Roger Pearse

THE SECOND PART OF THE HISTORY OF MAHBOUB, SON OF CONSTANTINE, OF MENBIDJ, BISHOP OF THE TOWN OF MENBIDJ.

Copied for himself by Sa`id, son of Abu-l-Bedr John, son of Abd-al-Mesih -- may God have mercy on him, his parents, his ancestors and all the Christians.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God....

Julius Caesar reigned for 4 years and 4 months; and Augustus Caesar reigned for 56 years and 6 months. In year 8 of his reign, the kingship of the Jews was destroyed, which had belonged to them, and became dependent on the Romans. And their priesthood was abolished. Herod, son of Antipater, who as we have recorded was of the race of the gentiles, governed them for 34 years. He imposed a poll-tax, and had Hyrcanus the high priest and Jonathan his son killed. All the high priests of the Jews, before Herod governed them, were called "messias" (anointed): but starting from the moment when Herod ruled over them, their prophecy and their kingship ceased at the same time. Thus the word of Jacob, chief of the Patriarchs, was fulfilled. He said, "The kings and the prophecy will not depart from Judah until he comes to whom everything belongs; and it is he for whom the prophets wait" [Gen. 9:10] And similarly that which Daniel said, when the archangel Gabriel appeared to him, on the subject of the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks, whose number is 483 years [Dan. 9:24-27], and which were completed at that time, was fulfilled. The first year of this was the 6th of Darius, son of Hystaspes, when the Temple of the Lord was destroyed.

A short time later ... when Herod had received sovereignty over the Jews from the Romans, the Jews revolted against him and did not want him to govern them. He completely destroyed the two walls of Jerusalem and put to death a great number of its inhabitants. He seized the sacerdotal regalia and would not allow anyone to be high priest for more than 1 year. The same measure was taken by those who governed the Jews after him. Then he brought Hananiel from Babylon and made him high priest over them for a year. At the end of the year he instituted Aristobulus, son of Hyrcanus, brother of his wife, for a year. Then he had Aristobulus son of Hyrcanus killed and restored Hananiel over them.

In the 14th year of Augustus Caesar and in the 4th year of Herod, Augustus marched against Antony, his lieutenant, who had revolted and was resisting, refusing obeisance and rising up against Caesar because he was enamoured of Cleopatra, queen of Egypt. Augustus fought against the people of Egypt, seized the two sons of Cleopatra, called Sun and Moon, and killed them. He also seized Cleopatra and Antony, who killed themselves in the night. From that day the kingship of Egypt ceased to exist and it fell under the domination of the Romans.

In the 18th year of his reign, Augustus sent Tiberius his general into Armenia, who made it submit and seized it.
It was in those days that the Romans introduced the bisextile month, which happened every four years; i.e. idus πρὸ ἔξ ???? Μαρτιῶν. Among the Greeks, they called it Βισεξτον.The 28th year of Augustus, Herod built a town and called it Caesarea, after Caesar's name.

At this period the philosopher Sextus, the Pythagorean philosophers, and Judas the Galilean were distinguished.

In the 32nd year of Herod and the 309th year of Alexander, our Lord the Messiah, may He be glorified, was born, on Wednesday the 28th of Kanoun I; according to the calculation of the Greeks, this day was the 12th day of the moon. From Adam to this date is 5,506 years.
Before that year the Romans had sent the judge (the legate) Cyrinus to carry out a census of the population liable to taxation. Each went to enroll in his town, and that is why Joseph, husband of Mary, went up to register ... then. After the birth of our Lord the Messiah, may He be glorified, the Magi came from the East with their gifts, which they offered to our Lord the Messiah, may He be glorified, --- gold, myrrh and incense. The Greek philosopher Longinus records this event in the third part of his book, which deals with the wars of the Romans against Antioch, a town of Syria --- i.e. as-Scham --- when he said to Caesar, "The Persians of the East have come into your empire and have offered some gifts to a child born in Palestine; as to who he is, and whose son, we have not yet learned."

He wrote on this subject to Augustus, and sent him a letter. And Augustus wrote to Longinus in response to his letter, "I have read your letter and the information you gave about the child born in Palestine among the Jews, and on the Magi who came from the East and offered him gifts, and you do not know who he is, his status and his history ... ."

And Augustus wrote the following letter to Herod, his governor in Judaea. "From the king of kings, Augustus, to Herod, son of Antipater, governor of Judaea, greeting. Longinus the philosopher has let me know that in your land a child is born, to whom the Persians have carried gifts and presents. Let me know accurately about him, and about the Magi who came to him; --- why did they come, who sent them, and what gifts did they offer. Don't hold back any details on this subject, so that I am informed about it, if the great god wills."

