duce the people to offer up sacrifices, till the whole city reeked and glowed with the splendour of these horrid ceremonies; which being perceived by these champions of Christ, they prostrated themselves in prayer, scattered dust upon their heads, and prayed to God that he would look down from his sanctuary on high, and not permit his people to be perverted. -- When this was perceived by the persecutors of the Christian name, they came to the Emperor, saying, “O Prince, thy commands have been spread to the extremest boundaries of the earth, and none have dared to disobey them; but all offer daily sacrifice to the immortal Gods, seven men alone excepted, whom you have loved and held in favour."-And the Emperor said, "who are they?". And they replied, "Maximianus, the son of your prefect, with his companions." Hereat the Emperor waxed wrath, and they were led before him in chains, having their faces bathed in tears, and their heads covered with ashes, just as they had been deprecating the Lord. And the Emperor said, "Are you of such wicked minds that you oppose our deities, and refuse the sacrifices due to the immortal Gods? By my glory I say to you you shall suffer many kinds of torture for this contempt." Then the men made answer and said, "the Lord is the creator of heaven and earth, to whom we daily offer the fitting sacrifice of praise, and for whose name we are prepared to die." And the wrathful Emperor, being left alone with them, said, " Away, ye slaves from our presence, 'till ye have repented of your blasphemy, and, being reconciled to the mercy of the Gods, enjoy the flower of your youth, for it is not fitting that so much perfection of form should be subjected to torture."-And, the collar being struck from off their necks, he commanded that they should go free until his return from Ephesus. The men having thus received permission to depart, and the Emperor going to another city, they went home, collected their gold, silver, apparel, and household goods, and distributed them to the poor. Then they sought a cavern on Mount Celeus,* carrying with them only a small supply of money to buy food, and chose Malchus of their number to make the necessary purchases, and learn what the Emperor might daily decree in regard to the Christians. While the saints were thus enclosed in the cavern, the Emperor returned to Ephesus, and, examining the Christians as usual, he demanded intelligence of Maximian and his companions; to this their relations replied that they had betaken themselves to a certain cavern of Mount Celeus, from which they might be easily dragged if the Emperor commanded it. Now when the saints knew all this from Malchus, they were greatly troubled, and flinging themselves on the earth, they with tears entreated the Lord that he would hide them from the sight of the wicked Emperor. And God, foreseeing that they would be hereafter necessary, gave ear to their prayer, and received their souls, and they lay upon the ground, as if buried in a sweet sleep. The Emperor, being much wroth at what he had heard, said to his people, "go ye then, and pile up the mouth of the cave with stones, that these rebels to the Gods may have no means of departing forth. Hereupon the servants of the Emperor went out to block up the cave, but two men, called Theodore and Ruben, had got the start of them, and these men worshipped Christ in secret, for they feared the imperial anger. Writing the whole history of the saints upon leaden tablets, they privately deposited * Eutychus calls this mountain, Chaos, and describes it as lying to the east of Ephesus-" Ad montem magnum, Chaos appellatum, ad partem Ephesi orientalem, profecti, in specu quodam magno, qui in ipso fuit, se abdiderunt.”—Contextio Gemmarum, sive Eutychii Patriarchæ Alexandrini Annales, tom. i. p. 391. 4to. Oxoniæ, 1656. them within the cave, unknown to any one, saying, "When God shall choose to reveal unto the people the blessed remains of his champions, these tablets may show what they have suffered for his name." Then came those who had been sent forth, and rolling forward huge stones they blocked up the mouth of the cavern, and said, "let those perish of hunger, and eat of their own flesh, who have refused to sacrifice to our Gods." Decius died, years rolled on, and the sceptre had now passed into the hands of Theodosius, the son of Arcadius, in whose time arose the filthy sect of the Sadducees, who wished to overthrow the hope of a resurrection, saying, " verily, the dead do not arise." The heads of this heresy were the bishops Theodorus and Gaius, and they endeavoured to pervert the Emperor, who being greatly afflicted thereat, prostrated himself before the Lord, and prayed that God would tell him what he ought to believe. Now there was at this time at