1. Septuagint, Tobit, 13.2-13.7, 13.10, 13.12-13.13, 13.15-13.18 (th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 13.2. For he afflicts, and he shows mercy;he leads down to Hades, and brings up again,and there is no one who can escape his hand. 13.3. Acknowledge him before the nations, O sons of Israel;for he has scattered us among them. 13.4. Make his greatness known there,and exalt him in the presence of all the living;because he is our Lord and God,he is our Father for ever. 13.5. He will afflict us for our iniquities;and again he will show mercy,and will gather us from all the nations among whom you have been scattered. 13.6. If you turn to him with all your heart and with all your soul,to do what is true before him,then he will turn to you and will not hide his face from you. But see what he will do with you;give thanks to him with your full voice. Praise the Lord of righteousness,and exalt the King of the ages. I give him thanks in the land of my captivity,and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners. Turn back, you sinners, and do right before him;who knows if he will accept you and have mercy on you? 13.7. I exalt my God;my soul exalts the King of heaven,and will rejoice in his majesty. 13.10. Give thanks worthily to the Lord,and praise the King of the ages,that his tent may be raised for you again with joy. May he cheer those within you who are captives,and love those within you who are distressed,to all generations for ever. 13.12. Cursed are all who hate you;blessed for ever will be all who love you. 13.13. Rejoice and be glad for the sons of the righteous;for they will be gathered together,and will praise the Lord of the righteous. 13.15. Let my soul praise God the great King. 13.16. For Jerusalem will be built with sapphires and emeralds,her walls with precious stones,and her towers and battlements with pure gold. 13.17. The streets of Jerusalem will be paved with beryl and ruby and stones of Ophir; 13.18. all her lanes will cry `Hallelujah! and will give praise,saying, `Blessed is God, who has exalted you for ever. |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Deuteronomy, 19.17, 22.11, 32.35, 32.43 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 19.17. וְעָמְדוּ שְׁנֵי־הָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר־לָהֶם הָרִיב לִפְנֵי יְהוָה לִפְנֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים וְהַשֹּׁפְטִים אֲשֶׁר יִהְיוּ בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם׃ 22.11. לֹא תִלְבַּשׁ שַׁעַטְנֵז צֶמֶר וּפִשְׁתִּים יַחְדָּו׃ 32.35. לִי נָקָם וְשִׁלֵּם לְעֵת תָּמוּט רַגְלָם כִּי קָרוֹב יוֹם אֵידָם וְחָשׁ עֲתִדֹת לָמוֹ׃ 32.43. הַרְנִינוּ גוֹיִם עַמּוֹ כִּי דַם־עֲבָדָיו יִקּוֹם וְנָקָם יָשִׁיב לְצָרָיו וְכִפֶּר אַדְמָתוֹ עַמּוֹ׃ | 19.17. then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges that shall be in those days." 22.11. Thou shalt not wear a mingled stuff, wool and linen together. ." 32.35. Vengeance is Mine, and recompense, Against the time when their foot shall slip; For the day of their calamity is at hand, And the things that are to come upon them shall make haste." 32.43. Sing aloud, O ye nations, of His people; For He doth avenge the blood of His servants, And doth render vengeance to His adversaries, And doth make expiation for the land of His people." |
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3. Hebrew Bible, Esther, 4.16, 6.1, 7.5-7.10 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 4.16. לֵךְ כְּנוֹס אֶת־כָּל־הַיְּהוּדִים הַנִּמְצְאִים בְּשׁוּשָׁן וְצוּמוּ עָלַי וְאַל־תֹּאכְלוּ וְאַל־תִּשְׁתּוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים לַיְלָה וָיוֹם גַּם־אֲנִי וְנַעֲרֹתַי אָצוּם כֵּן וּבְכֵן אָבוֹא אֶל־הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר לֹא־כַדָּת וְכַאֲשֶׁר אָבַדְתִּי אָבָדְתִּי׃ 6.1. בַּלַּיְלָה הַהוּא נָדְדָה שְׁנַת הַמֶּלֶךְ וַיֹּאמֶר לְהָבִיא אֶת־סֵפֶר הַזִּכְרֹנוֹת דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים וַיִּהְיוּ נִקְרָאִים לִפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ 6.1. וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ לְהָמָן מַהֵר קַח אֶת־הַלְּבוּשׁ וְאֶת־הַסּוּס כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ וַעֲשֵׂה־כֵן לְמָרְדֳּכַי הַיְּהוּדִי הַיּוֹשֵׁב בְּשַׁעַר הַמֶּלֶךְ אַל־תַּפֵּל דָּבָר מִכֹּל אֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ׃ 7.5. וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ וַיֹּאמֶר לְאֶסְתֵּר הַמַּלְכָּה מִי הוּא זֶה וְאֵי־זֶה הוּא אֲשֶׁר־מְלָאוֹ לִבּוֹ לַעֲשׂוֹת כֵּן׃ 7.6. וַתֹּאמֶר־אֶסְתֵּר אִישׁ צַר וְאוֹיֵב הָמָן הָרָע הַזֶּה וְהָמָן נִבְעַת מִלִּפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ וְהַמַּלְכָּה׃ 7.7. וְהַמֶּלֶךְ קָם בַּחֲמָתוֹ מִמִּשְׁתֵּה הַיַּיִן אֶל־גִּנַּת הַבִּיתָן וְהָמָן עָמַד לְבַקֵּשׁ עַל־נַפְשׁוֹ מֵאֶסְתֵּר הַמַּלְכָּה כִּי רָאָה כִּי־כָלְתָה אֵלָיו הָרָעָה מֵאֵת הַמֶּלֶךְ׃ 7.8. וְהַמֶּלֶךְ שָׁב מִגִּנַּת הַבִּיתָן אֶל־בֵּית מִשְׁתֵּה הַיַּיִן וְהָמָן נֹפֵל עַל־הַמִּטָּה אֲשֶׁר אֶסְתֵּר עָלֶיהָ וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ הֲגַם לִכְבּוֹשׁ אֶת־הַמַּלְכָּה עִמִּי בַּבָּיִת הַדָּבָר יָצָא מִפִּי הַמֶּלֶךְ וּפְנֵי הָמָן חָפוּ׃ 7.9. וַיֹּאמֶר חַרְבוֹנָה אֶחָד מִן־הַסָּרִיסִים לִפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ גַּם הִנֵּה־הָעֵץ אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂה הָמָן לְמָרְדֳּכַי אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר־טוֹב עַל־הַמֶּלֶךְ עֹמֵד בְּבֵית הָמָן גָּבֹהַּ חֲמִשִּׁים אַמָּה וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ תְּלֻהוּ עָלָיו׃ | 4.16. ’Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day; I also and my maidens will fast in like manner; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish.’" 6.1. On that night could not the king sleep; and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles, and they were read before the king." 7.5. Then spoke the king Ahasuerus and said unto Esther the queen: ‘Who is he, and where is he, that durst presume in his heart to do so?’" 7.6. And Esther said: ‘An adversary and an enemy, even this wicked Haman.’ Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen." 7.7. And the king arose in his wrath from the banquet of wine and went into the palace garden; but Haman remained to make request for his life to Esther the queen; for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king." 7.8. Then the king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet of wine; and Haman was fallen upon the couch whereon Esther was. Then said the king: ‘Will he even force the queen before me in the house?’ As the word went out of the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face." 7.9. Then said Harbonah, one of the chamberlains that were before the king: ‘Behold also, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman hath made for Mordecai, who spoke good for the king, standeth in the house of Haman.’ And the king said: ‘Hang him thereon.’" 7.10. So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king’s wrath assuaged." |
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4. Hebrew Bible, Genesis, 31.35 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 31.35. וַתֹּאמֶר אֶל־אָבִיהָ אַל־יִחַר בְּעֵינֵי אֲדֹנִי כִּי לוֹא אוּכַל לָקוּם מִפָּנֶיךָ כִּי־דֶרֶךְ נָשִׁים לִי וַיְחַפֵּשׂ וְלֹא מָצָא אֶת־הַתְּרָפִים׃ | 31.35. And she said to her father: ‘Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise up before thee; for the manner of women is upon me.’ And he searched, but found not the teraphim." |
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5. Hebrew Bible, Leviticus, 19.19 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 19.19. אֶת־חֻקֹּתַי תִּשְׁמֹרוּ בְּהֶמְתְּךָ לֹא־תַרְבִּיעַ כִּלְאַיִם שָׂדְךָ לֹא־תִזְרַע כִּלְאָיִם וּבֶגֶד כִּלְאַיִם שַׁעַטְנֵז לֹא יַעֲלֶה עָלֶיךָ׃ | 19.19. Ye shall keep My statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind; thou shalt not sow thy field with two kinds of seed; neither shall there come upon thee a garment of two kinds of stuff mingled together." |
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6. Hebrew Bible, 1 Kings, 18.28 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 18.28. וַיִּקְרְאוּ בְּקוֹל גָּדוֹל וַיִּתְגֹּדְדוּ כְּמִשְׁפָּטָם בַּחֲרָבוֹת וּבָרְמָחִים עַד־שְׁפָךְ־דָּם עֲלֵיהֶם׃ | 18.28. And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with swords and lances, till the blood gushed out upon them." |
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7. Hebrew Bible, Joshua, 3.5 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 3.5. וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אֶל־הָעָם הִתְקַדָּשׁוּ כִּי מָחָר יַעֲשֶׂה יְהוָה בְּקִרְבְּכֶם נִפְלָאוֹת׃ | 3.5. And Joshua said unto the people: ‘Sanctify yourselves; for to-morrow the LORD will do wonders among you.’" |
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8. Hebrew Bible, Judges, 11.39 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 11.39. וַיְהִי מִקֵּץ שְׁנַיִם חֳדָשִׁים וַתָּשָׁב אֶל־אָבִיהָ וַיַּעַשׂ לָהּ אֶת־נִדְרוֹ אֲשֶׁר נָדָר וְהִיא לֹא־יָדְעָה אִישׁ וַתְּהִי־חֹק בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל׃ | 11.39. And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Yisra᾽el," |
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9. Hebrew Bible, 2 Chronicles, 35.25 (5th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 35.25. וַיְקוֹנֵן יִרְמְיָהוּ עַל־יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ וַיֹּאמְרוּ כָל־הַשָּׁרִים וְהַשָּׁרוֹת בְּקִינוֹתֵיהֶם עַל־יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ עַד־הַיּוֹם וַיִּתְּנוּם לְחֹק עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְהִנָּם כְּתוּבִים עַל־הַקִּינוֹת׃ | 35.25. And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah; and all the singing men and singing women spoke of Josiah in their lamentations, unto this day; and they made them an ordice in Israel; and, behold, they are written in the lamentations." |
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10. Herodotus, Histories, 2.100 (5th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 2.100. After him came three hundred and thirty kings, whose names the priests recited from a papyrus roll. In all these many generations there were eighteen Ethiopian kings, and one queen, native to the country; the rest were all Egyptian men. ,The name of the queen was the same as that of the Babylonian princess, Nitocris. She, to avenge her brother (he was king of Egypt and was slain by his subjects, who then gave Nitocris the sovereignty) put many of the Egyptians to death by treachery. ,She built a spacious underground chamber; then, with the pretence of inaugurating it, but with quite another intent in her mind, she gave a great feast, inviting to it those Egyptians whom she knew to have had the most complicity in her brother's murder; and while they feasted, she let the river in upon them by a vast secret channel. ,This was all that the priests told of her, except that when she had done this she cast herself into a chamber full of hot ashes, to escape vengeance. |
