Sophia Scriptura

Preparation for the Gospel 15.62.1–15.62.18

Eusebius of Caesarea · Preparation for the Gospel · ca. 313–324 · Caesarea · 18 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 15, chapter 62

15.62.1Dindorf 2:414–415

“Οὐδεὶς δὲ πώποτε Σωκράτους οὐδὲν οὔτε ἀνόσιον, οὔτε πράττοντος εἶδεν, λέγοντος ἤκουσεν. οὐδὲ γὰρ περὶ τῆς τῶν ἀπάντων φύσεως ἢ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὡς οἱ πλεῖστοι, διελέγετο, σκοπῶν ὅπως ὁ καλούμενος ὑπὸ τῶν σοφιστῶν κόσμος ἔχει, καὶ τίσιν ἀνάγκαις ἕκαστα γίνεται τῶν οὐρανίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς φροντίζοντας τὰ τοιαῦτα μωραίνοντας ἀπεδείκνυε.

“Oudeis de pōpote Sōkratous ouden oute anosion, oute prattontos eiden, legontos ēkousen. oude gar peri tēs tōn apantōn physeōs ē peri tōn allōn, hōs hoi pleistoi, dielegeto, skopōn hopōs ho kaloumenos hypo tōn sophistōn kosmos echei, kai tisin anankais hekasta ginetai tōn ouraniōn, alla kai tous phrontizontas ta toiauta mōrainontas apedeiknye.

“No one ever saw Socrates do, or heard him say, anything impious or unholy. For he did not discuss the nature of all things, as most did, or other such matters, inquiring how what the sophists call the cosmos is constituted and by what necessities each of the heavenly things comes to be; rather, he showed that those who busied themselves with such things were fools.

Notes and citation

Summary: Socrates did not speculate about the cosmos.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.11. Some words are missing from the first sentence in the digital text ("anything impious or unholy ... do ... or heard him say"); it is translated by its plain sense.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (wrong mark in the digital text): ‟Οὐδεὶς δὲ πώποτε → “Οὐδεὶς δὲ πώποτε.

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.11 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.1 (Dindorf 2:414–415; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-1). (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.

15.62.2Dindorf 2:415

καὶ πρῶτον μὲν αὐτῶν ἐσκόπει πότερά ποτε νομίσαντες ἱκανῶς ἤδη τὰ ἀνθρώπινα εἰδέναι ἔρχονται ἐπὶ τὸ περὶ τῶν τοιούτων φροντίζειν, ἢ τὰ μὲν ἀνθρώπινα παρέντες, τὰ δαιμόνια δὲ σκοποῦντες, ἡγοῦνται τὰ προσήκοντα πράττειν.

kai prōton men autōn eskopei potera pote nomisantes hikanōs ēdē ta anthrōpina eidenai erchontai epi to peri tōn toioutōn phrontizein, ē ta men anthrōpina parentes, ta daimonia de skopountes, hēgountai ta prosēkonta prattein.

And first he would ask about them whether they come to think about such things because they believe they already know human affairs well enough, or whether they think they are doing what is fitting by leaving human affairs aside and inquiring into divine ones.

Notes and citation

Summary: Socrates questioned the motives of the natural philosophers.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.12.

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.12 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.2 (Dindorf 2:415; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-2). (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.

15.62.3Dindorf 2:415

ἐθαύμαζε δὲ, εἰ μὴ φανερὸν αὐτοῖς ἐστιν ὅτι ταῦτα οὐ δυνατόν ἐστιν ἀνθρώποις εὑρεῖν, ἐπεὶ καὶ τοὺς μέγιστα φρονοῦντας ἐπὶ τῷ περὶ τούτων λέγειν οὐ ταὐτὰ δοξάζειν ἀλλήλοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς μαινομένοις ὁμοίως διακεῖσθαι πρὸς ἀλλήλους.

ethaumaze de, ei mē phaneron autois estin hoti tauta ou dynaton estin anthrōpois heurein, epei kai tous megista phronountas epi tǭ peri toutōn legein ou tauta doxazein allēlois, alla kai tois mainomenois homoiōs diakeisthai pros allēlous.

