Sophia Scriptura

Preparation for the Gospel 1.9.1–1.9.30

Eusebius of Caesarea · Preparation for the Gospel · ca. 313–324 · Caesarea · 30 passages

Greek text: Dindorf, Eusebii Opera 1 (Greek text: W. Dindorf, Eusebii Caesariensis Opera 1–2 (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: E. H. Gifford, Eusebii Pamphili Evangelicae Praeparationis libri XV (Oxford, 1903), vol. 3 (English).

Preparation 1, chapter 9

1.9.1Dindorf 1:32

“Τοὺς δʼ οὖν κατʼ Αἴγυπτον ἀνθρώπους τὸ παλαιὸν γενομένους ἀναβλέψαντας εἰς τὸν κόσμον, καὶ τὴν τῶν ὅλων φύσιν καταπλαγέντας τε καὶ θαυμάσαντας, ὑπολαβεῖν εἶναι δύο θεοὺς ἀïδίους τε καὶ πρώτους, τόν τε ἥλιον καὶ τὴν σελήνην, ὧν τὸν μὲν Ὄσιριν, τὴν δὲ Ἰσιν ὀνομάσαι, ἀπό τινος ἐτύμου τεθείσης ἑκατέρας τῆς προσηγορίας.

“Tous dʼ oun katʼ Aigypton anthrōpous to palaion genomenous anablepsantas eis ton kosmon, kai tēn tōn holōn physin kataplagentas te kai thaumasantas, hypolabein einai dyo theous aidious te kai prōtous, ton te hēlion kai tēn selēnēn, hōn ton men Osirin, tēn de Isin onomasai, apo tinos etymou tetheisēs hekateras tēs prosēgorias.

"The people who lived in Egypt in ancient times, looking up at the cosmos and struck with awe and wonder at the nature of the universe, supposed that there were two eternal and primal gods, the sun and the moon, and named the one Osiris and the other Isis, each name being given from some etymology.

Notes and citation

Summary: Diodorus says the early Egyptians worshipped the sun and moon as Osiris and Isis.

  • Diodorus, Library 1.11.1–4 (sections 1.9.1–4).

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (breathing misread in digitization; digitization slips): ἤλιον → ἥλιον; τὴς προσηγοοίας → τῆς προσηγορίας.

Extrabiblical texts: Diodorus Siculus, 1.11.1 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.1 (Dindorf 1:32; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-1). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.2Dindorf 1:32–33

μεθερμηνευομένων γὰρ τούτων εἰς τὸν Ἑλληνικὸν τῆς διαλέκτου τρόπον εἶναι μὲν τὸν Ὂσιριν πολυόφθαλμον, εἰκότως· πάντη γὰρ ἐπιβαλλοντα τὰς ἀκτῖνας ὡσπερ πολλοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς βλέπειν ἂπασαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν· καὶ τὸν ποιητὴν δὲ λέγειν σύμφωνα τούτοις, Ἠέλιός θʼ ὃς πάντʼ ἐφορᾷς καὶ πάντʼ ἐπακούεις.

methermēneuomenōn gar toutōn eis ton Hellēnikon tēs dialektou tropon einai men ton Osirin polyophthalmon, eikotōs; pantē gar epiballonta tas aktinas hōsper pollois ophthalmois blepein apasan gēn kai thalattan; kai ton poiētēn de legein symphōna toutois, Ēelios thʼ hos pantʼ ephorąs kai pantʼ epakoueis.

For when these names are translated into the Greek form of speech, Osiris means 'many-eyed,' fittingly; for casting his rays in every direction he sees, as with many eyes, all the earth and sea. And the poet speaks in agreement with this: 'Sun, who oversees all things and hears all things.'

Notes and citation

Summary: Osiris is explained as 'many-eyed,' since the sun sees everything.

  • The line is Homer, Iliad 3.277.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (breathing lost in digitization; digitization slip; letter lost in digitization): υεθερμηνευομένων → μεθερμηνευομένων; Ελληνικὸν → Ἑλληνικὸν; πολυόφθλμον → πολυόφθαλμον.

Extrabiblical texts: Diodorus Siculus, 1.11.2 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History; quotation); Homer, Il. 3.277 (Homer, Iliad; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.2 (Dindorf 1:32–33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-2). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.3Dindorf 1:33

τῶν δὲ παρʼ Ἓλλησι παλαιῶν μυθολόγων τινὲς τὸν Ὄσιριν Διόνυσον προσονομάζουσι καὶ Σείριον παρωνύμως. ὧν Εὔμολπος μὲν ἐν τοῖς Βακχικοῖς ἔπεσί φησιν ἀστροφαῆ Διόνυσον ἐν ἀκτίνεσσι πυρωπόν. Ὀρφεὺς δὲ τοὔνεκά μιν καλέουσι Φάνητά τε καὶ Διόνυσον. φασὶ δέ τινες καὶ τὸ ἔναμμα αὐτῷ τὸ τῆς νεβρίδος ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν ἄστρων ποικιλίας περιῆφθαι.

tōn de parʼ Hellēsi palaiōn mythologōn tines ton Osirin Dionyson prosonomazousi kai Seirion parōnymōs. hōn Eumolpos men en tois Bakchikois epesi phēsin astrophaē Dionyson en aktinessi pyrōpon. Orpheus de touneka min kaleousi Phanēta te kai Dionyson. phasi de tines kai to enamma autǭ to tēs nebridos apo tēs tōn astrōn poikilias periēphthai.

Some of the ancient mythographers among the Greeks give Osiris the further names Dionysus and, by a derived form, Sirius. Of these Eumolpus says in his Bacchic verses: 'Dionysus, shining like a star, fiery-eyed in his rays.' And Orpheus: 'Therefore they call him Phanes and Dionysus.' Some say too that the fawnskin hung about him is put on him from the variety of the stars.

Notes and citation

Summary: Greek mythographers identified Osiris with Dionysus and Sirius, citing Eumolpus and Orpheus.

  • Diodorus, Library 1.11.3. The verse of Eumolpus is otherwise unknown; the line of Orpheus is an Orphic fragment.

Extrabiblical texts: Diodorus Siculus, 1.11.3 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History; quotation); Orpheus (attributed), Orph. frag. (Orpheus (attributed), Orphic poems (fragments); quotation); Eumolpus (Eumolpus (verse); quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.3 (Dindorf 1:33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-3). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.4Dindorf 1:33

τὴν δὲ Ἰσιν μεθερμηνευομένην εἶναι παλαιὰν, τεθειμένης τῆς προσηγορίας τῇ σελήνῃ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀιδίου καὶ παλαιᾶς γενέσεως· κέρατα δʼ αὐτῇ περιτιθέασιν ἀπό τε τῆς ὄψεως, ἣν ἔχουσα φαίνεται καθʼ ὃν ἂν χρόνον ὑπάρχῃ μηνοειδὴς, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς καθιερωμένης αὐτῇ βοὸς παρʼ Αἰγυπτίοις. τούτους δὲ τοὺς θεοὺς ὑφίστανται τὸν σύμπαντα κόσμον διοικεῖν.

tēn de Isin methermēneuomenēn einai palaian, tetheimenēs tēs prosēgorias tę̄ selēnę̄ apo tēs aidiou kai palaias geneseōs; kerata dʼ autę̄ perititheasin apo te tēs opseōs, hēn echousa phainetai kathʼ hon an chronon hyparchę̄ mēnoeidēs, kai apo tēs kathierōmenēs autę̄ boos parʼ Aigyptiois. toutous de tous theous hyphistantai ton sympanta kosmon dioikein.

Isis, when translated, means 'ancient,' the name having been given to the moon from its eternal and ancient origin. They put horns on her both from the appearance she has whenever she is crescent-shaped and from the cow consecrated to her among the Egyptians. These gods they suppose to govern the whole universe."