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11. Septuagint, Tobit, 13.2-13.7, 13.10, 13.12-13.13, 13.15-13.18 (4th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 13.2. For he afflicts, and he shows mercy;he leads down to Hades, and brings up again,and there is no one who can escape his hand. 13.3. Acknowledge him before the nations, O sons of Israel;for he has scattered us among them. 13.4. Make his greatness known there,and exalt him in the presence of all the living;because he is our Lord and God,he is our Father for ever. 13.5. He will afflict us for our iniquities;and again he will show mercy,and will gather us from all the nations among whom you have been scattered. 13.6. If you turn to him with all your heart and with all your soul,to do what is true before him,then he will turn to you and will not hide his face from you. But see what he will do with you;give thanks to him with your full voice. Praise the Lord of righteousness,and exalt the King of the ages. I give him thanks in the land of my captivity,and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners. Turn back, you sinners, and do right before him;who knows if he will accept you and have mercy on you? 13.7. I exalt my God;my soul exalts the King of heaven,and will rejoice in his majesty. 13.10. Give thanks worthily to the Lord,and praise the King of the ages,that his tent may be raised for you again with joy. May he cheer those within you who are captives,and love those within you who are distressed,to all generations for ever. 13.12. Cursed are all who hate you;blessed for ever will be all who love you. 13.13. Rejoice and be glad for the sons of the righteous;for they will be gathered together,and will praise the Lord of the righteous. 13.15. Let my soul praise God the great King. 13.16. For Jerusalem will be built with sapphires and emeralds,her walls with precious stones,and her towers and battlements with pure gold. 13.17. The streets of Jerusalem will be paved with beryl and ruby and stones of Ophir; 13.18. all her lanes will cry `Hallelujah! and will give praise,saying, `Blessed is God, who has exalted you for ever. |
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12. Anon., 1 Enoch, 10.9, 90.19, 91.12 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 10.9. through the works that were taught by Azazel: to him ascribe all sin.' And to Gabriel said the Lord: 'Proceed against the bastards and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in 90.19. And I saw till a great sword was given to the sheep, and the sheep proceeded against all the beasts of the field to slay them, and all the beasts and the birds of the heaven fled before their face. And I saw that man, who wrote the book according to the command of the Lord, till he opened that book concerning the destruction which those twelve last shepherds had wrought, and showed that they had destroyed much more than their predecessors, before the Lord of the sheep. And I saw till the Lord of the sheep came unto them and took in His hand the staff of His wrath, and smote the earth, and the earth clave asunder, and all the beasts and all the birds of the heaven fell from among those sheep, and were swallowed up in the earth and it covered them. 91.12. And after that there shall be another, the eighth week, that of righteousness, And a sword shall be given to it that a righteous judgement may be executed on the oppressors, And sinners shall be delivered into the hands of the righteous. |
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13. Hebrew Bible, Daniel, 9.26, 11.22, 11.30 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 9.26. וְאַחֲרֵי הַשָּׁבֻעִים שִׁשִּׁים וּשְׁנַיִם יִכָּרֵת מָשִׁיחַ וְאֵין לוֹ וְהָעִיר וְהַקֹּדֶשׁ יַשְׁחִית עַם נָגִיד הַבָּא וְקִצּוֹ בַשֶּׁטֶף וְעַד קֵץ מִלְחָמָה נֶחֱרֶצֶת שֹׁמֵמוֹת׃ 11.22. וּזְרֹעוֹת הַשֶּׁטֶף יִשָּׁטְפוּ מִלְּפָנָיו וְיִשָּׁבֵרוּ וְגַם נְגִיד בְּרִית׃ | 9.26. And after the threescore and two weeks shall an anointed one be cut off, and be no more; and the people of a prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; but his end shall be with a flood; and unto the end of the war desolations are determined." 11.22. And the arms of the flood shall be swept away from before him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covet." 11.30. For ships of Kittim shall come against him, and he shall be cowed, and he shall return, and have indignation against the holy covet, and shall do his pleasure; and he shall return, and have regard unto them that forsake the holy covet." |