And he wondered that it was not plain to them that these things cannot be found out by human beings, since even those who pride themselves most on speaking about them do not hold the same opinions as one another, but are disposed toward one another like madmen.

Notes and citation

Summary: The philosophers' disagreements show these matters are beyond human discovery.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.13.

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.13 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.3 (Dindorf 2:415; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-3). (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.

15.62.4Dindorf 2:415

τῶν τε γὰρ μαινομένων τοὺς μὲν οὐδὲ τὰ δεινὰ δεδιέναι, τοὺς δὲ καὶ τὰ μὴ φοβερὰ φοβεῖσθαι· καὶ τοῖς μὲν οὐδʼ ἐν ὄχλῳ δοκεῖν αἰσχρὸν εἶναι λέγειν ἢ ποιεῖν ὁτιοῦν, τοῖς δὲ οὐδʼ ἐξιτητέον εἰς ἀνθρώπους εἶναι δοκεῖν· καὶ τοὺς μὲν οὔθʼ ἱερὸν οὔτε βωμὸν οὔτʼ ἄλλο τῶν θείων οὐδὲν τιμᾶν, τοὺς δὲ καὶ ξύλα καὶ λίθους τοὺς τυχόντας καὶ θηρία σέβεσθαι. τῶν τε περὶ τῆς τῶν πάντων φύσεως μεριμνώντων τοῖς μὲν δοκεῖν ἕν μόνον τὸ ὂν εἶναι, τοῖς δὲ ἄπειρα τὸ πλῆθος· καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἀεὶ πάντα κινεῖσθαι, τοῖς δὲ οὐδὲν ἄν ποτε κινηθῆναι· καὶ τοῖς μὲν ἅπαντα γίγνεσθαί τε καὶ ἀπόλλυσθαι, τοῖς δὲ οὔτʼ ἂν γενέσθαι ποτὲ οὐδὲν οὔτε ἀπολέσθαι.

tōn te gar mainomenōn tous men oude ta deina dedienai, tous de kai ta mē phobera phobeisthai; kai tois men oudʼ en ochlǭ dokein aischron einai legein ē poiein hotioun, tois de oudʼ exitēteon eis anthrōpous einai dokein; kai tous men outhʼ hieron oute bōmon outʼ allo tōn theiōn ouden timan, tous de kai xyla kai lithous tous tychontas kai thēria sebesthai. tōn te peri tēs tōn pantōn physeōs merimnōntōn tois men dokein hen monon to on einai, tois de apeira to plēthos; kai tois men aei panta kineisthai, tois de ouden an pote kinēthēnai; kai tois men hapanta gignesthai te kai apollysthai, tois de outʼ an genesthai pote ouden oute apolesthai.

For among madmen, some do not fear even what is dreadful, while others fear even what is not frightening; to some it seems not shameful to say or do anything at all even in a crowd, while to others it seems one should not even go out among people; some honor neither temple nor altar nor anything else divine, while others revere sticks and stones of any kind, and beasts. So too among those who concern themselves with the nature of all things, to some it seems that what is is only one, to others that it is infinite in number; to some that all things are always in motion, to others that nothing could ever be moved; to some that all things come to be and perish, to others that nothing could ever come to be or perish.

Notes and citation

Summary: The natural philosophers contradict one another as madmen do.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.14.

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.14 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.4 (Dindorf 2:415; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-4). (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.