Notes and citation

Summary: Isis is explained as 'ancient'; Isis and Osiris were thought to govern the universe.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (letter lost in digitization): μεθερμηνευομένη → μεθερμηνευομένην.

Extrabiblical texts: Diodorus Siculus, 1.11.4 (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.4 (Dindorf 1:33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-4). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.5Dindorf 1:33

Τοιαῦτα μὲν οὖν καὶ ταῦτα. ἔχεις δὲ καὶ ἐν τῇ Φοινικικῇ θεολογίᾳ ὡς ἄρα Φοινίκων οἱ πρῶτοι φυσικοὶ ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ τοὺς λοιποὺς πλανήτας ἀστέρας καὶ τὰ στοιχεῖα καὶ τὰ τούτοις συναφῆ θεοὺς μόνους ἐγίνωσκον, καὶ ὅτι τούτοις οἱ παλαίτατοι τὰ τῆς γῆς ἀφιέρωσαν βλαστήματα, καὶ θεοὺς ἐνόμισαν, καὶ προσεκύνουν ταῦτα, ἀφʼ ὧν αὐτοί τε διεγίνοντο καὶ οἱ ἑπόμενοι, καὶ οἱ πρὸ αὐτῶν πάντες, καὶ χοὰς καὶ ἐπιχύσεις ἐτέλουν· ἔλεον δὲ καὶ οἶκτον καὶ κλαυθμὸν βλαστήματι γῆς ἀπιόντι καθιέρουν, καὶ γενέσει ζῴων ἐκ γῆς πρώτῃ καὶ τῇ ἐξ ἀλλήλων καὶ τελευτῇ, καθʼ ἣν τοῦ ζῆν ἀπήρχοντο.

Toiauta men oun kai tauta. echeis de kai en tę̄ Phoinikikę̄ theologią hōs ara Phoinikōn hoi prōtoi physikoi hēlion kai selēnēn kai tous loipous planētas asteras kai ta stoicheia kai ta toutois synaphē theous monous eginōskon, kai hoti toutois hoi palaitatoi ta tēs gēs aphierōsan blastēmata, kai theous enomisan, kai prosekynoun tauta, aphʼ hōn autoi te dieginonto kai hoi hepomenoi, kai hoi pro autōn pantes, kai choas kai epichyseis eteloun; eleon de kai oikton kai klauthmon blastēmati gēs apionti kathieroun, kai genesei zǭōn ek gēs prōtę̄ kai tę̄ ex allēlōn kai teleutę̄, kathʼ hēn tou zēn apērchonto.

So much for this. You have also in the Phoenician theology that the first natural philosophers of the Phoenicians recognized as gods only the sun and the moon and the other planets, the elements and the things connected with them; and that the most ancient of them consecrated the growths of the earth to these, held them to be gods, and worshipped those things by which they themselves, their descendants, and all before them were sustained, and offered libations and drink offerings to them. They consecrated pity, lament, and weeping to the earth's growth when it withered, and to the first generation of living creatures from the earth and their generation from one another, and to death, by which they departed from life.

Notes and citation

Summary: In the Phoenician theology the earliest people worshipped the heavenly bodies and the fruits of the earth that sustained them.

  • Eusebius here summarizes Philo of Byblos's Phoenician History, quoted at length in 1.9.29–1.10.55.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (breathing misread in digitization): οἶ πρῶτοι → οἱ πρῶτοι; οἶ παλαίτατοι → οἱ παλαίτατοι; οἶ ἑπόμενοι → οἱ ἑπόμενοι.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; echo)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.5 (Dindorf 1:33; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-5). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.6Dindorf 1:33–34

αὗται δʼ ἦσαν αἱ ἐπίνοιαι τῆς προσκυνήσεως ὅμοιαι τῇ αὐτῶν ἀσθενείᾳ καὶ ψυχῆς ἔτι ἀτολμίᾳ. ταῦτα καὶ ἡ Φοινίκῶν γραφὴ, ὡς ἐξῆς ἀποδειχθήσεται. ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν καθʼ ἡμᾶς γεγονὼς αὐτὸς ἐκεῖνος, ὁ ταῖς καθʼ ἡμῶν λαμπρυνόμενος δυσφημίαις, ἐν οἷς ἐπέγραψε ‘‘Περὶ τῆς τῶν ἐμψύχων ἀποχῆς, ” καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν ἀρχαιότητος τὴν μνήμην ὧδέ πως αὐτολεξεὶ, Θεοφράστῳ μάρτυρι χρώμενος, παρατίθεται

hautai dʼ ēsan hai epinoiai tēs proskynēseōs homoiai tę̄ autōn astheneią kai psychēs eti atolmią. tauta kai hē Phoinikōn graphē, hōs exēs apodeichthēsetai. alla kai tōn kathʼ hēmas gegonōs autos ekeinos, ho tais kathʼ hēmōn lamprynomenos dysphēmiais, en hois epegrapse ‘‘Peri tēs tōn empsychōn apochēs, ” kai tōn palaiōn archaiotētos tēn mnēmēn hōde pōs autolexei, Theophrastǭ martyri chrōmenos, paratithetai

Such were their notions of worship, matching their own weakness and the timidity of their souls as yet. So says the Phoenician writing too, as will be shown next. But also that very man of our own time who has won renown by his slanders against us, in the work he entitled On Abstinence from Animal Food, sets out the record of the antiquity of the ancients in these very words, using Theophrastus as his witness:

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius introduces Porphyry, the critic of Christians, who records the earliest worship in his On Abstinence.

  • The unnamed writer is Porphyry, author of Against the Christians; his On Abstinence quotes Theophrastus's On Piety.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (accent misread in digitization; breathing misread in digitization; line-break hyphen rejoined): αἶ ἐπίνοιαι → αἱ ἐπίνοιαι; ἐν οἶς → ἐν οἷς; Φοινί- κῶν → Φοινίκῶν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.6 (Dindorf 1:33–34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-6). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.7Dindorf 1:34

“Ἀνάριθμος μέν τις ἔοικεν εἶναι χρόνος, ἀφʼ οὗ τό γε πάντων λογιώτατον γένος, ὥς φησι Θεόφραστος, καὶ τὴν ἱερωτάτην ὑπὸ τοῦ Νείλου κτισθεῖσαν χώραν κατοικοῦν, ἤρξαντο οἱ πρῶτοι ἐφʼ ἑστίας τοῖς οὐρανίοις θεοῖς θύειν, οὐ σμύρνης οὐδὲ κασίας καὶ λιβανωτοῦ κρόκῳ μιχθέντων ἀπαρχάς· πολλαῖς γὰρ γενεαῖς ὕστερα παρελήφθη ταῦτα, καὶ πλάνης μαστὴρ ὁ ἄνθρωπος γιγνόμενος τῆς ἀναγκαίας ζωῆς μετὰ πολλῶν πόνων καὶ δακρύων σταγόνας τούτων ἀπήρξατο τοῖς θεοῖς·)

“Anarithmos men tis eoiken einai chronos, aphʼ hou to ge pantōn logiōtaton genos, hōs phēsi Theophrastos, kai tēn hierōtatēn hypo tou Neilou ktistheisan chōran katoikoun, ērxanto hoi prōtoi ephʼ hestias tois ouraniois theois thyein, ou smyrnēs oude kasias kai libanōtou krokǭ michthentōn aparchas; pollais gar geneais hystera parelēphthē tauta, kai planēs mastēr ho anthrōpos gignomenos tēs anankaias zōēs meta pollōn ponōn kai dakryōn stagonas toutōn apērxato tois theois;)

"It seems to be a countless length of time since the most learned race of all, as Theophrastus says, who inhabit the most sacred land, founded by the Nile, first began to sacrifice on their hearths to the heavenly gods, not first-fruits of myrrh, or of cassia and frankincense mixed with saffron; for these were taken up many generations later, when man, wandering in search of the necessities of life, with many toils and tears offered drops of these as first-fruits to the gods.

