衣索比亞馬加比一書 第 4 章

And when that ruler saw that they were dead, he commanded that their flesh be burned with fire until it should become like dust, and that it be scattered to the wind; yet the fire could not even singe the hair of their heads from off their corpses, and so they took them out of the pit.

And again they kindled fire upon them from morning until evening, and it did not touch them; and again he said, Come, let us cast their corpses into the sea.

And they did as the king commanded, and cast them into the sea; but the sea did not swallow them, even though they had fastened upon them heavy iron weights and great stones and a donkey's millstone; they did not sink into the sea, but floated upon the surface of the deep, for the Spirit of the Lord was upon them, and the sea was unable by any means whatever to take them.

For days the eagles and the birds shadowed them with their wings from the burning heat of the sun, and protected their corpses.

And so they did, and neither the beasts nor the birds touched their flesh, and their flesh remained whole.

And when they saw their flesh shining like the rays of the sun and like a tabernacle of light, the angels encircled their bodies.

And he took counsel and was at a loss what to do; and then he dug the ground and buried the bodies of the five martyrs.

And they appeared by night to that wicked king.

And when he awoke he was afraid, and sought to flee from corner to corner of the house, for it seemed to him that robbers had entered his house and risen up against him; and his knees trembled and he was afraid, for it seemed to him that they would kill him.

And concerning this he said, What do you want, my lords, and what shall I do for you?

And they answered and said to him, Are we not those whom you killed and burned, and whom you commanded to be cast bound into the sea? Yet you could not, for the Lord preserved our bodies, because we trusted in Him. Thanks be to the Lord, for whoever trusts in Him is not put to shame; and we who trusted in Him were not ashamed.

And he said to them, What reward shall I give you in return for the evil I did to you, for I did not know that this judgment would so come upon me?

And now appoint to me how much reward I shall give you, that you may not take away my soul in death, nor bring me down alive into Sheol.

For I have done wrong; therefore forgive me this my sin, for the law of your Father is mercy.

And the blessed martyrs answered him and said, As for us, we will not repay you with evil in return for the evil you did to us; there is the Lord our God, who will repay you, for the recompense belongs to the Lord.

But we have appeared to you, since we are alive, because of the blindness of your heart and the deficiency of your understanding; and as for us, while you supposed that you had killed us, you have in truth prepared life for us.

But you and your gods shall go down into the judgment of the flame of fire, where there is no escape for ever.

Woe to you, you and your gods whom you worship and to whom you bow down, having forsaken the worship of the Lord who created you, while you yourselves are spittle, and know not whence you came; are you not smoke, you who pass away, who appear now and tomorrow vanish?

And the king answered and said to them, What do you command me to do? I will do all that you desire.

And they said to him, It is not for our own sake that we counsel you, but for your own sake, that you may not enter into the judgment of the flame of fire.

For these gods of yours are gold and silver, wood and stone, the work of men's hands, having no soul nor reason nor understanding.

For they only kill and do not make alive; they do no good and do no harm; they neither dishonour nor honour; they neither impoverish nor enrich; they neither show mercy nor plant; but they lead you astray by the spirit of demons who do not wish that even one of mankind should be saved.

And all the more do they delude such as you, who are blind of heart, to whom it seems that they created you, when in fact it was you yourselves who made them.

For the spirits of demons and devils gather together to answer you according to what you desire, that they may sink you into the sea of fire.

But as for you, forsake this error and worship the Lord our God; and let this be reckoned to us as a reward in place of our death, that we may gain profit for our souls.

And he was terrified and silent, and he marvelled and was afraid, for they were filled with drawn swords.

And he said, Now I have known that the dead, who had become ashes, are indeed raised up; and as for me, it is but little that I have been spared from being killed.

And after this they were hidden from the eyes of that king; and from that day Tseerutsaydan, being proud and haughty, gave up the burning of their flesh.

And he rejoiced in the error of his heart and in his gods, for they had led him astray for many days; and not he alone went astray, but he led many like himself astray, until they forsook the following of Him who created them.

And they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons, and did the desire of their heart, fornication and lewdness, which their father Satan taught them, that they might work tumult and lewdness in which the Lord takes no pleasure.

And they took their mothers to wife and defiled their sisters and their kinsfolk, and all that is like to this defiled deed, and they defiled their souls and refused to turn back; for Satan had hardened the hearts of those perverse ones.

And that Tseerutsaydan was proud and haughty, one who did not know his Maker, and he boasted in his gods.

How shall the Lord give kingship to those who do not know Him? And He said, For He yearns over them, if they will turn and come back to Him.

And if they turn and come back to Him, He loves them and preserves their kingdom; but if they refuse, He judges them with the trembling of the everlasting Gehenna.

As for the king, according to the greatness of his kingdom let him fear the Lord God; and the governor too, according to the greatness of his rule, let him be judged with goodness before his Maker.

And the elders and the great and the rich and the officials, according to the greatness of their honour, let them be subject to their Maker.

For He created all creation, He, the Lord of the heavens and the earth, who makes poor and makes rich, who brings low and exalts; for there is no other God besides Him, in the heaven above nor in the earth beneath.