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JULIAN, who had made his soul a home of destroying demons, went
his corybantic way, ever raging against true religion. He accordingly
now armed the Jews too against the believers in Christ. He began by
enquiring of some whom he got together why, though their law imposed on
them the duty of sacrifices, they offered none. On their reply that
their worship was limited to one particular spot, this enemy of God
immediately gave directions for the reerection of the destroyed temple,
supposing in his vanity that he could falsify the prediction of the
Lord, of which, in reality, he exhibited the truth. The Jews
heard his words with delight and made known his orders to their
countrymen throughout the world. They came with haste from all
directions, contributing alike money and enthusiasm for the work; and
the emperor made all the provisions he could, less from the pride of
munificence than from hostility to the truth. He despatched also as
governor a fit man to carry out his impious orders. It is said that
they made mattocks, shovels, and baskets of silver. When they had
begun to dig and to carry out the earth a vast multitude of them went on
with the work all day, but by night the earth which had been carried
away shifted back from the ravine of its own accord. They destroyed
moreover the remains of the former construction, with the intention of
building everything up afresh; but when they had got together thousands
of bushels of chalk and lime, of a sudden a violent gale blew, and
storms, tempests and whirlwinds scattered everything far and wide.
They still went on in their madness, nor were they brought to their
senses by the divine longsuffering. Then first came a great
earthquake, fit to strike terror into the hearts of men quite ignorant
of God's dealings; and, when still they were not awed, fire running
from the excavated foundations burnt up most of the diggers, and put
the rest to flight. Moreover when a large number of men were sleeping
at night in an adjacent building it suddenly fell down, roof and all,
and crushed the whole of them. On that night and also on the following
night the sign of the cross of salvation was seen brightly shining in
the sky, and the very garments of the Jews were filled with crosses,
not bright but black. When God's enemies saw these things, in
terror at the heaven-sent plagues they fled, and made their way home,
confessing the Godhead of Him who had been crucified by their
fathers. Julian heard of these events, for they were repeated by
every one.But like Pharaoh he hardened his heart.
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