Herod had an interview with the Magi, and said to them, "What is it that you are doing?"

The Magi said to him, "The giant Nimrod composed books for us, in which he prophesied in these terms. 'A child will be born in Palestine in some centuries time; he will be great, and all the universe will submit to him; and as a sign of this, you will find, as you know, a star of such and such an aspect. Look for it, and when you have seen it, take myrrh, gold and incense, go, and find the child, offer all this to him, worship him and return. If you do not do this, a great misfortune will befall you.' And we have not forgotten this prophecy, we and our forebears, until this star appeared to us. When we found there the signs that our great chief had indicated to us, to obeyed, we brought presents, and we have come to see and worship him."

And Herod said to them, "Your way of looking is right. Leave, and find out exactly about the child, and when you have found him, let me know so that I also may worship him."

The Magi left and followed the star, which went before them, and led them to a cave where the child was found. Arriving with them at that place, it stopped and did not move. When the Magi saw this, they went into the cave, found the child and his mother, expressed great joy, and opened their travelling bags, offering him gifts and worshipping him. Then they left by another road and did not return to Herod.

When Herod saw that the Magi hadn't taken any notice of him, he flew into a great rage and ordered all the children of Bethlehem aged two or less filled, because the Messiah was two years old at that time.

But by an inspiration from God, Joseph and Mary had taken the child and gone from Bethlehem.
Mary, his mother, was 30 years old and she lived to be 51. She lived, therefore, 6 years after the ascension of Our Lord the Christ. This was the 44th year of Augustus Caesar.

Herod wrote to Caesar, king of the Romans, in response to the letter he had received. "To Caesar, king of the Romans, from his servant Herod, greeting. The king of kings has told me to find out about the child concerning whose birth in Judaea he has been told, and the Magi who came to him with presents. I stopped the Magi and forced them to reveal their business and they told me that in ancient times Nimrod the giant, the great, had given and left them a testament where he said, 'At the end of some time, in the land of Judaea, a child will be born, who will reign over all the earth, and the sign of this will be when you see in the sky a star, which differs from ordinary stars;' and he indicated the indicators of this. He ordered them, when they see that star with those indicators, to take myrrh, gold and incense, to go to the child, to worship him and to offer him those presents. He also let them know that if they did not do this then they would fall into a great misfortune. And neither they nor their forebears ceased to keep looking at this, until today the star appeared to them, and they did what Nimrod ordered; they took gold, myrrh and incense and came to him to worship him. I have sent some emissaries with them to find out the place where the child is and to ensure the Magi return to me, so that I might send them along to the king of kings. But they gave money to my agents and escaped. So I have ordered that all the children at Bethlehem aged two years and under be killed, and with these I have made the child perish. So may the emperor be informed of this. Greeting."

Augustus (Caesar) read the letter of Herod and was content and ... of his thought.

Elizabeth, of whom we have already spoken, had become pregnant before this, and sh gave birth in the month of Haziran. The annunciation of Mary took place on the 25th of the month of Adar, 6 months after the conception of Elizabeth, and Mary gave birth on Wednesday (Tuesday) the 25th of Kanoun I. At the end of 8 days our Lord was brought to the place of circumcision. And 40 days after his birth he was presented at the Temple, and Simon the Elder carried our Lord the Christ in his arms. Two years after his birth, he was transported into Egypt, the same night that the Magi arrived, and he lived in Egypt. He was then aged 4. Then he returned to his town of Nazareth and remained there.

Then Herod died, after living in his town 70 years, of which he reigned for 34, in the year 44 of Caesar. Before his death he killed his wife and his children. His intestines were very swollen and his feet also. His intestines swarmed with worms, and his breathing was difficult. In terror of his illness, and tortured by grief, Herod, who held in his hands an apple, and a knife with which to cut it up and eat, wanted to kill himself with the knife, because of his pain and the affliction which tormented him. Then he lay down on his side. His belly burst, and he died. (Before that) he said to Salome, his sister, and her husband, "I know that the Jews will have a great feast when I die, and will greatly rejoice. So take those among them who are gathered here, and put them to death. That way the Jews when they get together will beat themselves with their hands and strike themselves with lamentations at my death, despite themselves." Herod had 9 wives and 30 children.

After the death of Herod, Archelaus succeeded him in the year 43 of Augustus Caesar and in the year 312 of Alexander. And Archelaus governed them for 9 years. Then Augustus gave his affairs over to Herod, brother of Archelaus, and named Philip governor of Filau Trakhuma [Trachontis], and ...