15.62.5Dindorf 2:415–416

ἐσκόπει δὲ περὶ αὐτῶν καὶ τάδε· ἆρʼ ὥσπερ οἱ τἀνθρώπινα μανθάνοντες ἡγοῦνται τοῦθʼ ὅ τι ἂν μάθωσιν ἑαυτοῖς τε τῶν ἄλλων ὅτῳ ἂν βούλωνται ποιήσειν, οὕτω καὶ οἶ τὰ θεῖα ζητοῦντες νομίζουσιν, ἐπειδὰν γνῶσιν αἷς ἀνάγκαις ἕκαστα γίγνεται, ποιήσειν ὅταν βούλωνται καὶ ἀνέμους καὶ ὕδατα καὶ ὥρας καὶ ὅτου ἂν ἄλλου δέωνται τῶν τοιούτων; ἢ τοιοῦτον μὲν οὐδὲν οὐδʼ ἐλπίζουσιν, ἀρκεῖ δʼ αὐτοῖς γνῶναι μόνον ᾗ τῶν τοιούτων ἕκαστα γίγνεται;

eskopei de peri autōn kai tade; arʼ hōsper hoi tanthrōpina manthanontes hēgountai touthʼ ho ti an mathōsin heautois te tōn allōn hotǭ an boulōntai poiēsein, houtō kai oi ta theia zētountes nomizousin, epeidan gnōsin hais anankais hekasta gignetai, poiēsein hotan boulōntai kai anemous kai hydata kai hōras kai hotou an allou deōntai tōn toioutōn? ē toiouton men ouden oudʼ elpizousin, arkei dʼ autois gnōnai monon hę̄ tōn toioutōn hekasta gignetai?

He also asked this about them: just as those who learn human matters believe that whatever they learn they will put into practice for themselves and for any others they wish, do those who search into divine things likewise think that, once they know by what necessities each thing comes to be, they will make winds and waters and seasons, and whatever else of the kind they need, whenever they wish? Or do they hope for nothing of the sort, and is it enough for them merely to know how each of these things comes to be?

Notes and citation

Summary: Knowledge of nature gives no power over it.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.15.

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.15 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.5 (Dindorf 2:415–416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-5). (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.

15.62.6Dindorf 2:416

περὶ μὲν οὖν τῶν ταῦτα πραγματευομένων τοιαῦτα ἔλεγεν· αὐτὸς δὲ περὶ τῶν ἀνθρωπείων ἀεὶ διελέγετο, σκοπῶν τί εὐσεβὲς, τί ἀσεβές· τί καλὸν, τί αἰσχρόν· τί δίκαιον, τί ἄδικον· τί σωφροσύνη, τί μανία.”

peri men oun tōn tauta pragmateuomenōn toiauta elegen; autos de peri tōn anthrōpeiōn aei dielegeto, skopōn ti eusebes, ti asebes; ti kalon, ti aischron; ti dikaion, ti adikon; ti sōphrosynē, ti mania.”

This is what he said about those who occupied themselves with these things; but he himself always discussed human matters, examining what is pious and what impious, what noble and what shameful, what just and what unjust, what self-control and what madness.”

Notes and citation

Summary: Socrates discussed only human and moral questions.

  • Xenophon, Memorabilia 1.1.16 (part).

Extrabiblical texts: Xenophon, Mem. 1.1.16 (Xenophon, Memorabilia; quotation)

Topics: Ethics

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.6 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-6). (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.

15.62.7Dindorf 2:416

Ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ὁ Σωκράτης. μετὰ δὲ αὐτὸν οἶ περὶ Ἀρίστιππον τὸν Κυρηναῖον, ἔπειθʼ ὕστερον οἱ περὶ Ἀρίστωνα τὸν Χῖον ἐπεχείρησαν λέγειν ὡς δέοι μόνα τὰ ἠθικὰ φιλοσοφεῖν· εἶναι γὰρ δὴ ταῦτα μὲν δυνατὰ καὶ ὠφέλιμα· τοὺς μέντοι περὶ τῆς φύσεως λόγους πᾶν τοὐναντίον, μήτε καταληπτοὺς εἰναι μήτʼ, εἰ καὶ ὀφθεῖεν, ὄφελος ἔχειν τι.

Tauta men oun ho Sōkratēs. meta de auton oi peri Aristippon ton Kyrēnaion, epeithʼ hysteron hoi peri Aristōna ton Chion epecheirēsan legein hōs deoi mona ta ēthika philosophein; einai gar dē tauta men dynata kai ōphelima; tous mentoi peri tēs physeōs logous pan tounantion, mēte katalēptous einai mētʼ, ei kai ophtheien, ophelos echein ti.

