1-57:57
Οὐ γὰρ μὴ γενέσθαι τὴν ἐκπύρωσιν ἐπὶ κολάσει τῶν ἀσεβῶν οἱ φαῦλοι δαίμονες πεῖσαι δύνανται, ὅνπερ τρόπον οὐδὲ λαθεῖν τὸν Χριστὸν παραγενόμενον ἴσχυσαν πρᾶξαι, ἀλλ ἐκεῖνο μόνον, τοὺς ἀλόγως βιοῦντας καὶ ἐμπαθῶς ἐν ἔθεσι φαύλοις τεθραμμένους καὶ φιλοδοξοῦντας ἀναιρεῖν ἡμᾶς καὶ μισεῖν, δύνανται ποιῆσαι· οὓς οὐ μόνον οὐ μισοῦμεν, ἀλλ᾿, ὡς δείκνυται, ἐλεοῦντες μεταθέσθαι πεῖσαι βουλόμεθα. Οὐ γὰρ δεδοίκαμεν θάνατον, τοῦ πάντως ἀποθανεῖν ὁμολογουμένου, καὶ μηδενὸς ἄλλου καινοῖ ἀλλ ἢ τῶν αἰτῶν ἐν τῇδε τῇ διοικήσει ὄντων· ὧν εἰ μὴ κόρος τοὺς μετασχόντας κἂν ἐνιαυτοῦ ἔχῃ, ἵνα ἀεὶ ὦσι καὶ ἀπαθεῖς καὶ ἀνενδεεῖς, τοῖς ἡμετέροις διδάγμασι προσέχειν δεῖ. Εἰδ ἀπιστοῦσι μηδὲν εἶναι μετὰ θάνατον, ἀλλ εἰς ἀναισθησίαν χωρεῖν τοὺς ἀποθνήσκοντας ἀποφαίνονται, παθῶν τῶν ἐνταῦθα καὶ χρειῶν ἡμᾶς ῥυόμενοι εὐεργετοῦσιν, ἑαυτοὺς δὲ φαύλους καὶ μισανθρώπους καὶ φιλοδόξους δεικνύουσιν· οὐ γὰρ ὡς ἀπαλλάξοντες ἡμᾶς ἀναιροῦσιν, ἀλλ ὡς (??)ποστεροῦντες ζωῆς καὶ ἡδονῆς φονεύουσι
因為惡鬼魔不能說服人，叫人以為那為刑罰不敬虔之人的烈火焚燒必不臨到——正如它們不能使基督降臨時不被人察覺——它們所能做的，惟有這一件事：使那些活得不合理性、隨從私慾、在惡俗中長大、貪愛虛榮的人，殺害並恨惡我們；而我們不但不恨惡他們，反倒如所顯明的，出於憐憫，願意說服他們回轉。因為我們並不懼怕死亡，既然眾所公認人總是要死的，並且除了現今這管理之下所存的這些事物以外，再沒有甚麼新的；倘若那些享有這些事物的人，連一年也不對它們生厭，那麼人就當留心我們的教訓，好使他們永遠無苦無缺。但他們若不信死後還有甚麼，反倒聲稱死去的人都歸於無知無覺，那麼他們把我們從今生的苦難和缺乏中解救出來，倒是施恩於我們了，卻顯出他們自己是邪惡的、是恨惡人類的、是貪愛虛榮的；因為他們殺我們並不是要釋放我們，乃是把我們當作要剝奪生命和歡樂的對象而謀殺。
For the wicked demons cannot persuade men that the conflagration will not come to pass for the punishment of the impious — just as they were not able to bring it about that Christ should escape notice when he came — but only this they can do: to make those who live irrationally and passionately, brought up in evil customs and lovers of vainglory, slay and hate us; whom we not only do not hate, but, as is shown, we wish out of pity to persuade to change. For we do not fear death, since it is agreed that one must altogether die, and there is nothing new but these same things that exist in this present dispensation; and if no satiety of these, even for a single year, holds those who partake of them, then men ought to attend to our teachings, so that they may forever be without suffering and without want. But if they disbelieve that there is anything after death, and declare that those who die pass into insensibility, then they are doing us a good service by delivering us from the sufferings and needs of this present life, yet they show themselves to be wicked and haters of mankind and lovers of vainglory; for they do not slay us as if to release us, but murder us as if depriving us of life and pleasure.