Martyrdom Victor

And large numbers of soldiers flocked to the Camp for the sake of the blessed man Apa Victor.

I am not a magician, and I have not devoted myself to the doing of this (kind of) work. On the contrary, I am a servant of the Christ Jesus, Who hath delivered me out of all my tribulations.'

And the Duke commanded (his servants) to hoist him up on the rack of torture, and to stretch him thereon, and he made them put six burning torches close to his body; and they racked him for a period of two hours.

Weep thou, my mother, for they are going to remove the name of Victor from thy house this day.

And Eutuchianus said unto him,

besides the things which his father was to give to him, and a very large number of men who were to do the work on [his] land.

Speak to thy father on my behalf. Let him take from me three centenarii of gold, and give me the office of Count.

And the blessed man Apa Victor doubled the number of the prayers which he used to make, and he ke2)t fasts for very long periods, and he diligently observed the Sabbaths, and the Lord Jesus was with him. In the peace of God, May His holy blessing be with us! Amen

If thou shalt deliver me over (to death), O my father, there existeth One Who will help me.

And I took thee into my house, and I made all my slaves to wait upon thee, and they received gifts of gold armlets (from thee). And after these things my father came in

THE FOURTH MARTYRDOM OF APA VICTOR. IN THE PEACE OF GOD. BLESS US. AMEN.

Shall not I reward thee with the reward of my Lord?

And the fire did not scorch his body in the least degree, for God was with him, and He gave him strength in all his tribulations.

And the blessed Apa Victor would not be persuaded by his father and Basileides, and he said unto them,

For what reason didst thou not offer up sacrifice before thou didst submit to these tortures?

Now, therefore, hearken thou unto me, my mother, and I will declare in thine ears my words which are sweet.

' All these things shall perish ' ;

And the Duke said unto him,

and I threw myself on my knees before him on the ground, and I remained there until he was persuaded by me, and he made thee a Count.

For when, the Jews were standing before Him, and crying out 'Crucify Him', and were buffeting Him, He did not reward them with evil in place of evil, but He shewed compassion upon them.

And it came to pass that after Saint Apa Victor was banished he lived in the Camp.

Before every tiling do thou fear God, and do thou glorify His saints.

However, come now, and offer up sacrifice with the men who are here, so that it may be well with thee.'

And moreover He is shewing mercy and longsuffering towards all this multitude this day, and upon this lawless king I who is carrying out these evil designs in the midst of this city.

and he kept himself for the kingdom that is in the heavens.

O wicked head! I weary myself.

And Apa Victor answered and said,

Keep holy His sabbaths.

And yet thou didst not keep in mind any one of these things for which thou canst now repay me. But it is written in the Gospel

And Sebastianus, the Duke, came to inspect the Camp.

Observe the times of fastings.

He who did eat of my bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.'

And the Lord Jesus was wont to appear to him, face to face, and He loved him because of his purity.

I would spare thee from being put to shame, thou wilt not turn (i. e, repent).

And Asterius, the praetor of the Camp, cast himself down before the Count, and Soterichos, who was the accountant (or, clerk), gave him a written statement concerning Apa Victor, so that he might summon him into his presence.

I am not at all afraid of men, and I will not offer up sacrifice, but I am afraid of my Lord Jesus the Christ.

Then the Duke ordered his servants to set his judgement throne inside the gate of the Camp, in order that he might hear (the case of) the holy man Apa Victor.

For it is written, 'Be not afraid of those who can kill your bodies upon the earth, because there is nothing besides this which they can do unto you. But fear ye Him Who hath the power to destroy your souls and your bodies in Gehenna.'

And the noble Victor made for himself a small chamber in his house, I and there he would retire to be free from the company of his parents.

Neglect neither the widows nor the orphans, for from this day forward I myself shall be an orphan, without father and without mother, so that the lovingkindness which thou shewest in this world will God also shew to some one else.

Come now, offer up sacrifice.'

And the Duke made (his men) to inflict gashes in the face of Apa Victor, and he made them to stretch him out with thongs (of leather)

And Apa Victor said unto him,

And when the morning had come the Duke took his seat upon the throne, and he commanded his servants to bring the righteous man into his presence.

and they gave unto him fourteen stripes with the triple flogging whips, saying

May lie transfer it to me myself in that other world which I am about to enter, for there is nothing greater than love (i, e. charity).

