιν, ὡς ὅτι μάλιστα τὸ ὁμοιότατον τῇ τοῦ γεν- νήσαντος φύσει διὰ τῆς οἰκείας ἀπομεμίμηται· πλὴν ἀλλʼ ἔτι ταῦτα γεώδη καὶ θνητὰ καὶ μέρη τῆς κάτω φθοροποιοῦ καὶ γεώδους φύσεως.

toutou gar en oikeią chōrą me- nontos kai tēn tautotēta pros heauto sōzontos, tēn te euōdē dynamin apogennōntos, ouden tou prote- proterou cheiron kai to gennōmenon euōdes oikeian echon hypostasin, hōs hoti malista to homoiotaton tę̄ tou gen- nēsantos physei dia tēs oikeias apomemimētai; plēn allʼ eti tauta geōdē kai thnēta kai merē tēs katō phthoropoiou kai geōdous physeōs.

For the source remains in its own place and preserves its identity with itself while generating the fragrant power; and the fragrance generated, in no way inferior to what came before, has its own subsistence, imitating as closely as possible, through its own nature, the nature of what generated it. Yet these are still earthly and mortal things, parts of the corruptible and earthly nature below.

Notes and citation

Summary: The fragrance has its own existence and resembles its source, though such examples remain earthly.

Topics: Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.12 (Dindorf 3:215–216; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-12). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.3.13Dindorf 3:216

τά γε μὴν τῆς προκειμένης ἡμῖν θεολογίας, ἐπέκεινα παντὸς ὄντα παραδείγματος, οὐδὲν μὲν οἶον τὰ ἐκ σωμάτων ἐπάγεται, ὀξυτάτῃ δὲ διανοίᾳ φαντάζεται υἱὸν γεννητὸν, οὐ χρόνοις μέν τισιν οὐκ ὄντα, ὕστερον δέ ποτε γεγονότα, ἀλλὰ πρὸ χρόνων αἰωνίων ὄντα καὶ προόντα, καὶ τῷ πατρὶ ὡς υἱὸν διὰ παντὸς συνόντα, καὶ οὐκ ἀγέννητον ὄντα, γεννώμενον δʼ ἐξ ἀγεννήτου πατρὸς, μονογενῆ ὄντα, λόγον τε καὶ θεὸν ἐκ θεοῦ, οὐ κατὰ διάστασιν ἢ τομὴν ἢ διαίρεσιν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς οὐσίας προβεβλημένον, ἀρρήτως δὲ καὶ ἀνεπιλογίστως ἡμῖν, ἐξ αἰῶνος, μᾶλλον δὲ πρὸ πάντων αἰώνων, ἐκ τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς ἀνεκφράστου καὶ ἀπερινοήτου βουλῆς τε καὶ δυνάμεως οὐσιούμενον διδάσκοντα. “τὴν γενεὰν γὰρ αὐτοῦ” φησὶ “τίς διηγήσεται;” καὶ “ὥσπερ οὐδεὶς ἔγνω τὸν πατέρα εἰ μὴ ὁ υἱὸς, οὕτω καὶ τὸν υἱὸν οὐδεὶς ἔγνω εἰ μὴ μόνος ὁ γεννήσας αὐτὸν πατήρ.”

ta ge mēn tēs prokeimenēs hēmin theologias, epekeina pantos onta paradeigmatos, ouden men oion ta ek sōmatōn epagetai, oxytatę̄ de dianoią phantazetai huion gennēton, ou chronois men tisin ouk onta, hysteron de pote gegonota, alla pro chronōn aiōniōn onta kai proonta, kai tǭ patri hōs huion dia pantos synonta, kai ouk agennēton onta, gennōmenon dʼ ex agennētou patros, monogenē onta, logon te kai theon ek theou, ou kata diastasin ē tomēn ē diairesin ek tēs tou patros ousias probeblēmenon, arrētōs de kai anepilogistōs hēmin, ex aiōnos, mallon de pro pantōn aiōnōn, ek tēs tou patros anekphrastou kai aperinoētou boulēs te kai dynameōs ousioumenon didaskonta. “tēn genean gar autou” phēsi “tis diēgēsetai?” kai “hōsper oudeis egnō ton patera ei mē ho huios, houtō kai ton huion oudeis egnō ei mē monos ho gennēsas auton patēr.”

But the matters of the theology before us, being beyond every example, bring in nothing like what comes from bodies. By the keenest understanding it pictures a begotten Son: not one who did not exist at certain times and came into being later, but one who is and pre-exists before eternal times and is always with the Father as Son; not unbegotten, but begotten from the unbegotten Father; only-begotten, Word and God from God; not put forth from the Father’s substance by separation, cutting, or division, but, in a way ineffable and beyond our reckoning, from eternity, or rather before all ages, receiving his substance from the Father’s inexpressible and incomprehensible will and power. So it teaches: “Who shall recount his generation?” it says; and, “As no one has known the Father except the Son, so no one has known the Son except only the Father who begot him.”

Isa 53:8 (quotation, high confidence) · Matt 11:27 (quotation, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The Son was not made at some point in time but was begotten ineffably before all ages from the Father’s will and power, without division of the Father’s substance.

