And besides this, one may well wonder how it happened that the
disciples—if, as the calumniators of Jesus say, they did not see him
after his resurrection from the dead, and were not persuaded of his
divinity—were not afraid to endure the same sufferings with their
master, and to expose themselves to danger, and to leave their native
country to teach, according to the desire of Jesus, the doctrine
delivered to them by him. For I think that no one who candidly examines
the facts would say that these men devoted themselves to a life of
danger for the sake of the doctrine of Jesus, without a profound belief
which he had wrought in their minds of its truth, not only teaching them
to conform to his precepts, but others also, and to conform, moreover,
when manifest destruction to life impended over him who ventured to
introduce these new opinions into all places and before all audiences,
and who could retain as his friend no human being who adhered to the
former opinions and usages. For did not the disciples of Jesus see, when
they ventured to prove not only to the Jews from their prophetic
Scriptures that this is he who was spoken of by the prophets, but also
to the other heathen nations, that he who was crucified yesterday or the
day before underwent this death voluntarily on behalf of the human
race,—that this was analogous to the case of those who have died for
their country in order to remove pestilence, or barrenness, or tempests?
For it is probable that there is in the nature of things, for certain
mysterious reasons which are difficult to be understood by the
multitude, such a virtue that one just man, dying a voluntary death for
the common good, might be the means of removing wicked spirits, which
are the cause of plagues, or barrenness, or tempests, or similar
calamities. Let those, therefore, who would disbelieve the statement
that Jesus died on the cross on behalf of men, say whether they also
refuse to accept the many accounts current both among Greeks and
Barbarians, of persons who have laid down their lives for the public
advantage, in order to remove those evils which had fallen upon cities
and countries? Or will they say that such events actually happened, but
that no credit is to be attached to that account which makes this
so-called man to have died to ensure the destruction of a mighty evil
spirit, the ruler of evil spirits, who had held in subjection the souls
of all men upon earth? And the disciples of Jesus, seeing this and much
more (which, it is probable, they learned from Jesus in private), and
being filled, moreover, with a divine power (since it was no mere
poetical virgin that endowed them with strength and courage, but the
true wisdom and understanding of God), exerted all their efforts “to
become distinguished among all men,” not only among the Argives, but
among all the Greeks and Barbarians alike, and “so bear away for
themselves a glorious renown.”[1172]
Footnote 1172:
Cf. Homer’s _Iliad_, book v. 2, 3.