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14. Septuagint, 1 Maccabees, 2.29-2.38, 6.60-6.62, 7.1, 7.5-7.6, 7.9, 10.89 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 2.29. Then many who were seeking righteousness and justice went down to the wilderness to dwell there 2.30. they, their sons, their wives, and their cattle, because evils pressed heavily upon them. 2.31. And it was reported to the kings officers, and to the troops in Jerusalem the city of David, that men who had rejected the kings command had gone down to the hiding places in the wilderness. 2.32. Many pursued them, and overtook them; they encamped opposite them and prepared for battle against them on the sabbath day. 2.33. And they said to them, "Enough of this! Come out and do what the king commands, and you will live. 2.34. But they said, "We will not come out, nor will we do what the king commands and so profane the sabbath day. 2.35. Then the enemy hastened to attack them. 2.36. But they did not answer them or hurl a stone at them or block up their hiding places 2.37. for they said, "Let us all die in our innocence; heaven and earth testify for us that you are killing us unjustly. 2.38. So they attacked them on the sabbath, and they died, with their wives and children and cattle, to the number of a thousand persons. 6.60. The speech pleased the king and the commanders, and he sent to the Jews an offer of peace, and they accepted it. 6.61. So the king and the commanders gave them their oath. On these conditions the Jews evacuated the stronghold. 6.62. But when the king entered Mount Zion and saw what a strong fortress the place was, he broke the oath he had sworn and gave orders to tear down the wall all around. 7.1. In the one hundred and fifty-first year Demetrius the son of Seleucus set forth from Rome, sailed with a few men to a city by the sea, and there began to reign. 7.5. Then there came to him all the lawless and ungodly men of Israel; they were led by Alcimus, who wanted to be high priest. 7.6. And they brought to the king this accusation against the people: "Judas and his brothers have destroyed all your friends, and have driven us out of our land. 7.9. And he sent him, and with him the ungodly Alcimus, whom he made high priest; and he commanded him to take vengeance on the sons of Israel. 10.89. and he sent to him a golden buckle, such as it is the custom to give to the kinsmen of kings. He also gave him Ekron and all its environs as his possession. |
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15. Septuagint, 2 Maccabees, 1.4, 1.11, 1.12, 1.13, 1.14, 1.15, 1.16, 1.17, 1.21, 2.2, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.17, 2.18, 2.19, 2.20, 2.21, 2.22, 2.23, 3, 3.15, 3.17, 3.20, 3.24, 3.25, 3.26, 3.27, 3.28, 3.29, 3.30, 3.31, 3.32, 3.33, 3.34, 3.35, 3.36, 3.37, 3.38, 3.39, 3.40, 4.7, 4.13, 4.16, 4.17, 4.26, 4.35, 4.36, 4.37, 4.38, 4.49, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 5.10, 5.11, 5.16, 5.17, 5.18, 5.19, 5.20, 5.21, 5.22, 5.23, 5.26, 6.2, 6.11, 6.12, 6.13, 6.14, 6.15, 6.16, 6.17, 6.18-7.42, 6.27, 6.28, 6.30, 7.2, 7.4, 7.5, 7.9, 7.10, 7.14, 7.18, 7.33, 7.41, 8.2, 8.5, 8.11, 8.18, 8.19, 8.20, 8.21, 8.25, 8.36, 9, 9.1, 9.4, 9.5, 9.6, 9.7, 9.8, 9.9, 9.10, 9.11, 9.12, 9.18, 9.20, 9.28, 9.29, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4, 10.5, 10.6, 10.7, 10.8, 10.17, 10.29, 10.30, 10.35, 10.38, 11, 11.4, 11.8, 11.9, 11.10, 11.11, 11.13, 11.23, 11.24, 11.25, 12, 12.2, 12.11, 12.15, 12.16, 12.20, 12.22, 12.28, 12.40, 12.41, 12.45, 13, 13.1, 13.2, 13.3, 13.5, 13.6, 13.7, 13.8, 13.13, 13.14, 13.15, 13.16, 13.17, 13.21, 13.23, 13.24, 13.25, 13.26, 14.1, 14.3, 14.5, 14.21, 14.25, 14.34, 14.38, 15.1, 15.3, 15.4, 15.5, 15.8, 15.9, 15.12, 15.13, 15.14, 15.15, 15.16, 15.21, 15.22, 15.23, 15.24, 15.25, 15.26, 15.27, 15.28, 15.29, 15.30, 15.31, 15.32, 15.33, 15.34, 15.35, 15.37 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 1.11. Having been saved by God out of grave dangers we thank him greatly for taking our side against the king. |
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16. Septuagint, Wisdom of Solomon, 14.16 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE)
| 14.16. Then the ungodly custom, grown strong with time, was kept as a law,and at the command of monarchs graven images were worshiped. |
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17. Septuagint, 3 Maccabees, 2.2, 2.9, 5.42, 6.22-6.26, 7.3-7.5, 7.10-7.15 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 2.2. Lord, Lord, king of the heavens, and sovereign of all creation, holy among the holy ones, the only ruler, almighty, give attention to us who are suffering grievously from an impious and profane man, puffed up in his audacity and power. 2.2. Speedily let your mercies overtake us, and put praises in the mouth of those who are downcast and broken in spirit, and give us peace. 2.9. You, O King, when you had created the boundless and immeasurable earth, chose this city and sanctified this place for your name, though you have no need of anything; and when you had glorified it by your magnificent manifestation, you made it a firm foundation for the glory of your great and honored name. 5.42. Upon this the king, a Phalaris in everything and filled with madness, took no account of the changes of mind which had come about within him for the protection of the Jews, and he firmly swore an irrevocable oath that he would send them to death without delay, mangled by the knees and feet of the beasts 6.22. Then the king's anger was turned to pity and tears because of the things that he had devised beforehand. 