The Triumph of Falsehood and the Resilience of the Three Youths
theater
The statue is made well-proportioned and symmetrical, so that either by its size or by the beauty of its composition it might overcome truth, having been forced, by means of falsehood. The art indeed shone, the gold gleamed, the herald shouted, the tyrant threatened, and the furnace was blazing; and along with all these things, the sounds of the musical instruments most terribly drove the foolish into impiety, and the fantasy of what is seen entirely stole the attention of all who were watching.
Yet the provocation of impiety was even more dominant than that of the saints. For all, as it were to say, like being swept by a violent torrent of deception into the cliff of idolatry, these three fine youths, having placed themselves faithfully upon the rock of piety, were not swept away. They were swept away by the stream of injustice. For it is right to say to them: 'If the Lord had not been with us (Psalm 124:1), then the living would have overwhelmed us. If their anger had been kindled against us (Psalm 124:3), then the water would have submerged us.' Our soul passed through a torrent; thus our soul passed through the unsubstantial water. But they were neither submerged by the stream, nor were they caught by the snares, but escaping well into piety, and having used the high wing of faith, they were saved, according to the Proverb-maker: 'Like a dove from the snares, and like an eagle from the trap' (Proverbs 1:17). And only when seeing the devil's nets spread against all humanity did the pious voice grow louder, according to the Hymnographer, saying: 'The sinners shall fall into a pit' (Psalm 70:1). And these three captives did not look away from their own brevity, even while being pursued by so many, but they knew precisely that even the smallest spark of piety is sufficient to consume and vanish all impiety. Because of this, even though they were three, they strengthened one another and bound themselves together. For they knew that the narrow and pressed way is...
Greek
De tribus pueris (olim sub auctore Joanne Chrysostomo) Εἰς τοὺς τρεῖς παῖδας, καὶ εἰς τὴν Βαβυλωνίαν κάμινον, Λόγος. αʹ. Καινὸν, ὡς ἀληθῶς, καὶ μέγιστον εὐσεβείας θέατρον ἡ τῶν τριῶν παίδων συνεστήσατο χορεία, ἐν Βαβυλῶνι μὲν τὸν ἀγῶνα τὸν καλὸν ἠγωνισμένη, κατὰ πᾶσαν δὲ τὴν οἰκουμένην συγκροτοῦσα τὸ θαῦμα τοῦ μαρτυρίου. Οὐ γὰρ περιγράφεται τόπῳ ἡ τῶν ἁγίων δόξα, οὐδὲ περιορίζεται χρόνοις ἡ τῶν δικαίων μνήμη· Εἰς μνημόσυνον γὰρ αἰώνιον ἔσται δίκαιος. Ὅθεν εἰ καὶ ἐν τοῖς παλαιοτάτοις χρόνοις ἐτελειώθη τὸ μαρτύριον, ἀλλ' εἰς πάντα τὸν αἰῶνα τῆς ὑπομονῆς ᾄδεται τὸ στρατήγημα. Οἴδαμεν διὰ τῶν ἀναγνωσμάτων τὰ πράγματα, οἴδαμεν διὰ τῆς μνήμης τὴν ἱστορίαν, οἴδαμεν ὡς ἐν εἰκόνι τῷ λόγῳ καὶ τοῦ τυράννου τὴν παρανομίαν, καὶ τῶν ἁγίων 56.594 τὴν ὁμολογίαν, καὶ φλεγομένην μὲν τῷ πυρὶ τὴν κάμινον, ἀντιλάμπουσαν δὲ τῷ θυμῷ τοῦ τυράννου, καὶ τῇ ἀπειλῇ τοῦ πυρὸς ἄσβεστον τὴν τῶν μαρτύρων ὁμολογίαν ἐπιδεικνυμένην· μᾶλλον δὲ τί τὸ κωλύον ἄνωθεν ἀναλαβόντας τῶν θεοφιλῶν