So Socrates. After him the school of Aristippus of Cyrene, and later the school of Ariston of Chios, tried to argue that one ought to pursue only ethics in philosophy; for this is possible and useful, but accounts of nature are the very opposite, neither graspable nor, even if they were seen, of any use.

Notes and citation

Summary: Aristippus and Ariston: philosophy should be ethics alone.

  • Eusebius does not name his source for 15.62.7–13; the material on Aristippus, Ariston, and Socrates has close parallels in Diogenes Laertius and Sextus Empiricus.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (line-end hyphen left in the digital text): φύ- σεως → φύσεως.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.7 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-7). (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.

15.62.8Dindorf 2:416

μηδὲν γὰρ ἡμῖν ἔσεσθαι πλέον, ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ εἰ μετεωρότεροι τοῦ Πέρσεως ἀρθέντες ὑπέρ τε πόντου χεῦμʼ ὑπέρ τε Πλειάδα, αὐτοῖς τοῖς ὄμμασι κατίδοιμεν τὸν πάντα κόσμον, καὶ τὴν τῶν ὄντων φύσιν, ἥτις δή ποτέ ἐστιν.

mēden gar hēmin esesthai pleon, allʼ oudʼ ei meteōroteroi tou Perseōs arthentes hyper te pontou cheumʼ hyper te Pleiada, autois tois ommasi katidoimen ton panta kosmon, kai tēn tōn ontōn physin, hētis dē pote estin.

For we would gain nothing, not even if, raised higher than Perseus, "over the sea's flood and over the Pleiad," we were to look with our own eyes on the whole world and the nature of things, whatever it may be.

Notes and citation

Summary: Seeing the whole cosmos would not make us better.

  • The verse about the sea and the Pleiad is from an unidentified poet.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.8 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-8). (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.

15.62.9Dindorf 2:416

οὐ γὰρ δὴ διά γε τοῦτο φρονιμωτέρους ἢ δικαιοτέρους ἢ ἀνδρειοτέρονς ἢ σωφρονεστέρους ἡμὰς ἔσεσθαι, μὴν οὐδὲ ἰσχυροὺς ἢ καλοὺς ἢ πλουσίους, ὧν χωρὶς οὐχ οἷόν τε εὐδαιμονεῖν.

ou gar dē dia ge touto phronimōterous ē dikaioterous ē andreioterons ē sōphronesterous hēmas esesthai, mēn oude ischyrous ē kalous ē plousious, hōn chōris ouch hoion te eudaimonein.

For not on that account shall we be wiser or more just or braver or more self-controlled, nor indeed strong or handsome or rich, without which it is not possible to be happy.

Notes and citation

Summary: Natural knowledge does not bring virtue or happiness.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.9 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-9). (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.

15.62.10Dindorf 2:416

ὅθεν ὀρθῶς εἶπε Σωκράτης ὅτι τῶν ὄντων τὰ μὲν ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς εἴη, τὰ δὲ οὐδὲν πρὸς ἡμᾶς. εἶναι γὰρ τὰ φυσικὰ μὲν ὑπὲρ ἡμᾶς, τὰ δὲ μετὰ τὸν θάνατον οὐδὲν πρὸς ἡμὰς, μόνα δὲ πρὸς ἡμὰς τὰ ἀνθρώπινα.

hothen orthōs eipe Sōkratēs hoti tōn ontōn ta men hyper hēmas eiē, ta de ouden pros hēmas. einai gar ta physika men hyper hēmas, ta de meta ton thanaton ouden pros hēmas, mona de pros hēmas ta anthrōpina.

Hence Socrates rightly said that of the things that are, some are above us and some are nothing to us: things of nature are above us, things after death nothing to us, and only human things concern us.

Notes and citation

Summary: Socrates: only human things concern us.

  • The saying "things after death are nothing to us" is reported of Socrates in this source; it is not Eusebius's own view.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.10 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-10). (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.