6.23. For when he heard the shouting and saw them all fallen headlong to destruction, he wept and angrily threatened his friends, saying 6.24. You are committing treason and surpassing tyrants in cruelty; and even me, your benefactor, you are now attempting to deprive of dominion and life by secretly devising acts of no advantage to the kingdom. 6.25. Who is it that has taken each man from his home and senselessly gathered here those who faithfully have held the fortresses of our country? 6.26. Who is it that has so lawlessly encompassed with outrageous treatment those who from the beginning differed from all nations in their goodwill toward us and often have accepted willingly the worst of human dangers? 7.3. Certain of our friends, frequently urging us with malicious intent, persuaded us to gather together the Jews of the kingdom in a body and to punish them with barbarous penalties as traitors; 7.4. for they declared that our government would never be firmly established until this was accomplished, because of the ill-will which these people had toward all nations. 7.5. They also led them out with harsh treatment as slaves, or rather as traitors, and, girding themselves with a cruelty more savage than that of Scythian custom, they tried without any inquiry or examination to put them to death. 7.11. For they declared that those who for the belly's sake had transgressed the divine commandments would never be favorably disposed toward the king's government. 7.12. The king then, admitting and approving the truth of what they said, granted them a general license so that freely and without royal authority or supervision they might destroy those everywhere in his kingdom who had transgressed the law of God. 7.13. When they had applauded him in fitting manner, their priests and the whole multitude shouted the Hallelujah and joyfully departed. 7.14. And so on their way they punished and put to a public and shameful death any whom they met of their fellow-countrymen who had become defiled. 7.15. In that day they put to death more than three hundred men; and they kept the day as a joyful festival, since they had destroyed the profaners. |
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18. Anon., Sibylline Oracles, 3.499, 3.560, 3.717, 3.808 (1st cent. BCE - 5th cent. CE)
| 3.499. Planted beside them forthwith bear the rule. 3.560. 560 But afterwards a spoil shalt thou become 3.717. And from the servile yoke escape again. 3.808. And they shall all be without burial |
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19. Diodorus Siculus, Historical Library, 30.7.2 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE)
| 30.7.2. Andronicus, who assassinated the son of Seleucus and who was in turn put to death, willingly lent himself to an impious and terrible crimes, only to share the same fate as his victim. |
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20. Philo of Alexandria, On The Life of Abraham, 198 (1st cent. BCE - missingth cent. CE)
| 198. But this man, like a priest of sacrifice himself, did himself begin to perform the sacred rite, although he was a most affectionate father of a son who was in all respects most excellent. And, perhaps, according to the usual law and custom of burnt offerings he was intending to solemnise the rite by dividing his son limb by limb. And so he did not divide his feelings and allot one part of his regard to his son and another part to piety to God: but he devoted the whole soul, entire and undivided, to holiness; thinking but little of the kindred blood which flowed in the victim. |
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21. Anon., 2 Baruch, 6.7-6.9, 80.2 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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22. Josephus Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 5.20, 12.237-12.240, 12.257-12.264, 12.274, 12.382, 12.384-12.389, 14.24, 19.290, 20.235 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 12.237. 1. About this time, upon the death of Onias the high priest, they gave the high priesthood to Jesus his brother; for that son which Onias left [or Onias IV.] was yet but an infant; and, in its proper place, we will inform the reader of all the circumstances that befell this child. 12.238. But this Jesus, who was the brother of Onias, was deprived of the high priesthood by the king, who was angry with him, and gave it to his younger brother, whose name also was Onias; for Simon had these three sons, to each of which the priesthood came, as we have already informed the reader. 12.239. This Jesus changed his name to Jason, but Onias was called Menelaus. Now as the former high priest, Jesus, raised a sedition against Menelaus, who was ordained after him, the multitude were divided between them both. And the sons of Tobias took the part of Menelaus 12.257. 5. When the Samaritans saw the Jews under these sufferings, they no longer confessed that they were of their kindred, nor that the temple on Mount Gerizzim belonged to Almighty God. This was according to their nature, as we have already shown. And they now said that they were a colony of Medes and Persians; and indeed they were a colony of theirs. 12.258. So they sent ambassadors to Antiochus, and an epistle, whose contents are these: “To king Antiochus the god, Epiphanes, a memorial from the Sidonians, who live at Shechem. 