Ephesus a certain Dalius, very rich in cattle, who, going about Mount Celeus, commanded his herdsmen, saying, "prepare ye in this spot sheep-cotes for our sheep, for the place is apt for pasture." And the herdsmen collected stones to build a wall, till they came to the mouth of the cavern, but they did not enter in. But the Lord commanded the spirits of the saints to • This has been the text of every priesthood in every age, and of the people, who have been led by them-"perish those who do not think as we do." Thus the Catholics tortured to death both Jews and Protestants; thus Calvin, in a smaller way, burnt such of his friends as presumed to deviate a hair's breadth from the narrow road he had chosen; and so too our Puritans were by no means negligent in doing what they were pleased to call "the work of the Lord "-that is to say, they unscrupulously cut the throats of all they could lay hands upon, who did not hold with them that pleasure was a crime and that prayers were religion. : return into their bodies, when they arose and saluted each other as usual, supposing they had only slept a single night; and not only were their bodies as fair as ever, but their garments were as fresh as when they had put them on many years before. Turning to Malchus, they said, “Tell us, we pray thee, brother, that we may know, what did the Emperor say last night, and is there any search for us?"-To whom he said,—“ you are required to sacrifice to the Gods."-And Maximianus replied, we are all prepared to die for Christ. But do you take silver, and go and buy food, and listen attentively, and that which you shall hear relate unto us." Hereupon he took the money and departed, and the coin had on it the name of Decius. On approaching the city-gate, he saw upon it the sign of the cross, whereat he was much amazed, saying to himself," Is it possible that yesterday, after sunset, when I had left the city, the Lord changed the heart of Decius, that he should arm the city-gate with the sign of the cross."-Yet greater was his surprize when on entering within the walls he heard men swearing by the name of Christ, and saw priests walking about the streets, and he again spoke to himself in wonder, saying, "have you not wandered into some other city?”—And he went to the market, and showed his silver, and demanded food. But they beholding the coin, said, "This man must have found a treasure, for lo! he produces silver of the time of Decius." And Malchus, when he heard this, began to meditate within himself, and said, "what do these things mean? am I in a dream?" Then the men, laying hands upon him brought him before the Bishop Marinus and the Prefect of the city, and the Prefect said, "who are you? or from what country have you come?" To whom he replied, "From Ephesus; if indeed this be the city of the Ephesians, which I remember to have seen yesterday."-To whom again the Prefect" where did you get this silver?"—And he replied, "I took it from the house of my father." Then said the Prefect, "Who is thy father?"-Hereupon he named his kindred, but no one knew them. And again the Prefect spoke and said— "Relate unto us where you got this silver, for it is of the time of Decius, who has been dead these many years ? hence it is manifest you have come to delude the wise Ephesians, and therefore you shall be subjected to torture till you reveal the truth." And Malchus, being troubled, replied in tears and wonder, " I ask only one token of you, if you deem me worthy of it-where is Decius, the Emperor, who persecuted the Christians in this city?"-Then the Bishop said, "my dear son, there is no one within these walls who recollects the time of Decius, for he has been dead these many years." When Malchus heard these things, he turned to them and said, "I thought that I and my brothers had slept only a single night; but, as I now perceive, many, many years have passed over our slumber. And now the Lord has raised me and my brothers that every age may know the resurrection of the dead. Follow me therefore, and I will show you my brothers, who have arisen with me." Then the Bishop, and the Prefect, and the people, all amazed, followed Malchus till they came to the cavern, when he related to his brothers what had happened in the city. Now the Bishop entering found the casket sealed with two silver seals; hereupon he went forth and convoking the multitude, he with the Prefect broke the seals, and found two leaden tablets, on which was written all the passion of the brothers, as we have narrated it, and they knew that those things were true which had been told unto them by Malchus. Upon entering the cavern they found the blessed Martyrs seated in a corner thereof, and their faces were as the rose in bloom, and resplendent as the sun in its strength, |