15.62.11Dindorf 2:416

ταύτῃ δὲ καὶ χαίρειν αὐτὸν εἰπόντα τῇ Ἀναξαγόρου καὶ Ἀρχελάου φυσιολογίᾳ ζητεῖν ὅττι οἱ ἐν μεγάροισι κακόν τʼ ἀγαθόν τε τέτυκται.

tautę̄ de kai chairein auton eiponta tę̄ Anaxagorou kai Archelaou physiologią zētein hotti hoi en megaroisi kakon tʼ agathon te tetyktai.

And in this way, he said, he bade farewell to the natural philosophy of Anaxagoras and Archelaus, to seek "whatever ill and good is done in your halls."

Notes and citation

Summary: Socrates left natural philosophy for moral inquiry.

  • The verse is Homer, Odyssey 4.392.

Extrabiblical texts: Homer, Od. 4.392 (Homer, Odyssey; quotation); Anaxagoras (Anaxagoras; allusion)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.11 (Dindorf 2:416; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-11). (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.

15.62.12Dindorf 2:416–417

καὶ ἄλλως δὲ εἶναι τοὺς φυσικοὺς λόγους οὐ χαλεποὺς οὐδὲ ἀδυνάτους μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀσεβεῖς καὶ τοῖς νόμοις ὑπεναντίους. τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἀξιοῦν μηδʼ εἶναι θεοὺς τὸ παράπαν, τοὺς δὲ τὸ ἄπειρον, ἢ τὸ ὂν, ἢ τὸ ἕν· καὶ πάντα μᾶλλον ἢ τοὺς νομιζομένους.

kai allōs de einai tous physikous logous ou chalepous oude adynatous monon, alla kai asebeis kai tois nomois hypenantious. tous men gar axioun mēdʼ einai theous to parapan, tous de to apeiron, ē to on, ē to hen; kai panta mallon ē tous nomizomenous.

And besides, accounts of nature are not only hard and impossible but also impious and contrary to the laws. For some hold that there are no gods at all, others that the infinite, or being, or the one is god, and anything rather than the gods traditionally believed in.

Notes and citation

Summary: Natural philosophy is also impious.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (digitization slip): ἢ τὸ ἴν → ἢ τὸ ἕν.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.12 (Dindorf 2:416–417; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-12). (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.

15.62.13Dindorf 2:417

τήν τʼ αὖ διαφωνίαν παμπόλλην οὖσαν· τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἄπειρον ἀποφαίνειν τὸ πᾶν, τοὺς δὲ πεπερασμένον, καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀξιοῦν ἅπαντα κινεῖσθαι, τοὺς δὲ καθάπαξ μηδέν.

tēn tʼ au diaphōnian pampollēn ousan; tous men gar apeiron apophainein to pan, tous de peperasmenon, kai tous men axioun hapanta kineisthai, tous de kathapax mēden.

And again, their disagreement is very great: some declare the universe infinite, others limited; and some hold that all things move, others that nothing at all does.

Notes and citation

Summary: The natural philosophers disagree about everything.

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.13 (Dindorf 2:417; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-13). (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.

15.62.14Dindorf 2:417

καὶ μὴν εἴ τι καὶ ἄλλο πάντων ἄριστά μοι δοκεῖ περὶ τούτων αὐτῶν ἐν τοῖς Σίλλοις καὶ ὁ Φλιάσιος Τίμων εἰρηκέναι τάδε τίς γὰρ τούσδʼ ὀλοῇ ἔριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι; Ἠχοῦς σύνδρομος ὄχλος. ὁ γὰρ σιγῶσι χολωθεὶς νοῦσον ἐπʼ ἀνέρας ὦρσε λάλην, ὀλέκοντο δὲ πολλοί.

kai mēn ei ti kai allo pantōn arista moi dokei peri toutōn autōn en tois Sillois kai ho Phliasios Timōn eirēkenai tade tis gar tousdʼ oloę̄ eridi xyneēke machesthai? Ēchous syndromos ochlos. ho gar sigōsi cholōtheis nouson epʼ aneras ōrse lalēn, olekonto de polloi.