Notes and citation

Summary: Porphyry, citing Theophrastus, says the Egyptians first sacrificed to the heavenly gods long before incense was used.

  • Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.5, drawing on Theophrastus, On Piety.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Abst. (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals; quotation); Theophrastus (Theophrastus, On Piety; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.7 (Dindorf 1:34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-7). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.8Dindorf 1:34

οὐ τούτων οὖν ἔθυον πρότερον, ἀλλὰ χλόης οἱονεί τινα τῆς γονίμου φύσεως χνοῦν ταῖς χερσὶν ἀράμενοι. δένδρα μὲν γὰρ δὴ πρὸ ζῴων ἀνέδωκεν ἡ γῆ, τῶν δένδρων δὲ πολὺ πρόσθεν τὴν ἐπέτειον γεννωμένην πόαν· ἧς δρεπόμενοι φύλλα καὶ ῥίζας καὶ τοὺς ὅλους τῆς φύσεως αὐτῶν βλαστοῦς κατέκαιον, ταύτῃ τοὺς φαινομένους οὐρανίους θεοὺς τῇ θυσίᾳ δεξιούμενοι, καὶ τοῦ πυρὸς ἀπαθανατίζοντες αὐτοῖς τὰς τιμάς.

ou toutōn oun ethyon proteron, alla chloēs hoionei tina tēs gonimou physeōs chnoun tais chersin aramenoi. dendra men gar dē pro zǭōn anedōken hē gē, tōn dendrōn de poly prosthen tēn epeteion gennōmenēn poan; hēs drepomenoi phylla kai rhizas kai tous holous tēs physeōs autōn blastous katekaion, tautę̄ tous phainomenous ouranious theous tę̄ thysią dexioumenoi, kai tou pyros apathanatizontes autois tas timas.

It was not these, then, that they sacrificed at first, but taking up in their hands grass, as it were the down of fertile nature. For the earth brought forth trees before animals, and long before trees the grass that grows each year; and plucking its leaves and roots and the whole shoots of its growth they burned them, greeting with this sacrifice the visible heavenly gods and making their honors immortal by fire.

Notes and citation

Summary: The first sacrifices were of grass and plants burned to the heavenly gods.

  • Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.5.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (digitization slip; letter lost in digitization): πρόερον → πρότερον; ἀπαθανατίςοντες → ἀπαθανατίζοντες.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Abst. (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.8 (Dindorf 1:34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-8). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.9Dindorf 1:34

τούτοις γὰρ καὶ τὸ πῦρ ἀθάνατον ἐφύλαττον ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς, ὡς ὂν μάλιστα αὐτοῖς ὁμοιότατον. ἐκ δὲ τῆς θυμιάσεως τῶν ἀπὸ γῆς θυμιατήριά τε ἐκάλουν καὶ τὸ θύειν καὶ θυσίας, ἃ δὴ ἡμεῖς ὡς τὴν ὑστέραν πλημμέλειαν σημαίνοντα οὐκ ὀρθῶς ἐξακούομεν, τὴν διὰ τῶν ζῴων δοκοῦσαν θεραπείαν καλοῦντες θυσίαν.

toutois gar kai to pyr athanaton ephylatton en tois hierois, hōs on malista autois homoiotaton. ek de tēs thymiaseōs tōn apo gēs thymiatēria te ekaloun kai to thyein kai thysias, ha dē hēmeis hōs tēn hysteran plēmmeleian sēmainonta ouk orthōs exakouomen, tēn dia tōn zǭōn dokousan therapeian kalountes thysian.

For to these gods they also kept an undying fire in the temples, as being most like them. From the fumigation (thymiasis) of the products of the earth they named censers (thymiateria), and sacrificing (thyein) and sacrifices (thysiai); words which we wrongly understand as signifying the later transgression, calling the supposed worship by means of animals 'sacrifice.'

Notes and citation

Summary: Porphyry derives the Greek words for sacrifice from the burning of plants, not of animals.

  • Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.5; the argument rests on the Greek words θυμίασις, θυμιατήριον, θύειν, θυσία.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Abst. (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.9 (Dindorf 1:34; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-9). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.10Dindorf 1:34–35

τοσοῦτον δὲ τοῖς παλαιοῖς τοῦ μὴ παραβαίνειν τὸ ἔθος ἔμελεν ὡς κατὰ τῶν ἐκλειπόντων τὸ ἀρχαῖον, ἐπεισαγόντων δὲ ἕτερον, ἀρασαμένους ἀρώματα τὰ θυμιώμενα προσαγορεύσαι.

tosouton de tois palaiois tou mē parabainein to ethos emelen hōs kata tōn ekleipontōn to archaion, epeisagontōn de heteron, arasamenous arōmata ta thymiōmena prosagoreusai.

So much did the ancients care not to transgress the custom that they invoked curses (arai) against those who abandoned the ancient practice and introduced another, and so called the incense that was burned aromata."

Notes and citation

Summary: The ancients cursed those who changed the old custom, and named incense from those curses.

  • Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.5; a play on ἀρά ("curse") and ἀρώματα ("spices").

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (leaked page number in digitization): τοσοῦτον 30] δὲ → τοσοῦτον δὲ.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Abst. (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.10 (Dindorf 1:34–35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-10). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.11Dindorf 1:35

Ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐπιλέγει μεθʼ ἕτερα “Πόρρω δὲ τῶν περὶ τὰς θυσίας ἀπαρχῶν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις προιουσῶν παρανομίας ἡ τῶν δεινοτάτων θυμάτων παράληψις ἐπεισήχθη ὠμότητος πλήρης, ὡς δοκεῖν τὰς πρόσθεν λεχθείσας καθʼ ἡμῶν ἀρὰς νῦν τέλος εἰληφέναι, σφαξάντων τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ τοὺς βωμοὺς αἱμαξάντων.”

Tauta eipōn epilegei methʼ hetera “Porrō de tōn peri tas thysias aparchōn tois anthrōpois proiousōn paranomias hē tōn deinotatōn thymatōn paralēpsis epeisēchthē ōmotētos plērēs, hōs dokein tas prosthen lechtheisas kathʼ hēmōn aras nyn telos eilēphenai, sphaxantōn tōn anthrōpōn kai tous bōmous haimaxantōn.”

After saying this he adds, after other matters: "But as men advanced far from the first-fruits in sacrifices into lawlessness, the adoption of the most dreadful offerings, full of cruelty, was brought in, so that the curses spoken of before against us seem now to have been fulfilled, when men slaughtered victims and bloodied the altars."

Notes and citation

Summary: Porphyry says that animal sacrifice was a later cruel departure from the first offerings.

  • Porphyry, On Abstinence 2.7.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Abst. (Porphyry, On Abstinence from Killing Animals; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.11 (Dindorf 1:35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-11). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.12Dindorf 1:35

Τοσαῦτα καὶ ὁ Πορφύριος οὐ μᾶλλον ἢ ὁ Θεόφραστος. ἐπισφράγισμα δὲ τοῦ λόγου γένοιτʼ ἂν ἡμῖν ὁ Πλάτων ἐν Κρατύλῳ, πρόσθεν τῶν εἰρημένων αὐτῷ περὶ τῶν Ἑλλήνων ὧδέ πη φάσκων πρὸς ῥῆμα Φαίνονταί μοι οἱ πρῶτοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων τῶν περὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα τούτους μόνους θεοὺς ἡγεῖσθαι, οὕσπερ νῦν πολλοὶ τῶν βαρβάρων, ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ γῆν καὶ ἄστρα καὶ οὐρανόν· ἅτε οὖν αὐτὰ ὁρῶντες πάντα ἀεὶ ἰόντα δρόμῳ καὶ θέοντα, ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς φύσεως τῆς τοῦ θεῖν θεοὺς αὐτοὺς ἐπονομάσαι.”

