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| Chapter LIV.—Origin of heathen mythology.
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Chapter LIV.—Origin of heathen
mythology.
But those who hand down the myths which the poets
have made, adduce no proof to the youths who learn them; and we proceed
to demonstrate that they have been uttered by the influence of the wicked
demons, to deceive and lead astray the human race. For having heard it
proclaimed through the prophets that the Christ was to come, and that the
ungodly among men were to be punished by fire, they put forward many to
be called sons of Jupiter, under the impression that they would be able
to produce in men the idea that the things which were said with regard to
Christ were mere marvellous tales, like the things which were said by the
poets. And these things were said both among the Greeks and among all
nations where they [the demons] heard the prophets foretelling that
Christ would specially be believed in; but that in hearing what was said
by the prophets they did not accurately understand it, but imitated what
was said of our Christ, like men who are in error, we will make plain.
The prophet Moses, then, was, as we have already said, older than all
writers; and by him, as we have also said before, it was thus predicted:
“There shall not fail a prince from Judah, nor a lawgiver from
between his feet, until He come for whom it is reserved; and He shall be
the desire of the Gentiles, binding His foal to the vine, washing His
robe in the blood of the grape.”1882
The
devils, accordingly, when they heard these prophetic words, said that
Bacchus was the son of Jupiter, and gave out that he was the discoverer
of the vine, and they number wine1883
| 1883 In the ms.
the reading is οἶνον (wine); but as
Justin’s argument seems to require ὄνον (an
ass), Sylburg inserted this latter word in his edition; and this reading
is approved by Grabe and Thirlby, and adopted by Otto and Trollope. It
may be added, that ἀναγράφουσι
is much more suitable to ὄνον than to οἶνον. |
[or, the ass] among his mysteries; and they taught that, having been torn
in pieces, he ascended into heaven. And because in the prophecy of Moses
it had not been expressly intimated whether He who was to come was the
Son of God, and whether He would, riding on the foal, remain on earth or
ascend into heaven, and because the name of “foal” could mean
either the foal of an ass or the foal of a horse, they, not knowing
whether He who was foretold would bring the foal of an ass or of a horse
as the sign of His coming, nor whether He was the Son of God, as we said
above, or of man, gave out that Bellerophon, a man born of man, himself
ascended to heaven on his horse Pegasus. And when they heard it said by
the other prophet Isaiah, that He should be born of a virgin, and by His
own means ascend into heaven, they pretended that Perseus was spoken of.
And when they knew what was said, as has been cited above, in the
prophecies written aforetime, “Strong as a giant to run his
course,”1884
they said that Hercules was
strong, and had journeyed over the whole earth. And when, again, they
learned that it had been foretold that He should heal every sickness, and
raise the dead, they produced Æsculapius.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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