12.259. Our forefathers, upon certain frequent plagues, and as following a certain ancient superstition, had a custom of observing that day which by the Jews is called the Sabbath. And when they had erected a temple at the mountain called Gerrizzim, though without a name, they offered upon it the proper sacrifices. 12.261. We therefore beseech thee, our benefactor and Savior, to give order to Apollonius, the governor of this part of the country, and to Nicanor, the procurator of thy affairs, to give us no disturbance, nor to lay to our charge what the Jews are accused for, since we are aliens from their nation, and from their customs; but let our temple, which at present hath no name at all be named the Temple of Jupiter Hellenius. If this were once done, we should be no longer disturbed, but should be more intent on our own occupation with quietness, and so bring in a greater revenue to thee.” 12.262. When the Samaritans had petitioned for this, the king sent them back the following answer, in an epistle: “King Antiochus to Nicanor. The Sidonians, who live at Shechem, have sent me the memorial enclosed. 12.263. When therefore we were advising with our friends about it, the messengers sent by them represented to us that they are no way concerned with accusations which belong to the Jews, but choose to live after the customs of the Greeks. Accordingly, we declare them free from such accusations, and order that, agreeable to their petition, their temple be named the Temple of Jupiter Hellenius.” 12.264. He also sent the like epistle to Apollonius, the governor of that part of the country, in the forty-sixth year, and the eighteenth day of the month Hecatorabeom. 12.274. But when they would not comply with their persuasions, but continued to be of a different mind, they fought against them on the Sabbath day, and they burnt them as they were in the caves, without resistance, and without so much as stopping up the entrances of the caves. And they avoided to defend themselves on that day, because they were not willing to break in upon the honor they owed the Sabbath, even in such distresses; for our law requires that we rest upon that day. 12.382. 7. Accordingly the king sent to Judas, and to those that were besieged with them, and promised to give them peace, and to permit them to make use of, and live according to, the laws of their fathers; and they gladly received his proposals; and when they had gained security upon oath for their performance, they went out of the temple. 12.384. for Lysias advised the king to slay Menelaus, if he would have the Jews be quiet, and cause him no further disturbance, for that this man was the origin of all the mischief the Jews had done them, by persuading his father to compel the Jews to leave the religion of their fathers. 12.385. So the king sent Menelaus to Berea, a city of Syria, and there had him put to death, when he had been high priest ten years. He had been a wicked and an impious man; and, in order to get the government to himself, had compelled his nation to transgress their own laws. After the death of Menelaus, Alcimus, who was also called Jacimus, was made high priest. 12.386. But when king Antiochus found that Philip had already possessed himself of the government, he made war against him, and subdued him, and took him, and slew him. 12.387. Now as to Onias, the son of the high priest, who, as we before informed you, was left a child when his father died, when he saw that the king had slain his uncle Menelaus, and given the high priesthood to Alcimus, who was not of the high priest stock, but was induced by Lysias to translate that dignity from his family to another house, he fled to Ptolemy, king of Egypt; 12.388. and when he found he was in great esteem with him, and with his wife Cleopatra, he desired and obtained a place in the Nomus of Heliopolis, wherein he built a temple like to that at Jerusalem; of which therefore we shall hereafter give an account, in a place more proper for it. 12.389. 1. About the same time Demetrius, the son of Seleucus, fled away from Rome, and took Tripoli, a city of Syria, and set the diadem on his own head. He also gathered certain mercenary soldiers together, and entered into his kingdom, and was joyfully received by all, who delivered themselves up to him. 14.24. In the presence of these it was that Lentulus pronounced this decree: I have before the tribunal dismissed those Jews that are Roman citizens, and are accustomed to observe the sacred rites of the Jews at Ephesus, on account of the superstition they are under.” 14.24. “O God, the King of the whole world! since those that stand now with me are thy people, and those that are besieged are also thy priests, I beseech thee, that thou wilt neither hearken to the prayers of those against these, nor bring to effect what these pray against those.” Whereupon such wicked Jews as stood about him, as soon as he had made this prayer, stoned him to death. 20.235. and then the forementioned Antiochus, and Lysias the general of his army, deprived Onias, who was also called Menelaus, of the high priesthood, and slew him at Berea; and driving away the son [of Onias the third], put Jacimus into the place of the high priest, one that was indeed of the stock of Aaron, but not of the family of Onias. |
