Aphrahat: Selected Demonstrations

1. This reflection has befallen me at this time concerning the shaking that is to take place at this time, and the host that has assembled itself for the sword. The times were disposed beforehand by God. The times of peace are fulfilled in the days of the good and just; and the times of many evils are fulfilled in the days of the evil and transgressors. For it is thus written:—Good must happen and blessed is he through whom it shall come to pass; and evil must happen, but woe to him through whom it shall come to pass.^{Edition note 2} Good has come to the people of God, and blessedness awaits that man through whom the good came.

And evil is stirred up as regards the host that is gathered together by means of the evil and arrogant one who glories; and woe also is there reserved for him through whom the evil is stirred up. But do not, my beloved, reproach the evil person who has inflicted evil upon many; because the times were beforehand disposed and the time of their accomplishment has arrived.

2. Therefore because it is the time of the Evil One, hear in mystery that which I am writing for thee. For thus it is written:—Whatsoever is exalted amongst men is despicable before God.^{Edition note 3} And again it is written:—Everyone who exalteth himself shall be abased, and everyone who humbleth himself shall be exalted.^{Edition note 4} Also Jeremiah said:—Let not the mighty glory in his might, nor the rich in his riches.^{Edition note 5} And again the blessed Apostle said:—Whosoever glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.^{Edition note 6} And David said:—I saw the wicked exalted and lifted up as the cedar of Lebanon; and when I passed by he was not, and I sought him and found him not.^{Edition note 7}

3. For every one that glories shall be humbled. Cain gloried over Abel his brother and slew him. And he was cursed and became a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth. Again the Sodomites gloried over Lot, and there fell upon them fire from heaven and burned them up and their city was overthrown upon them. And Esau gloried over Jacob and persecuted him, and Jacob received the birthright and blessings of Esau. And the children of Jacob gloried over Joseph, and (afterwards) fell down and worshipped him in Egypt.

And Pharaoh gloried over Moses and over his people; and Pharaoh and his host were drowned in the sea. And Dathan and Abiram gloried over Moses, and they went down alive to Sheol. And Goliath threatened David, and he fell before him and was crushed. And again Saul persecuted David, and he fell by the sword of the Philistines. And Absalom exalted himself against him, and Joab slew him in the battle. Again Benhadad gloried over Ahab, and he was delivered into the hand of Israel. And Sennacherib blasphemed against Hezekiah and his God, and his host became dead carcases when one of the Watchers went forth and slew in the camp one hundred and eighty-five thousand at the prayer of Hezekiah and at the prayer of Prophet Isaiah, most glorious of the Prophets.

Ahab exalted himself over Micah, and he went up and fell in Ramoth Gilead. Jezebel gloried over Elijah, and the dogs devoured her in the portion of Jezreel. Haman gloried over Mordecai, and his iniquity turned back upon his own head. The Babylonians gloried over Daniel and cast him into the den of lions, and Daniel came up victorious, and they were cast instead of him into the den. Again the Babylonians gloried and accused Hananiah and his companions, and they were cast into the furnace of fire; and they came up victorious and the flame devoured the accusers.

4. Now Nebuchadnezzar said:—I will ascend to heaven and exalt my throne above the stars of God and sit in the lofty mountains that are in the borders of the North.^{Edition note 8} Isaiah said concerning him:—Because thy heart has thus exalted thee, therefore thou shalt be brought down to Sheol, and all that look upon thee shall be astonished at thee.^{Edition note 9} And Sennacherib also said thus:—I will go up to the summit of the mountains and to the shoulders of Lebanon.^{Edition note 10} I will dig and drink water and will dry up with my horses’ hoofs all the deep rivers.

And because he thus exalted himself, Isaiah again said concerning him:—Why does the axe boast itself against him that cutteth with it, or the saw exalt itself against him that saweth with it, or the rod lift itself up against him that wieldeth it?^{Edition note 11} For thou, Sennacherib, art the axe in the hands of Him that cuts, and thou art the saw in the hands of Him that saws, and the rod in the hand of Him that wields thee for chastisement, and thou art the staff for smiting. Thou art sent against the fickle people, and again thou art ordained against the stubborn people, that thou mayest carry away the captivity and take the spoil; and thou hast made them as the mire of the streets for all men and for all the Gentiles.