Tosauta kai ho Porphyrios ou mallon ē ho Theophrastos. episphragisma de tou logou genoitʼ an hēmin ho Platōn en Kratylǭ, prosthen tōn eirēmenōn autǭ peri tōn Hellēnōn hōde pē phaskōn pros rhēma Phainontai moi hoi prōtoi tōn anthrōpōn tōn peri tēn Hellada toutous monous theous hēgeisthai, housper nyn polloi tōn barbarōn, hēlion kai selēnēn kai gēn kai astra kai ouranon; hate oun auta horōntes panta aei ionta dromǭ kai theonta, apo tautēs tēs physeōs tēs tou thein theous autous eponomasai.”

So much Porphyry, or rather Theophrastus. And a seal on the argument may be Plato in the Cratylus, who, before what he says about the Greeks, speaks thus, word for word: "It seems to me that the first men in Greece held as gods only these, which many of the barbarians hold now: sun and moon and earth and stars and heaven. Seeing all these always going on their course and running, from this nature of running (thein) they named them gods (theoi)."

Notes and citation

Summary: Plato's Cratylus says the first Greeks worshipped only the heavenly bodies, called theoi from their running.

  • Plato, Cratylus 397c–d.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (digitization slip; stray mark in digitization): Πλάτωνʼ → Πλάτων; εἰφημένων → εἰρημένων.

Extrabiblical texts: Plato, Crat. 397c (Plato (works); quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.12 (Dindorf 1:35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-12). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.13Dindorf 1:35

Ἀλλʼ ὅτι μὲν οἱ πρῶτοι καὶ παλαίτατοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων οὔτε ναῶν οἰκοδομίαις προσεῖχον οὔτε ξοάνων ἀφιδρύμασιν, οὔπω τότε γραφικῆς οὐδὲ πλαστικῆς ἢ γλυπτικῆς ἢ ἀνδριαντοποιητικῆς τέχνης ἐφευρημένης, οὐδὲ μὴν οἰκοδομικῆς οὐδὲ ἀρχιτεκτονικῆς πω συνεστώσης, παντί τῳ οἶμαι συλλογιζομένῳ δῆλον εἶναι.

Allʼ hoti men hoi prōtoi kai palaitatoi tōn anthrōpōn oute naōn oikodomiais proseichon oute xoanōn aphidrymasin, oupō tote graphikēs oude plastikēs ē glyptikēs ē andriantopoiētikēs technēs epheurēmenēs, oude mēn oikodomikēs oude architektonikēs pō synestōsēs, panti tǭ oimai syllogizomenǭ dēlon einai.

That the first and most ancient human beings paid no attention to building temples or setting up images, since at that time the arts of painting, modeling, carving, and statuary had not yet been invented, and building and architecture did not yet exist, is, I think, plain to anyone who reasons it out.

Notes and citation

Summary: The earliest people had no temples or images, since the arts needed for them did not yet exist.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.13 (Dindorf 1:35; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-13). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.14Dindorf 1:35–36

ὅτι δὲ οὐδὲ τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα κατωνομασμένων θεῶν τε καὶ ἡρώων μνήμη τις τοῖς τότε παρῆν, οὔτʼ οὖν τις ἦν αὐτοῖς Ζεὺς, οὐ Κρόνος, οὐ Ποσειδῶν, οὐκ Ἀπόλλων, οὐχ Ἥρα, οὐκ Ἀθηνᾶ, οὐ Διόνυσος, οὐδέ τις ἕτερος θήλειά τε καὶ ἄρρην θεὸς, οἷοι μετὰ ταῦτα μυρίοι παρά τε βαρβάροις καὶ Ἕλλησιν, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ δαίμων τις ἀγαθὸς ἢ φαῦλος ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐθαυμάζετο, μόνα δὲ τὰ φαινόμενα τῶν οὐρανίων ἄστρων, παρὰ τὸ θέειν, ὅπερ ἐστὶ τρέχειν, θεῶν τε προσηγορίας, ὡς αὐτοί φασιν, ἐτύγχανε, καὶ οὐδὲ ταῦτα ταῖς διὰ ζῴων θυσίαις καὶ ταῖς μετὰ ταῦτα περινοηθείσαις τιμαῖς ἐθρησκεύετο, οὐχ ἡμέτερος ὁ λόγος, οἴκοθεν δὲ καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν Ἑλλήνων ἡ μαρτυρία, διὰ τῶν προτεθειμένων φωνῶν καὶ τῶν αὖθις ἑξῆς παρατεθησομένων τὴν ἀπόδειξιν παρασχομένη.

hoti de oude tōn meta tauta katōnomasmenōn theōn te kai hērōōn mnēmē tis tois tote parēn, outʼ oun tis ēn autois Zeus, ou Kronos, ou Poseidōn, ouk Apollōn, ouch Hēra, ouk Athēna, ou Dionysos, oude tis heteros thēleia te kai arrēn theos, hoioi meta tauta myrioi para te barbarois kai Hellēsin, allʼ oude daimōn tis agathos ē phaulos en anthrōpois ethaumazeto, mona de ta phainomena tōn ouraniōn astrōn, para to theein, hoper esti trechein, theōn te prosēgorias, hōs autoi phasin, etynchane, kai oude tauta tais dia zǭōn thysiais kai tais meta tauta perinoētheisais timais ethrēskeueto, ouch hēmeteros ho logos, oikothen de kai ex autōn Hellēnōn hē martyria, dia tōn protetheimenōn phōnōn kai tōn authis hexēs paratethēsomenōn tēn apodeixin paraschomenē.

And that there was among the people of that time no memory even of the gods and heroes named afterward: that they had no Zeus, no Cronus, no Poseidon, no Apollo, no Hera, no Athena, no Dionysus, nor any other god, female or male, such as afterward were numberless among barbarians and Greeks; that no demon, good or bad, was admired among men, but only the visible stars of heaven received the name of gods, from thein, which means 'to run,' as they themselves say; and that not even these were worshipped with sacrifices of animals and with the honors devised later: this is not our account, but the testimony comes from home, from the Greeks themselves, providing the proof by the words already set out and by those to be set out next.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Greeks' own testimony shows that the earliest people knew no named gods or demons and offered no animal sacrifices.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (accent lost in digitization; digitization slip): θυςίαις → θυσίαις; προτεθειμενων → προτεθειμένων.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.14 (Dindorf 1:35–36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-14). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.15Dindorf 1:36

τοῦτο δὲ καὶ οἱ ἱεροὶ καθʼ ἡμᾶς διδάσκουσι λόγοι, πᾶσι μὲν τοῖς ἔθνεσι τὸ κατʼ ἀρχὰς τὴν τῶν ὁρωμένων φωστήρων τιμὴν ἀπονενεμῆσθαι περιέχοντες, μόνῳ δὲ τῷ Ἑβραίων γένει τὴν ἐποπτείαν ἀνατεθεῖσθαι [τῆς θεωρίας] τοῦ τῶν ὅλων ποιητοῦ τε καὶ δημιουργοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν ἀληθοῦς εὐσεβείας.

touto de kai hoi hieroi kathʼ hēmas didaskousi logoi, pasi men tois ethnesi to katʼ archas tēn tōn horōmenōn phōstērōn timēn aponenemēsthai periechontes, monǭ de tǭ Hebraiōn genei tēn epopteian anatetheisthai [tēs theōrias] tou tōn holōn poiētou te kai dēmiourgou theou kai tēs eis auton alēthous eusebeias.