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23. Josephus Flavius, Jewish War, 1.31-1.33, 1.41 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.31. Now these caves were in the precipices of craggy mountains, and could not be come at from any side, since they had only some winding pathways, very narrow, by which they got up to them; but the rock that lay on their front had beneath it valleys of a vast depth, and of an almost perpendicular declivity; insomuch that the king was doubtful for a long time what to do, by reason of a kind of impossibility there was of attacking the place. Yet did he at length make use of a contrivance that was subject to the utmost hazard; 1.31. 1. At the same time that Antiochus, who was called Epiphanes, had a quarrel with the sixth Ptolemy about his right to the whole country of Syria, a great sedition fell among the men of power in Judea, and they had a contention about obtaining the government; while each of those that were of dignity could not endure to be subject to their equals. However, Onias, one of the high priests, got the better, and cast the sons of Tobias out of the city; 1.32. 7. Hereupon Herod was very angry at him, and was going to fight against Macheras as his enemy; but he restrained his indignation, and marched to Antony to accuse Macheras of mal-administration. But Macheras was made sensible of his offenses, and followed after the king immediately, and earnestly begged and obtained that he would be reconciled to him. 1.32. who fled to Antiochus, and besought him to make use of them for his leaders, and to make an expedition into Judea. The king being thereto disposed beforehand, complied with them, and came upon the Jews with a great army, and took their city by force, and slew a great multitude of those that favored Ptolemy, and sent out his soldiers to plunder them without mercy. He also spoiled the temple, and put a stop to the constant practice of offering a daily sacrifice of expiation for three years and six months. 1.33. But Onias, the high priest, fled to Ptolemy, and received a place from him in the Nomus of Heliopolis, where he built a city resembling Jerusalem, and a temple that was like its temple, concerning which we shall speak more in its proper place hereafter. 1.33. He also made an immediate and continual attack upon the fortress. Yet was he forced, by a most terrible storm, to pitch his camp in the neighboring villages before he could take it. But when, after a few days’ time, the second legion, that came from Antony, joined themselves to him, the enemy were affrighted at his power, and left their fortifications in the nighttime. 1.41. 5. So this Antiochus got together fifty thousand footmen, and five thousand horsemen, and fourscore elephants, and marched through Judea into the mountainous parts. He then took Bethsura, which was a small city; but at a place called Bethzacharias, where the passage was narrow, Judas met him with his army. 1.41. But the king, by the expenses he was at, and the liberal disposal of them, overcame nature, and built a haven larger than was the Pyrecum [at Athens]; and in the inner retirements of the water he built other deep stations [for the ships also]. |
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24. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.269 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.269. and this was the happy administration of the affairs of the Athenians? Now, as to the Scythians, they take a pleasure in killing men, and differ little from brute beasts; yet do they think it reasonable to have their institutions observed. They also slew Anacharsis a person greatly admired for his wisdom among the Greeks, when he returned to them, because he appeared to come fraught with Grecian customs; One may also find many to have been punished among the Persians, on the very same account. |
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25. New Testament, Acts, 6.14 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 6.14. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us. |
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26. New Testament, Hebrews, 10.25 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 10.25. not forsaking our own assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as you see the Day approaching. |
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27. New Testament, John, 4.21-4.24 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 4.21. Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father. 4.22. You worship that which you don't know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews. 4.23. But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshippers. 4.24. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. |
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28. New Testament, Luke, 1.9, 2.42, 22.39 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.9. according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 2.42. When he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast 22.39. He came out, and went, as his custom was, to the Mount of Olives. His disciples also followed him. |
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29. Anon., Marytrdom of Polycarp, 9.3 (2nd cent. CE - missingth cent. CE)
| 9.3. 3 But when the Pro-Consul pressed him and said: "Take the oath and I let you go, revile Christ," Polycarp said: "For eighty and six years have I been his servant, and he has done me no wrong, and how can I blaspheme my King who saved me? |