And indeed, best of all, it seems to me, Timon of Phlius has said this about these very men in his Silloi: "Who set these men to fight in ruinous strife? Echo's thronging crowd. For he, angered at the silent, roused against men a chattering plague, and many perished."

Notes and citation

Summary: Timon of Phlius mocks the philosophers' wrangling.

  • Timon of Phlius, Silloi (fragment). The first line parodies Homer, Iliad 1.8.

Extrabiblical texts: Homer, Il. 1.8 (Homer, Iliad; echo); Timon of Phlius, Timon (Timon of Phlius, Silloi; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.14 (Dindorf 2:417; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-14). (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.

15.62.15Dindorf 2:417

ὁρᾷς ὡς ἤδη καὶ ἀλλήλους σκώπτουσιν οἱ γενναῖοι; τὴν γοῦν πρὸς ἀλλήλους φιλονεικίαν αὐτῶν τάς τε μάχας καὶ τὰς διαστάσεις ἔτι πρὸς τοῖς εἰρημένοις ὁ δηλωθεὶς ἀνὴρ τοῦτον ὑπογράφει τὸν τρόπον φοιτᾷ δὲ βροτολοιγὸς ἔρις, κενεὸν λελακυῖα, νείκης ἀνδροφόνοιο κασιγνήτη καὶ ἔριθος, ἥ τʼ ἀλαὴ περὶ πάντα κυλίνδεται, αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα ἔς τε βροτοὺς στήριξε κάρη καὶ ἐς ἐλπίδα βάλλει.

horąs hōs ēdē kai allēlous skōptousin hoi gennaioi? tēn goun pros allēlous philoneikian autōn tas te machas kai tas diastaseis eti pros tois eirēmenois ho dēlōtheis anēr touton hypographei ton tropon phoitą de brotoloigos eris, keneon lelakuia, neikēs androphonoio kasignētē kai erithos, hē tʼ alaē peri panta kylindetai, autar epeita es te brotous stērixe karē kai es elpida ballei.

Do you see how the noble men already mock one another? At any rate, the man just mentioned sketches, besides what has been said, their rivalry with one another, their battles and their factions, in this way: "Strife, ruin of mortals, goes about, shrieking emptily, sister and helper of man-slaying Quarrel; she rolls blindly about everything, and then sets her head among mortals and throws them into hope."

Notes and citation

Summary: Timon on Strife among the philosophers.

  • Timon of Phlius, Silloi (fragment), a parody of Homer, Iliad 4.440–443.

Extrabiblical texts: Homer, Il. 4.440–443 (Homer, Iliad; echo); Timon of Phlius, Timon (Timon of Phlius, Silloi; quotation)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.15 (Dindorf 2:417; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-15). (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.

15.62.16Dindorf 2:417–418

Ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ τῆς τῶνδε πρὸς σφὰς αὐτοὺς ἀποδεδειγμένης στάσεως τε καὶ μάχης, τῆς τε μηδὲν ἡμῖν προσηκούσης, περιττῆς δὲ ἄλλως καὶ οὐ γνωστῆς παιδείας τε καὶ μαθήσεως τῶν λοιπῶν ἁπάντων, ἐν οἷς εἰσέτι νῦν ἀποσεμνύνονται φιλοσόφων παῖδες, ἀπεληλεγμένων οὐχ ἡμετέραις, ταῖς δʼ οἰκείαις αὐτῶν ἀποδείξεσιν· οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς αἰτίας εἰς φανερὸν τεθείσης, διʼ ἣν τὰ τῶνδε αποστραφέντες τὰ Ἑβραίων λόγια προτετιμήκαμεν, τὰ μὲν τῆς Εὐαγγελικῆς Προπαρασκευῆς ἐν τούτοις ἡμῖν περιγεγράφθω·