And the Duke said unto him,

He had not slept upon a couch since he was fifteen years of age.

Visit those who are sick.

He prayed by day and by night, and he fasted from one sabbath to another.

I will torture thee until thou diest, according to the orders of the Emperor.

Hast thou come hither to persuade (or, convert) us by a homily which is vain?

And the torturers seized Apa Victor whilst he was in his cell, and he had lentils in his hand, and he was eating

Yesterday thou didst spare me; to-day spare thou me not.

Do whatsoever it pleaseth thee to do unto me.'

Clothe him that is naked.

and Apa Victor threw the lentils through the window, saying

He attended the assemblies for the Holy Communion.

Afterwards the Duke made his man to drive iron nails into his hands and feet

If thou darest again to utter words in my presence I will make my servants to tear out thy tongue.

and he covered (?) his whole body with iron, from his head to his feet

Unless thy father compel me to release thee I will not set thee free, and though profane and sacrilegious persons ought not to be cast into the furnace of a bath, thou art worthy of death,

And the Duke commanded (his servants) to pour vinegar and ashes into his mouth.

He prayed three hundred and sixty-five prayers during the day, and seven hundred and thirty prayers during the night.

O my Lord Jesus the Christ, do Thou make these lentils to become stones which shall never be destroyed! And they shall be a sign unto all the generations which are to come, lest these wicked men tread them down.'

Give drink to him that is thirsty.

Receive a stranger into thy house, because from this day onward I shall be myself a stranger. Thus shall the blessing of Sarra be upon thee.

and he cast him into prison, where they abandoned him to hunger and thirst until the following day.

And Apa Victor prayed, saying,

and death shall now be thy portion.'

And Apa Victor said,

O my Lord Jesus the Christ, let me not be put to shame before this wicked man.'

And when the morning was come the Count made them bring Apa Victor unto him, and when he bad been brought into his presence every part of him was loaded with iron (fetters).

The things which I have spoken unto thee, O my mother, may God make sufficient for thy soul.

'This vinegar and these ashes, which thou makest me to drink, are like unto honey dropped down my throat.'

And the Duke commanded his servants to fasten the hands of Apa Victor behind him,

and they cut out his tongue and cut off the outer parts of his lips. And he made them bring out his necessary organs, and poured boiling oil upon them

And the blessed man Apa Victor was not able to walk because of the weight of the iron which had been placed on his body

Now, therefore, O my mother, I know of a certainty that I shall never have a sight of thee again after this present sight, even if I live. If thou hearest that I have died, seek after my body and bring it to this place.

And afterwards he came down (from his cell), and stood before the Duke.

Then the Duke commanded his servants to dig out his two eyes whilst he was alive.

Make not thyself like I unto my father who hateth (his) son, but be thou compassionate. And do thou ascribe glory unto God by day and by night, so that He may shew compassion unto thee in the days of necessity.

and the soldiers supplied twelve (men and) they carried him.

and he made them pierce them with iron borers. And other tools which had been made red-hot In the fire did he make them drive into Apa Victors ears,

And straightway the executioners came and thrust red-hot knives into his eyes and ears

And the Duke said unto him,

And when he had entered into the praetorium the Duke said unto him

and forthwith his two eyeballs were ripped out and fell upon the ground. And a smoke (i. e. dizziness) mounted up in his brain.

These are the letters which the Emperor hath sent to be read unto thee; hearken unto them, and offer up sacrifice.'

And he made them thrust these red-hot tools under the nails of his feet and the skin of his head,

and he made them scatter over him burning coals of fire, and he made them to bring fire and lay it over his body.

And Apa Victor answered and said,

And Apa Victor said unto the Duke,

Can Jesus in Whom thou believest deliver thee out of my hands?

I belong to a King Who is deathless, and therefore I will not worship an emperor who will die.

And the Duke said unto him,

Even if thou hast the power and dost make blind the eyes of my body, I have still left within me other eyes,

(Nay). Put thy belief in Apollo, who is able to save thee, and especially in Artemis, the greatest of the gods

Wilt thou offer sacrifice or not?

And Apa Victor said unto him