This our sacred writings also teach, which contain the statement that in the beginning the honor of the visible luminaries was allotted to all the nations, but that to the race of the Hebrews alone was entrusted the insight into God, the maker and creator of the universe, and true piety toward him.

Textual problem in this passage: see the notes.

Deut 4:19–20 (allusion, high confidence)

Notes and citation

Summary: Scripture also says the nations were given the heavenly bodies to honor, while the Hebrews alone knew the Creator.

  • Allusion to Deut 4:19–20.
  • The editor brackets τῆς θεωρίας ("of the contemplation") as a deletion; it is left out.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (accent lost in digitization; digitization slip): ὁρωμενων → ὁρωμένων; Ἑβραςιων → Ἑβραίων.

Topics: Scripture and canon

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.15 (Dindorf 1:36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-15). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.16Dindorf 1:36

οὐκ ἄρα τις ἦν θεογονίας Ἑλληνικῆς ἢ βαρβαρικῆς τοῖς παλαιτάτοις τῶν ἀνθρώπων λόγος, οὐδὲ ξοάνων ἀψύχων ἵδρυσις οὐδʼ ἡ νῦν πολλὴ φλυαρία τῆς τῶν θεῶν ἀρρένων τε καὶ θηλειῶν κατονομασίας.

ouk ara tis ēn theogonias Hellēnikēs ē barbarikēs tois palaitatois tōn anthrōpōn logos, oude xoanōn apsychōn hidrysis oudʼ hē nyn pollē phlyaria tēs tōn theōn arrenōn te kai thēleiōn katonomasias.

So among the most ancient human beings there was no account of a Greek or barbarian theogony, no setting up of lifeless images, nor the great nonsense of today about naming gods male and female.

Notes and citation

Summary: The earliest people had no theogonies, images, or male and female gods.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.16 (Dindorf 1:36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-16). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.17Dindorf 1:36

αἱ γοῦν προσηγορίαι καὶ τὰ ὀνόματα ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ὕστερον ἐφευρημένα οὔπω τότε ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐγνωρίζετο, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ δαιμόνων καὶ πνευμάτων ἀφανῶν ἀνακλήσεις, οὐκ ἔκτοποι περὶ θεῶν καὶ ἡρώων μυθολογίαι, οὐκ ἀπορρήτων τελετῶν μυστήρια, οὐδʼ ὅλως τι τῆς πολλῆς καὶ ἀδολέσχου τῶν μετέπειτα ἀνδρῶν δεισιδαιμονίας.

hai goun prosēgoriai kai ta onomata ex anthrōpōn hysteron epheurēmena oupō tote en anthrōpois egnōrizeto, allʼ oude daimonōn kai pneumatōn aphanōn anaklēseis, ouk ektopoi peri theōn kai hērōōn mythologiai, ouk aporrētōn teletōn mystēria, oudʼ holōs ti tēs pollēs kai adoleschou tōn metepeita andrōn deisidaimonias.

At any rate, the titles and names devised later by men were not yet known among them; nor were there invocations of demons and invisible spirits, nor absurd myths about gods and heroes, nor mysteries of secret rites, nor anything at all of the great and garrulous superstition of later men.

Notes and citation

Summary: The names of gods, invocations of spirits, myths, and mysteries were all later inventions.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (digitization slip): εἱ γοῦν → αἱ γοῦν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.17 (Dindorf 1:36; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-17). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.18Dindorf 1:36–37

ἀνθρώπων ἄρα ταῦτα ἦν εὑρήματα καὶ θνητῆς φύσεως ἀναπλάσματα, μᾶλλον δὲ τρόπων αἰσχρῶν καὶ ἀκολάστων ἐπιτεχνήματα, κατὰ τὸ παρʼ ἡμῖν θεῖον λόγιον τὸ φάσκον “ἀρχὴ πορνείας ἐπίνοια εἰδώλων.”

anthrōpōn ara tauta ēn heurēmata kai thnētēs physeōs anaplasmata, mallon de tropōn aischrōn kai akolastōn epitechnēmata, kata to parʼ hēmin theion logion to phaskon “archē porneias epinoia eidōlōn.”

These things, then, were inventions of human beings and fabrications of mortal nature, or rather devices of shameful and licentious ways, according to the divine oracle among us that says, "The devising of idols is the beginning of sexual immorality."

Notes and citation

Summary: Idolatry was a human invention arising from shameful ways, as Wisdom says.

  • Wisdom of Solomon 14:12.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (letter lost in digitization): εἰδώλω → εἰδώλων.

Extrabiblical texts: Wis 14:12 (Wisdom of Solomon [in RC, EO, ETH canons]; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.18 (Dindorf 1:36–37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-18). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.19Dindorf 1:37

ἡ γοῦν τῶν ἐθνῶν ἁπάντων πολύθεος πλάνη μακροῖς ὕστερον αἰῶσι πέφανται, ἀρξαμένη μὲν ἀπὸ Φοινίκων καὶ Αἰγυπτίων, διαβᾶσα δὲ ἐκ τούτων ἐπί τε τὰ λοιπὰ ἔθνη καὶ μέχρις αὐτῶν Ἑλλήνων, ὡς καὶ τοῦτο πάλιν ἡ τῶν παλαιτάτων ἱστορία κατέχει, ἣν καὶ αὐτὴν ἐπισκέψασθαι καιρὸς ἀπὸ τῶν Φοινικικῶν ἀρξαμένους.

hē goun tōn ethnōn hapantōn polytheos planē makrois hysteron aiōsi pephantai, arxamenē men apo Phoinikōn kai Aigyptiōn, diabasa de ek toutōn epi te ta loipa ethnē kai mechris autōn Hellēnōn, hōs kai touto palin hē tōn palaitatōn historia katechei, hēn kai autēn episkepsasthai kairos apo tōn Phoinikikōn arxamenous.

At any rate the polytheistic error of all the nations appeared long ages afterward. It began with the Phoenicians and Egyptians, and passed from them to the other nations and even to the Greeks themselves, as the history of the most ancient times again records. It is time to examine this too, beginning from the Phoenicians.

Notes and citation

Summary: Polytheism appeared later, beginning with Phoenicians and Egyptians and spreading to the Greeks.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (stray mark in digitization): καὶ· Αἰγυπτίων → καὶ Αἰγυπτίων.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.19 (Dindorf 1:37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-19). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.20Dindorf 1:37

Ἱστορεῖ δὲ ταῦτα Σαγχουνιάθων, ἀνὴρ παλαίτατος καὶ τῶν Τρωικῶν χρόνων, ὥς φασι, πρεσβύτερος, ὃν καὶ ἐπʼ ἀκριβείᾳ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ τῆς Φοινικικῆς ἱστορίας ἀποδεχθῆναι μαρτυροῦσι. Φίλων δὲ τούτου πᾶσαν τὴν συγγραφὴν ὁ Βύβλιος, οὐχ ὁ Ἑβραῖος, μεταβαλὼν ἀπὸ τῆς Φοινίκων γλώττης ἐπὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα φωνὴν ἐξέδωκε. μέμνηται τούτων ὁ καθʼ ἡμᾶς τὴν καθʼ ἡμῶν πεποιημένος συσκευὴν ἐν τετάρτῳ τῆς πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὑποθέσεως, ὧδε τῷ ἀνδρὶ μαρτυρῶν πρὸς λέξιν

Historei de tauta Sanchouniathōn, anēr palaitatos kai tōn Trōikōn chronōn, hōs phasi, presbyteros, hon kai epʼ akribeią kai alētheią tēs Phoinikikēs historias apodechthēnai martyrousi. Philōn de toutou pasan tēn syngraphēn ho Byblios, ouch ho Hebraios, metabalōn apo tēs Phoinikōn glōttēs epi tēn Hellada phōnēn exedōke. memnētai toutōn ho kathʼ hēmas tēn kathʼ hēmōn pepoiēmenos syskeuēn en tetartǭ tēs pros hēmas hypotheseōs, hōde tǭ andri martyrōn pros lexin

These things are recorded by Sanchuniathon, a very ancient man, older, they say, than the Trojan times, whom they testify to have been approved for the accuracy and truth of his Phoenician history. Philo of Byblos, not the Hebrew, translated his whole work from the Phoenician tongue into Greek and published it. He is mentioned by the man of our own time who composed the attack upon us, in the fourth book of his work against us, who bears witness to the man in these words:

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius introduces Sanchuniathon's Phoenician history, translated by Philo of Byblos and praised by Porphyry.