Alla gar kai tēs tōnde pros sphas autous apodedeigmenēs staseōs te kai machēs, tēs te mēden hēmin prosēkousēs, perittēs de allōs kai ou gnōstēs paideias te kai mathēseōs tōn loipōn hapantōn, en hois eiseti nyn aposemnynontai philosophōn paides, apelēlegmenōn ouch hēmeterais, tais dʼ oikeiais autōn apodeixesin; ou mēn alla kai tēs aitias eis phaneron tetheisēs, diʼ hēn ta tōnde apostraphentes ta Hebraiōn logia protetimēkamen, ta men tēs Euangelikēs Proparaskeuēs en toutois hēmin perigegraphthō;

But now that the faction and fighting of these men among themselves has been shown, and all the rest of their education and learning, which does not concern us, is superfluous besides and cannot be known, and in which the sons of the philosophers still take pride, has been refuted not by our proofs but by their own; and since, moreover, the reason has been made plain why we turned away from their teachings and preferred the oracles of the Hebrews, let our Preparation for the Gospel be brought to its close here.

Notes and citation

Summary: Eusebius concludes the Preparation for the Gospel.

Topics: Scripture and canon

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.16 (Dindorf 2:417–418; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-16). (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.

15.62.17Dindorf 2:418

τὰ δὲ τῆς ἐντελεστέρας πραγματείας, τῆς κατὰ τὴν Εὐαγγελικὴν Ἀπόδειξιν, ἤδη λοιπὸν ἐπισκεπτέον ἀφʼ ἑτέρας λόγων ἀρχῆς, τῆς δὴ λειπούσης τῷ προβλήματι, τὴν διδασκαλίαν ποιησομένοις.

ta de tēs entelesteras pragmateias, tēs kata tēn Euangelikēn Apodeixin, ēdē loipon episkepteon aphʼ heteras logōn archēs, tēs dē leipousēs tǭ problēmati, tēn didaskalian poiēsomenois.

The more complete undertaking, the Demonstration of the Gospel, must now be taken up from another starting point of discussion, the one that remains to the question, for those who will give the teaching.

Notes and citation

Summary: The Demonstration of the Gospel is to follow.

  • The last clause is compressed in the Greek.

Extrabiblical texts: Eusebius, Dem. ev. (Demonstration of the Gospel; allusion)

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.17 (Dindorf 2:418; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-17). (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.

15.62.18Dindorf 2:418

λείπει δʼ ἄρα πρὸς τοὺς ἐκ περιτομῆς ἐπιμεμψαμένους ἀποκρίνασθαι, τί δή ποτε ἀλλόφυλοι ὄντες καὶ ἀλλογενεῖς ταῖς αὐτῶν βίβλοις ἀποχρώμεθα, μηδὲν ἡμῖν, ὡς ἂν αὐτοὶ φαῖεν, προσηκούσαις· ἢ τί δὴ τὰ παρʼ αὐτοῖς ἀσπαζόμενοι λόγια οὐχὶ καὶ τὸν βίον ἀκόλουθον τῷ παρʼ αὐτοῖς παρέχομεν νόμῳ.

leipei dʼ ara pros tous ek peritomēs epimempsamenous apokrinasthai, ti dē pote allophyloi ontes kai allogeneis tais autōn biblois apochrōmetha, mēden hēmin, hōs an autoi phaien, prosēkousais; ē ti dē ta parʼ autois aspazomenoi logia ouchi kai ton bion akolouthon tǭ parʼ autois parechomen nomǭ.

What remains, then, is to answer those of the circumcision who find fault with us: why, being of another race and another stock, we make use of their books, which, as they would say, do not belong to us at all; or why, if we welcome the oracles they have, we do not also lead a life in keeping with the law they have.

Notes and citation

Summary: The question the Demonstration will answer: why Gentiles use the Jewish Scriptures but not the law.

  • The objection is put in the mouth of Jewish critics, as Eusebius frames it; the Demonstration of the Gospel answers it.

Notes on the original text

  • Digital text corrected (missing breathing in the digital text): άλλόφυλοι → ἀλλόφυλοι.

Topics: Scripture and canon

Cite (SBL): Eusebius, Praep. ev. 15.62.18 (Dindorf 2:418; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/eusebius-praeparatio/15-62-1/#p-15-62-18). (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.