Then Augustus sent Athroudis into exile in Alania, in the interior of Armenia and gave him Herod as his successor, who reigned for 28 years.

Augustus lived for 75 years and died after reigning for 56 years and 6 months.

Tiberius Caesar reigned for 23 years and lived for 78 years.
In the first year of his reign there were great shakings of the earth and many towns were overthrown and a great number of men and animals perished.

In year 7 of his reign, Herod built a town and called it Tabariye (Tiberias), in honour of the emperor Tiberius. In year 14 the procurator (___) Pilate was sent to the Jews (in Judaea).

In year 15 (of Tiberius) our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, was baptised by John son of Zacharia. He returned ... our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, was 30; and his baptism took place on the 6th Kanoun II .... [3 lines lost here].

The first miracle was that of the water which he changed into wine at Cana. He healed the paralytics, opened the eyes of the blind, expelled spirits, ..., forgave sins and worked other (miracles) as the holy gospel records.

In the year 19 of Tiberius Caesar and in the year 342 of Alexander, our Lord the Christ was crucified...

On the same day that Adam was expelled from paradise, our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, died and was buried. Then he came back from among the dead and ascended into heaven. That year the passover took place on the 21st of Adar, on Thursday. And the pasch (passover) of the Christians, the people of our Lord Christ, may he be glorified, took place on Sunday 24th of Adar; the ascension on Thursday 3rd of Iyar; and Pentecost on Sunday 13th of Iyar.

From Adam to this time there were 5,539 years, according to H.r. l...s (?). But the writers are not in agreement on this subject, and each of them says that he is not exceeding the limits of his knowledge. The first among them, Eusebius, says that from Adam until the Passion of our Lord, may he be glorified, there are five . . . . [next 2 lines illegible] 5,350 years. As for the Hebrews, they only reckon 4,000 years; the Samaritans, 4,365. The philosophers record in their books that the day of the Passion of the Christ, may he be glorified, ... in the volume ... [3 lines illegible] kings, that, in the reign of Caesar the sun was darkened and it became night at the 9th hour and the stars appeared: a violent earthquake took place at Nicaea and in all the towns around it; and extraordinary things happened. The philosopher Ursinus says in the 5th chapter of his work on the wars and expeditions of the kings, "We were in a great affliction and a long anguish. The sun was darkened, the earth shook, we heard that extraordinary and terrifying things had happened in the land of the Hebrews, and we knew the cause by letters that the governor Pilate wrote from Palestine to Tiberius Caesar, where he says that at the death of a man that the Jews had crucified, all these things happened." On learning this, Caesar sent orders and removed Pilate from the governorship of Judaea, because he had capitulated to the Jews. And he threatened and intimidated the Jews, who had crucified Christ.

Josephus the Hebrew speaks of this thus in his works which he wrote on the wars of the Jews. "At that time there was a wise man named Jesus, whose life was perfect, his virtues well-known; and many of the Jews and Gentiles became his disciples. And Pilate condemned him to the death of the cross: and those who were his disciples preached his doctrine. They affirmed that he had appeared to them alive three days after his Passion. Perhaps he was the messiah, about whom the prophets had said marvellous things." That is the record of Josephus and of his coreligionists on the subject of our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified.

It is also said that the whole life of our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, and his preaching (or his pilgrimage) took place during the pontificate of Hannan and Caiaphas, because they were high priests in those years, i.e. from the pontificate of Hannan to the start of the pontificate of Caiaphas; as for the time which elapsed between them, this was not a period of four complete years. Because, when Herod was named governor, he had the genealogical books of the Hebrews burned, so that it would not be known that he was of a race held in low esteem among them; and he took the sacerdotal vestment, put it under seal, and only allowed each high priest to function for one year. Because of this there were 4 high priests from the pontificate of Hannan to that of Caiaphas. After Hannan was deposed, Ishmael, son of Yachya, succeeded him; a year later Eleazar, son of Hannan, succeeded him as high priest. When his year was over, Simeon son of Qamihoud succeeded him. His successor was Caiaphas, at which time and in whose pontificate our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, was crucified. There were less than four years between Hannan and Caiaphas, according to Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea.

In the year 17 of Tiberius Caesar, and in the year 341 of Alexander, one year before the crucifixion of our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, Abgar the Black, king of Edessa, sent messengers to some towns on business. On the way back they entered Jerusalem and there were eye-witnesses of certain actions of the Jews towards our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, and of their preparations to crucify him. They preserved an account of the actions of our Lord the Christ and of that which they learned of his miracles and the cures of incurable illnesses carried out by him.