And when thou hast done all these things, why art thou exalted against Him Who holds thee, and why dost thou boast against Him Who saws with thee, and why hast thou reviled the holy city? and hast said to the children of Jerusalem:—Can your God deliver you from my hand?^{Edition note 12} And thou hast dared to say:—Who is the Lord that He shall deliver you from my hands? Because of this, hear the word of the Lord, saying:—I will crush the Assyrian in My land, and on My mountains will I tread him down.^{Edition note 13} And when he shall have been crushed and trodden down, the Virgin, the daughter of Zion, will despise him, and the daughter of Jerusalem will shake her head and say:—Whom hast thou reviled and blasphemed, and against whom hast thou lifted up thy voice?

Thou hast lifted up thine eyes towards heaven against the Holy One of Israel, and by the hands of thy messengers thou hast reviled the Lord. Now see that the hook has been forced into thy nostrils, and the bridle into thy lips, and thou hast turned back with thine heart crushed, who camest with thine heart uplifted.^{Edition note 14} And his slaying was by the hands of his loved ones; and in the house of his confidence,^{Edition note 15} there was he overthrown, and fell before his god. And truly it was right, my beloved, that his body should thus become a sacrifice and offering before that god on whom he relied, and in his temple, as a memorial for his idol.

5. Again the ram was lifted up and exalted, and pushed with its horns towards the west, and towards the north, and towards the south, and humbled many beasts. And they could not stand before him, until the he-goat came from the west and smote the ram and broke his horns and humbled the ram completely. But the ram was the King of Media and Persia, that is, Darius; and the he-goat was Alexander, the son of Philip, the Macedonian. For Daniel saw the ram when he was in the East before the gate of Shushan the fortress that is in the province of Elam, upon the river Ulai.

And he was pushing towards the West and towards the North and towards the South. And none of the beasts could stand before him.^{Edition note 16} And the he-goat of the goats came up from the region of the Greeks, and exalted himself against the ram. And he smote him and broke both his horns, the greater and the lesser. And why did he say that he broke both his horns? Clearly because he humbled both the kingdoms which he ruled; the lesser, that of the Medes, and the greater, that of the Persians. But when Alexander the Greek came, he slew Darius, King of Media and Persia.

For thus the angel said to Daniel, when he was explaining the vision to him:—The ram that thou sawest was the King of Media and Persia, and the he-goat the King of the Greeks.^{Edition note 17} Now, from the time that the two horns of the ram were broken, until this time, there have been six hundred and forty-eight years.^{Edition note 18}

6. Therefore, as for the ram, its horns are broken. And though its horns are broken, lo! it exalts and uplifts itself against the fourth beast, that is strong and mighty and its teeth of iron and its hoofs of brass, and it shall devour and grind down, and trample with its feet whatsoever remaineth.^{Edition note 19} O Ram, whose horns are broken, rest thou from the beast, and provoke it not lest it devour thee and grind thee to powder. The ram could not stand before the he-goat; how shall it stand before that terrible beast, whose mouth speaketh great things,^{Edition note 20} and whatsoever it finds it couches over as a lion over his prey?

Whoever provokes the lion becomes its portion; and whoever stirs up that beast, it shall devour him. And who is there that shall escape out from under the feet of that beast when it is trampling on him? For the beast shall not be slain until the Ancient of Days shall sit upon the throne, and the Son of Man shall come near before Him, and authority shall be given to Him.^{Edition note 21} Then shall that beast be slain and its carcase shall perish. And the Kingdom of the Son of Man shall be established, an eternal Kingdom, and His authority from generation to generation.

7. Be quiet, O thou that dost exalt thyself; vaunt not thyself! For if thy wealth has lifted up thy heart, it is not more abundant than that of Hezekiah, who went in and boasted of it before the Babylonians, (yet) it was all of it carried away and went to Babylon. And if thou gloriest in thy children, they shall be led away from thee to the Beast, as the children of King Hezekiah were led away, and became eunuchs in the palace of the King of Babylon.^{Edition note 22} And if thou dost glory in thy wisdom, thou dost not in it excel the Prince of Tyre, whom Ezekiel reproached, saying unto him:—Art thou wiser than Daniel, or hast thou seen by thy wisdom the things that are hid?^{Edition note 23} And if thy mind is puffed up by thy years, that they are many; they are not more in number than those of the Prince of Tyre who ruled the Kingdom during the days of twenty-two Kings of the house of Judah, that is, for four hundred and forty years.