  • The writer "of our own time" is Porphyry, Against the Christians, book 4.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.20 (Dindorf 1:37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-20). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.21Dindorf 1:37–38

“ἱστορεῖ δὲ τὰ περὶ Ἰουδαίων ἀληθέστατα, ὅτι καὶ τοῖς τόποις καὶ τοῖς ὀνόμασιν αὐτῶν τὰ συμφωνότατα, Σαγχουνιάθων ὁ Βηρύτιος, εἰληφὼς τὰ ὑπομνήματα παρὰ Ἱερομβάλου τοῦ ἱερέως θεοῦ τοῦ Ἰευώ· ὃς Ἀβιβάλῳ τῷ βασιλεῖ Βηρυτίων τὴν ἱστορίαν ἀναθεὶς ὑπʼ ἐκείνου καὶ τῶν κατʼ αὐτὸν ἐξεταστῶν τῆς ἀληθείας παρεδέχθη. οἱ δὲ τούτων χρόνοι καὶ πρὸ τῶν Τρωïκῶν πίπτουσι χρόνων, καὶ σχεδὸν τοῖς Μώσεως πλησιάζουσιν, ὡς αἱ τῶν Φοινίκης βασιλέων μηνύουσι διαδοχαί. Σαγχουνιάθων δὲ κατὰ τὴν Φοινίκων διάλεκτον φιλαληθῶς πᾶσαν τὴν παλαιὰν ἱστορίαν ἐκ τῶν κατὰ πόλιν ὑπομνημάτων καὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἀναγραφῶν συναγαγὼν δὴ καὶ συγγράψας ἐπὶ Σεμιράμεως γέγονε τῆς Ἀσσυρίων βασιλίδος, ἣ πρὸ τῶν Ἰλιακῶν, ἢ κατʼ αὐτούς γε τοὺς χρόνους γενέσθαι ἀναγέγραπται. τὰ δὲ τοῦ Σαγχουνιάθωνος εἰς Ἑλλάδα γλῶσσαν ἡρμήνευσε Φίλων ὁ Βύβλιος.”

“historei de ta peri Ioudaiōn alēthestata, hoti kai tois topois kai tois onomasin autōn ta symphōnotata, Sanchouniathōn ho Bērytios, eilēphōs ta hypomnēmata para Hierombalou tou hiereōs theou tou Ieuō; hos Abibalǭ tǭ basilei Bērytiōn tēn historian anatheis hypʼ ekeinou kai tōn katʼ auton exetastōn tēs alētheias paredechthē. hoi de toutōn chronoi kai pro tōn Trōikōn piptousi chronōn, kai schedon tois Mōseōs plēsiazousin, hōs hai tōn Phoinikēs basileōn mēnyousi diadochai. Sanchouniathōn de kata tēn Phoinikōn dialekton philalēthōs pasan tēn palaian historian ek tōn kata polin hypomnēmatōn kai tōn en tois hierois anagraphōn synagagōn dē kai syngrapsas epi Semirameōs gegone tēs Assyriōn basilidos, hē pro tōn Iliakōn, ē katʼ autous ge tous chronous genesthai anagegraptai. ta de tou Sanchouniathōnos eis Hellada glōssan hērmēneuse Philōn ho Byblios.”

"Sanchuniathon of Berytus records the history of the Jews most truthfully, since it agrees most closely with their places and names. He received the records from Hierombalus, the priest of the god Ieuo. He dedicated his history to Abibalus, king of the Berytians, and was accepted by him and by the examiners of truth in his time. Their times fall even before the Trojan times, and come close to those of Moses, as the successions of the kings of Phoenicia show. Sanchuniathon, having collected and written the whole ancient history in the Phoenician language, with love of truth, from the records in each city and the registers in the temples, lived under Semiramis, queen of the Assyrians, who is recorded to have lived before the Trojan war or at about that time. The works of Sanchuniathon were translated into the Greek language by Philo of Byblos."

Notes and citation

Summary: Porphyry praises Sanchuniathon of Berytus as an ancient and truthful historian, close to the time of Moses.

  • Porphyry, Against the Christians, book 4 (fragment 41 Harnack). "Ieuo" is probably a form of the divine name YHWH.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (breathing misread in digitization; repeated syllables in digitization): αἶ τῶν → αἱ τῶν; βασιλέων σιλέων → βασιλέων.

Extrabiblical texts: Porphyry, Porphyry, Chr. frag. 41 (Porphyry, Against the Christians (fragments); quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.21 (Dindorf 1:37–38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-21). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.22Dindorf 1:38

Ταῦτα μὲν ὁ δηλωθεὶς, ἀλήθειαν ὁμοῦ καὶ παλαιότητα τῷ δὴ θεολόγῳ μαρτυρήσας. ὁ δὲ προιὼν, οὐ τὸν ἐπὶ πάντων θεὸν, οὐδὲ μὴν θεοὺς τοὺς κατʼ οὐρανὸν, θνητοὺς δὲ ἄνδρας καὶ γυναῖκας, οὐδὲ τὸν τρόπον ἀστείους, οἴους διʼ ἀρετὴν ἄξιον εἶναι ἀποδέξασθαι ἢ ζηλῶσαι τῆς φιλοσοφίας, φαυλότητος δὲ καὶ μοχθηρίας ἁπάσης κακίαν περιβεβλημένους Θεολογεῖ. καὶ μαρτυρεῖ γε τούτους αὐτοὺς ἐκείνους εἶναι, τοὺς εἰσέτι καὶ νῦν θεοὺς παρὰ τοῖς πᾶσι νενομισμένους κατά τε τὰς πόλεις καὶ τὰς χώρας. δέχου δὲ καὶ τούτων ἐκ τῶν ἐγγράφων τὰς ἀποδείξεις.

Tauta men ho dēlōtheis, alētheian homou kai palaiotēta tǭ dē theologǭ martyrēsas. ho de proiōn, ou ton epi pantōn theon, oude mēn theous tous katʼ ouranon, thnētous de andras kai gynaikas, oude ton tropon asteious, oious diʼ aretēn axion einai apodexasthai ē zēlōsai tēs philosophias, phaulotētos de kai mochthērias hapasēs kakian peribeblēmenous Theologei. kai martyrei ge toutous autous ekeinous einai, tous eiseti kai nyn theous para tois pasi nenomismenous kata te tas poleis kai tas chōras. dechou de kai toutōn ek tōn engraphōn tas apodeixeis.

So says the writer cited, testifying to both the truth and the antiquity of this theologian. But Sanchuniathon, as he proceeds, proclaims as gods not the God over all, nor even the gods in heaven, but mortal men and women, not even refined in character, such as one might accept or emulate for their virtue in philosophy, but clothed in all the vice of baseness and wickedness. And he testifies that these are the very ones who are still regarded as gods by all, in cities and countries. Receive the proofs of this too from the writings.