Back at Edessa, they told their master all that they had seen and that they had learned of the actions of our Lord the Christ, may be he glorified, and of the injustice of the Jews towards him, and how they were plotting against him. When Abgar learned this, he was filled with admiration and wanted to go to Him and see himself His divine miracles; but he could not go outside his kingdom for fear of enemies. So he sent Hannan the painters and charged him with a letter, where he said: "From Abgar the Black to Jesus the physician, who has appeared at Jerusalem. I have heard of you, of your knowledge of medicine, of your spiritual knowledge and that you heal pain and illnesses without drugs or remedies. My astonishment at this was great, and my joy at it extreme. And I am telling myself that you must certainly be God, or the son of God, since you do such things. I ask you and invite you to come to me. Perhaps you may heal the painful illness from which I suffer. I have heard that the Jews want to kill you and crucify you. I have a town, pleasant and pretty, which would be enough for me and for you to live there. There you would be in tranquillity, good health and safety; and if you pleased to grant my wish, do so, and you will fill me with joy because you have.

Our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, received his letter, read it, and wrote to him. "Be blessed, because you have believed in me before you have seen me. It is written of me that those who see me will not believe in me. As for your request for me to come to you, it is necessary that I complete the work for which I was sent; and when I have completed it and ascended (to heaven), I will send one of my disciples who will heal your pains and illnesses and will convert those with you to eternal life."

Hannan, who was a painter, after receiving the response of our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, took a square board and painted our Lord the Christ, may he be glorified, on it in bright and attractive colours. He set himself to look at Him and to paint his image on this board. Then he went with it to Edessa and gave it to his master, Abgar the Black. Abgar received it with great honours and placed it in one of his treasuries, and it can be found there to this day.

When our Lord the Christ had ascended to his Father, he sent the apostle thomas, one of the 70 (disciples) to Edessa. When he arrived there and Abgar the Black saw him, he prostrated himself before him, because a divine light shone from his face. And the apostle Thomas said to him, "If you believe in He that sent me, you will find what you need and obtain what you ask."

And Abgar the Black said to him, "I have already believed in Him. And if it were not for the treaties that exist between the Romans and myself, and the confidence they have in me which I cannot break, I, because of my admiration and my love for Him, would leave with a great number of my men, make war against the Jews who crucified Him, and destroy them."

Then (Thomas) came near him and healed him of his illness: and in this place he worked many miracles, so that Mousa, king of Athour heard about him and wanted to see him.

Then Abgar wrote to Tiberius Caesar, emperor of the Romans, a letter where he said: "From Abgar, sovereign of Edessa, to Tiberius Caesar, sovereign of the Romans. Know, o king, that the Jews that are in your empire have crucified the messiah, although he did not deserve this, and had done nothing that they could condemn. When they had crucified him, the sun was darkened, the earth shook, many of the dead came back to life and rose up (from their tombs) and extraordinary things happened which have never before been seen."

Tiberius Caesar wrote to him, in response to his letter, a letter where he says: "From Tiberius, master of the Romans, to Abgar, master of Edessa. Know that I have already learned all that the Jews have done to the man of whom you speak; and I want to punish them; but I cannot, because of the wars that I was undertaking against the inhabitants of Spain, who have risen up and revolted against me, and I was busy fighting against them; but when I am a little more free, I will carry out my vengeance against them and will inflict on them an exemplary chastisement. As for Pilate whom I named as their judge, I have already deposed him with great demotion and mistake, because he kowtowed to them and did what they wanted; and I have sent another in his place."

After reading this letter, Abgar rejoiced at it and was content. A little time later, he learned that Caesar had put to death the chiefs of the Jews: and he rejoiced greatly at this.

After the death of Thomas the apostle happened on the 14th May, (the apostles) sent in his place Addai, the silk- maker.

After the ascension of our Lord the Christ, may be he glorified, the 11 apostles chose Matthias in the place of Judas Iscariot. [TBA]

Roger Pearse

For those who don't know, Agapius or Mahboub ibn Qustantin wrote in Arabic in the 10th century. He was the Melkite bishop of Heirapolis or Mabbug in Syria, and used mainly Syriac sources.

The second half of his history, running up from the time of Christ to his own time, survives only in a single manuscript in Florence which is partly illegible from damp. The text and a French translation was published in the Patrologia Orientalis 7, which is online.

I printed off the first 20 pages and translated them from French in the evenings, and will probably do some more next week. I thought people might find it interesting (although I thought that I would go potty if I had to translate more of that nonsense about Abgar).

All the best,

Roger Pearse