The first quotation is Isa 53:8 (LXX). The second is a free rendering of Matt 11:27 (Luke 10:22), with “who begot him” added. The Son is said here to exist “before eternal times,” yet to receive his substance from the Father’s will and power (compare 4.3.5, 4.3.7).

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (stray line number): ἡμῖν, 5 ἐξ → ἡμῖν, ἐξ.

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.3.13 (Dindorf 3:216; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-3-13). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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preface 4, chapter 4

4.4.1Dindorf 3:216–217

Πλὴν ἀλλʼ ἕνα μονογενῆ καὶ ἀγαπητὸν υἱὸν ἐδόκει τῷ παναγάθῳ πατρὶ τῆς τῶν γεννητῶν ἁπάντων δημιουργίας προυφίστασθαι δεῖν, ἐπεὶ καὶ κόσμον ἔνα, ὥσπερ τι ἕν καὶ μέγα σῶμα ἐκ πλειόνων καὶ διαφόρων μελῶν τε καὶ μερῶν ἤμελλεν ὅσον οὐδέπω προβάλλεσθαι, ** οὐκ ἐπιστατεῖν μὲν αὐτὴν ἄνωθεν, ὥσπερ μείζονος κεφαλῆς τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς θεότητος ἐξημμένην, κεφαλὴ γὰρ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὁ πατήρ) ἡγουμένην δὲ καὶ προυπάρχουσαν τῶν μετὰ ταύτην ἁπάντων, οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ διαρκοῦσαν εἴς τε τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς ἐπικέλευσιν καὶ εἰς τὴν τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα δημιουργίαν.

Plēn allʼ hena monogenē kai agapēton huion edokei tǭ panagathǭ patri tēs tōn gennētōn hapantōn dēmiourgias prouphistasthai dein, epei kai kosmon ena, hōsper ti hen kai mega sōma ek pleionōn kai diaphorōn melōn te kai merōn ēmellen hoson oudepō proballesthai, ** ouk epistatein men autēn anōthen, hōsper meizonos kephalēs tēs tou patros theotētos exēmmenēn, kephalē gar tou Christou ho patēr) hēgoumenēn de kai prouparchousan tōn meta tautēn hapantōn, ou mēn alla kai diarkousan eis te tēn tou patros epikeleusin kai eis tēn tōn meta tauta dēmiourgian.

Yet it seemed good to the all-good Father that one only-begotten and beloved Son should pre-exist the creation of all begotten things, since he was about to bring forth one world, like one great body of many different members and parts … to preside over it from above, dependent on the Father’s Godhead as on a greater head (for “the head of Christ is the Father”), leading and pre-existing all that came after it, and sufficient both for the Father’s command and for the creation of what came after.

Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.

1 Cor 11:3 (quotation, medium confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: The one Son had to exist before creation to preside, under the Father, over the one world.

The text is damaged: the edition marks a gap (**), and the following “not” (οὐκ) does not fit the sense; the passage is translated by its evident meaning. “The head of Christ is the Father” adapts 1 Cor 11:3 (“the head of Christ is God”).

Topics: Christology, Trinity

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.4.1 (Dindorf 3:216–217; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-4-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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4.4.2Dindorf 3:217

διὸ δὴ καὶ ἔφαμεν αὐτὸν πρῶτον πάντων ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς οἷόν τι μονοειδὲς πάσης οὐσίας καὶ φύσεως προβεβλῆσθαι ὄργανον ἔμψυχον καὶ ζῶν, μᾶλλον δʼ ἔνθεον καὶ ζωοποιὸν καὶ πάνσοφον, ἀγαθῶν γεννητικὸν, φωτὸς χορηγὸν, οὐρανοῦ δημιουργικὸν, κόσμου κατασκευαστικὸν, ἀγγέλων ποιητικὸν, πνευμάτων ἀρχοντικὸν, ὄργανον ψυχῶν σωτήριον, σωμάτων αὐξητικὸν, πάντων προνοητικὸν, κυβερνητικὸν, θεραπευτικὸν, βασιλικὸν, κριτικὸν, πατρὸς εὐσεβείας ἀπαγγελτικόν.

dio dē kai ephamen auton prōton pantōn hypo tou patros hoion ti monoeides pasēs ousias kai physeōs probeblēsthai organon empsychon kai zōn, mallon dʼ entheon kai zōopoion kai pansophon, agathōn gennētikon, phōtos chorēgon, ouranou dēmiourgikon, kosmou kataskeuastikon, angelōn poiētikon, pneumatōn archontikon, organon psychōn sōtērion, sōmatōn auxētikon, pantōn pronoētikon, kybernētikon, therapeutikon, basilikon, kritikon, patros eusebeias apangeltikon.

That is why we said that he was put forth by the Father first of all, as a kind of single instrument of all substance and nature, animate and living, or rather divine, life-giving, and all-wise: begetter of good things, supplier of light, maker of heaven, framer of the world, creator of angels, ruler of spirits, saving instrument of souls, giver of growth to bodies, provider for all things, their pilot, healer, king, and judge, the proclaimer of piety toward the Father.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Son is the Father’s living instrument for every work of creation, providence, and salvation.

Notes on the original text

Digital text corrected (OCR: ε for α): ἐγγελῶν → ἀγγέλων.

Topics: Christology

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Dem. ev. 4.4.2 (Dindorf 3:217; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-demonstratio/3-7-1/#p-4-4-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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