And since the years of that King of Tyre were many, all the time he thus said in his heart, I am God and sit in the seat of God in the heart of the seas.^{Edition note 24} But Ezekiel said to him: Thou art a man and thou art not God. For while the Prince of Tyre was walking without fault in the midst of the stones of fire, there was mercy upon him. But when his heart was lifted up, the cherub who overshadoweth, destroyed him.^{Edition note 25}

8. Now, what are the stones of fire, but the children of Zion and the children of Jerusalem? For in the ancient time, in the days of David and of Solomon his son, Hiram was a friend to those of the house of Israel. But when they were carried away captive from their place, he rejoiced over them and spurned them with his feet, and did not remember the friendship of the house of David. And as to that which I said that the children of Judah were called the stones of fire, it was not of my own thought that I said it, but Jeremiah the Prophet spake concerning them; for when he was calling forth tears for them in the Lamentations, he said:—The children of Zion were more excellent than precious stones.^{Edition note 26} And again he said:—How are the stones of the Sanctuary cast down at the head of all the streets?^{Edition note 27} And again He said by the Prophet:—The stones were holy that were cast down in his land.^{Edition note 28} And as to these very stones, the fire was burning in them, as Jeremiah said:—The word of the Lord became in my heart like burning fire and it was hot in my bones.^{Edition note 29} And again He said to Jeremiah:—Lo!

I give My word in thy mouth as fire, and this people shall be as wood.^{Edition note 30} And again He said words shall go forth as fire, and as iron that cutteth the stone.^{Edition note 31} On this account the Prophets, amongst whom Hiram the Prince of Tyre was walking, were called stones of fire.

9. And again (God) said to him:—Thou wast with the Cherub who was anointed and overshadowing.^{Edition note 32} For the king, who was anointed with the holy oil, was called a Cherub. And he was overshadowing all his people, as Jeremiah said:—The anointed of the Lord is the breath of our nostrils, he of whom we said that in his shadow shall we live amongst the Gentiles.^{Edition note 33} For they were sitting in the shadow of the king, while he was standing at their head. And when the crown of their head fell, they were without shade.

And if any one should say that this word is spoken concerning Christ, let him receive that which I write for him without disputation, and thus he will be persuaded that it was said with reference to the king. For Jeremiah said in behalf of the people:—Woe unto us, for the crown of our head has fallen!^{Edition note 34} But Christ has not fallen, because He rose again the third day. For the king fell from the house of Judah, and never again was their kingdom set up. And as for that He said again:—I will destroy the overshadowing Cherub.^{Edition note 35} For the Cherub that He will destroy is Nebuchadnezzar, as it is written:—He performed a work in Tyre, and there was given him by Tyre no hire for his host, and in return for the work of Tyre there was given him the land of Egypt.^{Edition note 36} And why was hire not given by Tyre to Nebuchadnezzar?

Clearly because its wealth went away in the sea, so that Nebuchadnezzar did not receive it. And at that time He destroyed the overshadowing Cherub, which is Nebuchadnezzar. For there are two Cherubs, one anointed and overshadowing, and one overshadowing but not anointed. For He said above:—Thou wast with the Cherub anointed and overshadowing.^{Edition note 37} And lower down He said:—I will destroy thee the overshadowing Cherub;^{Edition note 38} and did not say “anointed.” For Nebuchadnezzar was not anointed; but David and Solomon were, and the other kings who arose after them.

And how was Nebuchadnezzar called overshadowing? Clearly on account of the vision of the tree, when he saw a tree in the midst of the earth, beneath which dwelt all the beasts of the wilderness and on its branches dwelt all the birds of heaven, and from it all flesh was fed. When Daniel interpreted his dream to him, Daniel said to him:—Thou art the tree, that tree which thou sawest in the midst of the earth and beneath thee dwell all the nations.^{Edition note 39} On this account he was the overshadowing Cherub; who