ὡς ἀληθῶς καὶ τρισμακαρίων τοὺς ἀγῶνας εἰπεῖν; Ναβουχοδονόσορ ὁ βασιλεὺς, μᾶλλον δὲ ὁ τύραννος (τοῦτο γὰρ οἰκεῖον ὄνομα τῷ παρανόμῳ), ἐκράτει μὲν τῆς Βαβυλωνίας· ἦν δὲ καὶ τῇ ψυχῇ βάρβαρος, καὶ τὸν τρόπον ἀνήμερος. Οὗτος ἀδικίᾳ πολλῇ καὶ πλούτῳ καὶ ἀσεβείᾳ μεθύων ἠγνόησε μὲν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ φύσιν, καὶ οὐδὲ ἄνθρωπον ἑαυτὸν ὑπονοήσας, ὡς Θεὸς προσκυνεῖσθαι προσεδόκησεν. Ἔθρεψαν δὲ αὐτῷ τὴν ὑπέρογκον ἀλαζονείαν ἥ τε σύντροφος αὐτοῦ μανία, 56.595 καὶ ἡ τοῦ Θεοῦ μακροθυμία, φέρουσα μὲν ἀνεξικάκως τοὺς ἀσεβοῦντας, συγχωροῦσα δὲ πάντα γενέσθαι πρὸς γυμνασίαν τῶν εὐσεβούντων. Ἐποίησε δὲ ὁ παράνομος εἰκόνα χρυσῆν, τουτέστιν ἀνδριάντα χρυσοῦν, καὶ τοὺς κατ' εἰκόνα Θεοῦ γενομένους προσκυνεῖν ἠνάγκαζεν ἣν ἐποίησεν εἰκόνα. Πολλῇ δὲ τῇ φιλοτιμίᾳ χρησάμενος, ὕψος μὲν αὐτῇ δίδωσι πηχῶν ἑξήκοντα, εὖρος δὲ πηχῶν ἕξ· εὐάρμοστον δὲ καὶ εὔρυθμον τὸ ἄγαλμα κατασκευάζει, ἵνα ἢ τῷ μεγέθει, ἢ τῷ κάλλει τῆς συνθέσεως ἐκνικήσῃ τὸ ψεῦδος, βιασάμενον τὴν ἀλήθειαν. Ἔστιλβε μὲν οὖν ἡ τέχνη, ἔλαμπεν ὁ χρυσὸς, ὁ κήρυξ ἐβόα, ὁ τύραννος ἠπείλει, ἡ κάμινος ἐφλέγετο, καὶ πρὸς τούτοις πᾶσι τὰ λεγόμενα τῆς μουσικῆς ὄργανα τοὺς ἄφρονας δεινῶς εἰς ἀθεΐαν ἐξεβάκχευε, καὶ ὅλως πάντων ἔκλεπτε τῶν ὁρώντων τὴν ἔννοιαν ἡ φαντασία τῶν ὁρωμένων. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔμελλε καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἐπικρατέστερον εἶναι τὸ τῆς ἀσεβείας πρόσταγμα· πάντων δὲ, ὡς εἰπεῖν, ὥσπερ ὑπό τινος χειμάῤῥου τοῦ σφοδροῦ τῆς ἀπάτης ῥεύματος εἰς τὸν τῆς εἰδωλολατρείας κρημνὸν κατασυρομένων, οἱ τρεῖς οὗτοι καὶ καλοὶ νεανίαι ὥσπερ ἐπί τινα πέτραν τὴν εὐσέβειαν πιστῶς ἑαυτοὺς ἐπερείσαντες, οὐχ ὑπεσύρησαν ἴσ. ὑπεσυρήσαντο τῷ ῥεύματι τῆς ἀδικίας. Ἔπρεπε γὰρ λέγειν αὐτοῖς· Εἰ μὴ ὅτι Κύριος ἦν ἐν ἡμῖν, ἄρα ζῶντας ἂν κατέπιον ἡμᾶς. Ἐν τῷ ὀργισθῆναι τὸν θυμὸν αὐτῶν ἐφ' ἡμᾶς, ἄρα τὸ ὕδωρ ἂν κατεπόντισεν ἡμᾶς. Χείμαῤῥον διῆλθεν ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν· ἄρα διῆλθεν ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν τὸ ὕδωρ τὸ ἀνυπόστατον. Ἀλλ' οὔτε τῷ ῥεύματι κατεποντίσθησαν, οὔτε τοῖς βρόχοις ἑάλωσαν, ἀλλὰ καλῶς δραμόντες εἰς εὐσέβειαν, καὶ ὑψηλῷ τῷ πτερῷ τῆς πίστεως κεχρημένοι διεσώζοντο, κατὰ τὸν παροιμιαστὴν, Ὥσπερ δορκὰς ἐκ βρόχων, καὶ ὥσπερ ὄρνεον ἐκ παγίδος. Καὶ μονονουχὶ τὰ τοῦ διαβόλου δίκτυα κατὰ πάσης ἡπλωμένα τῆς ἀνθρωπότητος ὁρῶντες, τὴν εὐσεβῆ φωνὴν ἐδευτέρουν κατὰ τοῦ ὑμνογράφου λέγοντες· Πεσοῦνται ἐν ἀμφιβλήστρῳ αὐτῶν οἱ ἁμαρτωλοί. Καὶ οὐκ ἀπέβλεψαν εἰς τὴν ἑαυτῶν βραχύτητα οἱ τρεῖς αἰχμάλωτοι, καὶ ὑπὸ τοσούτων ἐλαυνόμενοι, ἀλλ' ᾔδεισαν ἀκριβῶς, ὅτι καὶ ὁ βραχύτατος τῆς εὐσεβείας σπινθὴρ ἱκανός ἐστιν ἅπασαν τὴν ἀσέβειαν καταφλέξαι καὶ ἀφανίσαι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καίτοι τρεῖς ὄντες, ἀλλήλοις ἐστερεοῦντο καὶ συνεσφίγγοντο. Ἤδεισαν γὰρ, ὅτι Στενὴ καὶ τεθλιμμένη ἡ ὁδὸς ἡ
About this text
The three young men in the furnace: defying a king, unharmed by fire, singing in the flames.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 65 (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.