Notes and citation

Summary: Sanchuniathon's gods turn out to be wicked mortal men and women, still worshipped everywhere.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.22 (Dindorf 1:38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-22). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.23Dindorf 1:38

ὁ δὴ Φίλων εἰς ἐννέα βίβλους τὴν πᾶσαν τοῦ Σαγχουνιάθωνος πραγματείαν διελὼν, κατὰ τὸ προοίμιον τοῦ πρώτου συγγράμματος αὐτοῖς ῥήμασι προλέγει περὶ τοῦ Σαγχουνιάθωνος ταῦτα

ho dē Philōn eis ennea biblous tēn pasan tou Sanchouniathōnos pragmateian dielōn, kata to prooimion tou prōtou syngrammatos autois rhēmasi prolegei peri tou Sanchouniathōnos tauta

Philo, then, having divided the whole work of Sanchuniathon into nine books, in the preface to the first book says this in advance about Sanchuniathon, in these very words:

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo of Byblos divided Sanchuniathon's work into nine books.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.23 (Dindorf 1:38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-23). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.24Dindorf 1:38

“Τούτων οὕτως ἐχόντων ὁ Σαγχουνιάθων, ἀνὴρ πολυμαθὴς καὶ πολυπράγμων γενόμενος, καὶ τὰ ἐξ ἀρχῆς, ἀφʼ οὗ τὰ πάντα συνέστη, παρὰ πάντων εἰδέναι ποθῶν, πολυφροντίστως ἐξεμάστευσε τὰ Τααύτου, εἰδὼς ὅτι τῶν ὑφʼ ἡλίῳ γεγονότων πρῶτός ἐστι Τάαυτος, ὁ τῶν γραμμάτων τὴν εὕρεσιν ἐπινοήσας καὶ τῆς τῶν ὑπομνημάτων γραφῆς κατάρξας, καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦδε ὥσπερ κρηπῖδα βαλόμενος τοῦ λόγου, ὃν Αἰγύπτιοι μὲν ἐκάλεσαν Θωὺθ, Ἀλεξανδρεῖς δὲ Θὼθ, Ἑρμῆν δὲ Ἓλληνες μετέφρασαν.”

“Toutōn houtōs echontōn ho Sanchouniathōn, anēr polymathēs kai polypragmōn genomenos, kai ta ex archēs, aphʼ hou ta panta synestē, para pantōn eidenai pothōn, polyphrontistōs exemasteuse ta Taautou, eidōs hoti tōn hyphʼ hēliǭ gegonotōn prōtos esti Taautos, ho tōn grammatōn tēn heuresin epinoēsas kai tēs tōn hypomnēmatōn graphēs katarxas, kai apo toude hōsper krēpida balomenos tou logou, hon Aigyptioi men ekalesan Thōyth, Alexandreis de Thōth, Hermēn de Hellēnes metephrasan.”

"This being so, Sanchuniathon, a man of great learning and curiosity, who longed to know from all sources the things from the beginning, from which all things were constituted, very carefully searched out the writings of Taautus, knowing that of all who have lived under the sun Taautus was the first, who devised the invention of letters and began the writing of records; and from him, laying the foundation of his account as it were, he began. The Egyptians called him Thouth, the Alexandrians Thoth, and the Greeks translated his name as Hermes."

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo says Sanchuniathon drew on the writings of Taautus, inventor of letters, known as Thoth or Hermes.

  • Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History (quoted 1.9.24–1.10.55).

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.24 (Dindorf 1:38; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-24). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.25Dindorf 1:38–39

Ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐπιμέμφεται τοῖς νεωτέροις τοῖς μετὰ ταῦτα, ὡς ἂν βεβιασμένως καὶ οὐκ ἀληθῶς τοὺς περὶ θεῶν μύθους ἐπʼ ἀλληγορίας καὶ φυσικὰς διηγήσεις τε καὶ θεωρίας ἀνάγουσι· λέγει δʼ οὖν προίων

Tauta eipōn epimemphetai tois neōterois tois meta tauta, hōs an bebiasmenōs kai ouk alēthōs tous peri theōn mythous epʼ allēgorias kai physikas diēgēseis te kai theōrias anagousi; legei dʼ oun proiōn

After saying this he finds fault with the later writers who came afterward, for referring the myths about the gods, forcibly and untruly, to allegories and physical explanations and theories. At any rate he says as he goes on:

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo criticizes later writers who allegorized the myths.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.25 (Dindorf 1:38–39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-25). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.26Dindorf 1:39

“Ἀλλʼ οἱ μὲν νεώτατοι τῶν ἱερολόγων τὰ μὲν γεγονότα πράγματα ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀπεπέμψαντο, ἀλληγορίας δὲ καὶ μύθους ἐπινοήσαντες καὶ τοῖς κοσμικοῖς παθήμασι συγγένειαν πλασάμενοι μυστήρια κατέστησαν, πολὺν αὐτοῖς ἐπῆγον τῦφον, ὡς μὴ ῥᾳδίως τινὰ συνορᾶν τὰ κατʼ ἀλήθειαν γενόμενα· ὁ δὲ συμβαλὼν τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν ἀδύτων εὑρεθεῖσιν ἀποκρύφοις Ἀμμουνέων γράμμασι συγκειμένοις, ἃ δὴ οὐκ ἦν πᾶσι γνώριμα, τὴν μάθησιν ἁπάντων αὐτὸς ἤσκησε· καὶ τέλος ἐπιθεὶς τῇ πραγματείᾳ, τὸν κατʼ ἀρχὰς μῦθον καὶ τὰς ἀλληγορίας ἐκποδὼν ποιησάμενος, ἐξηνύσατο τὴν πρόθεσιν, ἕως πάλιν οἱ ἐπιγενόμενοι ἱερεῖς χρόνοις ὕστερον ἠθέλησαν αὐτὴν ἀποκρύψαι, καὶ εἰς τὸ μυθῶδες ἀποκαταστῆσαι· ἐξ οὗ τὸ μυστικὸν ἀνέκυπτεν οὐδέπω φθάσαν εἰς Ἓλληνας.”

“Allʼ hoi men neōtatoi tōn hierologōn ta men gegonota pragmata ex archēs apepempsanto, allēgorias de kai mythous epinoēsantes kai tois kosmikois pathēmasi syngeneian plasamenoi mystēria katestēsan, polyn autois epēgon typhon, hōs mē rhądiōs tina synoran ta katʼ alētheian genomena; ho de symbalōn tois apo tōn adytōn heuretheisin apokryphois Ammouneōn grammasi synkeimenois, ha dē ouk ēn pasi gnōrima, tēn mathēsin hapantōn autos ēskēse; kai telos epitheis tę̄ pragmateią, ton katʼ archas mython kai tas allēgorias ekpodōn poiēsamenos, exēnysato tēn prothesin, heōs palin hoi epigenomenoi hiereis chronois hysteron ēthelēsan autēn apokrypsai, kai eis to mythōdes apokatastēsai; ex hou to mystikon anekypten oudepō phthasan eis Hellēnas.”

"But the most recent of the sacred writers rejected the events that took place at the beginning, devised allegories and myths, invented a kinship with the phenomena of the cosmos, and established mysteries, bringing upon them much smoke of pretension, so that no one could easily see what had really happened. But he, coming upon the secret writings of the Ammoneans that had been found in the shrines, composed in characters not known to all, himself practiced the study of them all; and having completed the work, he set aside the myth and the allegories from the beginning and accomplished his purpose, until the priests who came later, in later times, wished to hide it again and restore it to the mythical; from which the mystical element arose, which had not yet reached the Greeks."

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo says Sanchuniathon recovered the true history from secret writings, which later priests turned back into myth.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (digitization slip; line-break hyphen rejoined): ἴως πάλιν → ἕως πάλιν; κοσμι- κοῖς → κοσμικοῖς; ἀπο- κρύφοις → ἀποκρύφοις.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.26 (Dindorf 1:39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-26). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.27Dindorf 1:39

Τούτοις ἑξῆς φησιν “Ταῦθʼ ἡμῖν εὕρηται ἐπιμελῶς εἰδέναι τὰ Φοινίκων ποθοῦσι, καὶ πολλὴν ἐξερευνησαμένοις ὕλην, οὐχὶ τὴν παρʼ Ἕλλησι· διάφωνος γὰρ αὕτη καὶ φιλονεικότερον ὑπʼ ἐνίων μᾶλλον ἢ πρὸς ἀλήθειαν συντεθεῖσα.