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30. Anon., Letter of Aristeas, 23
| 23. this money as a gift added to their wages, the others from the king's treasury. We think that it was against our father's will and against all propriety that they should have been made captives and that the devastation of their land and the transportation of the Jews to Egypt was an act of military wantonness. The spoil which fell to the soldiers on the field of battle was all the booty which they should have claimed. To reduce the people to slavery in addition was an act of absolute injustice. |
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31. Strabo, Geography, 7.3.6
| 7.3.6. Now although such difficulties as these might fairly be raised concerning what is found in the text of Homer about the Mysians and the proud Hippemolgi, yet what Apollodorus states in the preface to the Second Book of his work On Ships can by no means be asserted; for he approves the declaration of Eratosthenes, that although both Homer and the other early authors knew the Greek places, they were decidedly unacquainted with those that were far away, since they had no experience either in making long journeys by land or in making voyages by sea. And in support of this Apollodorus says that Homer calls Aulis rocky (and so it is), and Eteonus place of many ridges, and Thisbe haunt of doves, and Haliartus grassy, but, he says, neither Homer nor the others knew the places that were far away. At any rate, he says, although about forty rivers now into the Pontus, Homer mentions not a single one of those that are the most famous, as, for example, the Ister, the Tanais, the Borysthenes, the Hypanis, the Phasis, the Thermodon, the Halys; and, besides, he does not mention the Scythians, but invents certain proud Hippemolgi and Galactophagi and Abii; and as for the Paphlagonians of the interior, he reports what he has learned from those who have approached the regions afoot, but he is ignorant of the seaboard, and naturally so, for at that time this sea was not navigable, and was called Axine because of its wintry storms and the ferocity of the tribes that lived around it, and particularly the Scythians, in that they sacrificed strangers, ate their flesh, and used their skulls as drinking-cups; but later it was called Euxine, when the Ionians founded cities on the seaboard. And, likewise, Homer is also ignorant of the facts about Egypt and Libya, as, for example, about the risings of the Nile and the silting up of the sea, things which he nowhere mentions; neither does he mention the isthmus between the Erythraean Sea and the Egyptian Seas, nor the regions of Arabia and Ethiopia and the ocean, unless one should give heed to Zeno the philosopher when he writes, And I came to the Ethiopians and Sidonians and Arabians. 9 But this ignorance in Homer's case is not amazing, for those who have lived later than he have been ignorant of many things and have invented marvellous tales: Hesiod, when he speaks of men who are half-dog, of long-headed men, and of Pygmies; and Alcman, when he speaks of web footed men; and Aeschylus, when he speaks of dog-headed men, of men with eyes in their breasts, and of one-eyed men (in his Prometheus it is said); and a host of other tales. From these men he proceeds against the historians who speak of the Rhipaean Mountains, and of Mt. Ogyium, and of the settlement of the Gorgons and Hesperides, and of the Land of Meropis in Theopompus, and the City of Cimmeris in Hecataeus, and the Land of Panchaea in Euhemerus, and in Aristotle the river-stones, which are formed of sand but are melted by the rains. And in Libya, Apollodorus continues, there is a City of Dionysus which it is impossible for the same man ever to find twice. He censures also those who speak of the Homeric wanderings of Odysseus as having been in the neighborhood of Sicily; for in that case, says he, one should go on and say that, although the wanderings took place there, the poet, for the sake of mythology, placed them out in Oceanus. And, he adds, the writers in general can be pardoned, but Callimachus cannot be pardoned at all, because he makes a pretence of being a scholar; for he calls Gaudos the Isle of Calypso and Corcyra Scheria. And others he charges with falsifying about Gerena, and Aeacesium, and Demus in Ithaca, and about Pelethronium in Pelion, and about Glaucopium in Athens. To these criticisms Apollodorus adds some petty ones of like sort and then stops, but he borrowed most of them from Eratosthenes, and as I have remarked before they are wrong. For while one must concede to Eratosthenes and Apollodorus that the later writers have shown themselves better acquainted with such matters than the men of early times, yet to proceed beyond all moderation as they do, and particularly in the case of Homer, is a thing for which, as it seems to me, one might justly rebuke them and make the reverse statement: that where they are ignorant themselves, there they reproach the poet with ignorance. However, what remains to be said on this subject meets with appropriate mention in my detailed descriptions of the several countries, as also in my general description. |
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