Toutois hexēs phēsin “Tauthʼ hēmin heurētai epimelōs eidenai ta Phoinikōn pothousi, kai pollēn exereunēsamenois hylēn, ouchi tēn parʼ Hellēsi; diaphōnos gar hautē kai philoneikoteron hypʼ eniōn mallon ē pros alētheian syntetheisa.

Next to this he says: "These things we have discovered in our eagerness to know the history of the Phoenicians accurately, having searched through much material, not that among the Greeks; for that is inconsistent, and composed by some more for the sake of contention than of truth."

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo says he relied on Phoenician sources, not on the inconsistent Greek ones.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (letter lost in digitization): φιλονεικότεον → φιλονεικότερον.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.27 (Dindorf 1:39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-27). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.28Dindorf 1:39

Καὶ μεθʼ ἕτερα Οὕτως τε ἔχειν πεπεῖσθαι ἡμῖν παρέστη ὡς ἐκεῖνος γέγραφε, τὴν διαφωνίαν ὁρῶσι τὴν παρʼ Ἓλλησι. περὶ ἧς μοι τρία πεφιλοτίμηται βιβλία τὴν ἐπιγραφὴν ἔχοντα Παραδόξου ἱστορίας.”

Kai methʼ hetera Houtōs te echein pepeisthai hēmin parestē hōs ekeinos gegraphe, tēn diaphōnian horōsi tēn parʼ Hellēsi. peri hēs moi tria pephilotimētai biblia tēn epigraphēn echonta Paradoxou historias.”

And after other matters: "We came to be convinced that things are as he has written, seeing the disagreement among the Greeks; concerning which I have taken pains to write three books, entitled Paradoxical History."

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo mentions his three books on the Greeks' contradictions.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (leaked marginal letter in digitization): τὴν d ἐπιγραφὴν → τὴν ἐπιγραφὴν.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.28 (Dindorf 1:39; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-28). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.29Dindorf 1:39–40

Καὶ αὖθις μεθʼ ἕτερα ἐπιλέγει “Προδιαρθρῶσαι δὲ ἀναγκαῖον πρὸς τὴν αὖθις σαφήνειαν, καὶ τὴν τῶν κατὰ μέρος διάγνωσιν ὅτι οἱ παλαίτατοι τῶν βαρβάρων, ἐξαιρέτως δὲ Φοίνικές τε καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι, παρʼ ὧν καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ παρέλαβον ἄνθρωποι, θεοὺς ἐνόμιζον μεγίστους τοὺς τὰ πρὸς τὴν βιωτικὴν χρείαν εὑρόντας, ἢ καὶ κατά τι εὖ ποιήσαντας τὰ ἔθνη· εὐεργέτας τε τούτους καὶ πολλῶν αἰτίους ἀγαθῶν ἡγούμενοι ὡς θεοὺς προσεκύνουν, καὶ εἰς τὸ χρεὼν μεταστάντας ναοὺς κατασκευασάμενοι, στήλας τε καὶ ῥάβδους ἀφιέρουν ἐξ ὀνόματος αὐτῶν, καὶ ταῦτα μεγάλως σεβόμενοι, καὶ ἑορτὰς ἔνεμον αὐτοῖς τὰς μεγίστας Φοίνικες· ἐξαιρέτως δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν σφετέρων βασιλέων τοῖς κοσμικοῖς στοιχείοις καί τισι τῶν νομιζομένων θεῶν τὰς ὀνομασίας ἐπέθεσαν· φυσικοὺς δὲ ἥλιον καὶ σελήνην καὶ τοὺς λοιποὺς πλανήτας ἀστέρας καὶ τὰ στοιχεῖα καὶ τὰ τούτοις συναφῆ θεοὺς μόνους ἐγίνωσκον, ὥστʼ αὐτοῖς τοὺς μὲν θνητοὺς, τοὺς δὲ ἀθανάτους θεοὺς εἷναι.”

Kai authis methʼ hetera epilegei “Prodiarthrōsai de anankaion pros tēn authis saphēneian, kai tēn tōn kata meros diagnōsin hoti hoi palaitatoi tōn barbarōn, exairetōs de Phoinikes te kai Aigyptioi, parʼ hōn kai hoi loipoi parelabon anthrōpoi, theous enomizon megistous tous ta pros tēn biōtikēn chreian heurontas, ē kai kata ti eu poiēsantas ta ethnē; euergetas te toutous kai pollōn aitious agathōn hēgoumenoi hōs theous prosekynoun, kai eis to chreōn metastantas naous kataskeuasamenoi, stēlas te kai rhabdous aphieroun ex onomatos autōn, kai tauta megalōs sebomenoi, kai heortas enemon autois tas megistas Phoinikes; exairetōs de kai apo tōn spheterōn basileōn tois kosmikois stoicheiois kai tisi tōn nomizomenōn theōn tas onomasias epethesan; physikous de hēlion kai selēnēn kai tous loipous planētas asteras kai ta stoicheia kai ta toutois synaphē theous monous eginōskon, hōstʼ autois tous men thnētous, tous de athanatous theous heinai.”

And again, after other matters, he adds: "For clearness later, and for distinguishing the particulars, it is necessary to state first that the most ancient of the barbarians, especially the Phoenicians and Egyptians, from whom the rest of mankind received it, considered as the greatest gods those who had discovered things useful for life, or had in some way done good to the nations. Regarding them as benefactors and causes of many goods, they worshipped them as gods; and when they had passed away, they built temples and consecrated pillars and staffs in their names, venerating these greatly; and the Phoenicians assigned to them their greatest festivals. In particular, they gave the names of their own kings to the elements of the cosmos and to some of those considered gods. But as natural gods they recognized only the sun, the moon, the other planets, the elements and the things connected with them, so that some of their gods were mortal and others immortal."

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo explains that the Phoenicians and Egyptians deified their benefactors and kings, besides the heavenly bodies.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.29 (Dindorf 1:39–40; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-29). (abbreviation not yet checked)

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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.

1.9.30Dindorf 1:40

Ταῦτα κατὰ τό προοίμιον ὁ Φίλων διαστειλάμενος ἐξῆς ἀπάρχεται τῆς τοῦ Σαγχουνιάθωνος ἑρμηνείας, ὧδέ πως τὴν Φοινικικὴν ἐκτιθέμενος θεολογίαν

Tauta kata to prooimion ho Philōn diasteilamenos exēs aparchetai tēs tou Sanchouniathōnos hermēneias, hōde pōs tēn Phoinikikēn ektithemenos theologian

Having made these distinctions in the preface, Philo next begins his translation of Sanchuniathon, setting out the Phoenician theology somewhat as follows:

Notes and citation

Summary: Philo begins his translation of Sanchuniathon's Phoenician theology.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (accent misread in digitization): τοὐ Σαγχουνιάθωνος → τοῦ Σαγχουνιάθωνος.

Extrabiblical texts: Philo of Byblos, Philo Byb. (Philo of Byblos, Phoenician History; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 1.9.30 (Dindorf 1:40; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/1-9-1/#p-1-9-30). (abbreviation not yet checked)

BibTeX · RIS (whole work; this passage's key: sophiascriptura-eusebius-praeparatio-1-9-30) · Report an error

Translation: Translated by Claude from the Greek of Dindorf's Teubner text (1867; digital text First1KGreek, CC BY-SA 4.0), then compared section by section with the public-domain English of E. H. Gifford (1903); differences checked against the Greek.