Martyrdom Jacob the Persian

The martyrdom of the victorious one and martyr of Christ, Jacob the Persian, who came from among the Persians, and who completed his contest on the twenty-seventh of the month of Athor, in a peace of God. Amen. It came to pass in the kingdom of Iskarat, the son of Sabor, the king of the Persians, that he raised a great persecution against the Nazoreans, that is, those who are called Christians, who were in the land of Persia. And a multitude of martyrs received crowns through various tortures, which were diverse from one another, and they completed their confession and went upward to the one they love, Christ. In that time, however, the blessed Jacob was in the city of Bēlpatē, of the kingdom of the Persians. He was a eunuch and a servant, first in his age, in the palace, and he was a Christian, he and his mother and his wife, and he was first in the palace. In the days of Iskarat, the king of the Persians, he often took counsel with him in the administration of the kingdom, sending out to all the regions various decrees from the king, because he loved him greatly. But he turned his heart away from many honors, and he departed from the faith of his fathers, and he renounced the Christian faith, and he followed the service of the king. When his mother and his wife heard, however, of what had happened to him, they wrote to him in

The king, in his arrogance, desired to know those over whom he had no power at all, to give us some of them. Then the king became angry in his wrath, and his wise men and his counselors were gathered to him. He commanded that they bring out some sharpened knives, and he had them tear apart his entire body, and the joints of his hands and his feet. He also commanded that they bring out another who was very sharp, and they placed it upon his chest; afterward they placed him in prison until he should be examined, to see in what manner he would kill him. The blessed Jacob, however, was in prison under great tortures. He walked little by little, stood on his feet, and cried out to the Lord, saying, "O God, I who am your servant from my youth until now, I who endure these sufferings for your holy name, look upon your holy church, and grant to her your peace and all your blessings and all your peoples, and save your servant from the distress in which I am, and from the prison of this wicked one, that your holy name may be revealed." The God of our fathers. While he was still praying in this manner, behold, a great light shone in the place where he was hidden within, and he saw a choir of saints, with the Lord Jesus Christ in their midst. And the Lord said to him, "Be strong, and may you prevail, O champion of the contest. Behold, I am with you, giving you strength in the great stadium in which you stand, until you receive the crown of your confession. Behold, you will receive...

For great sufferings are also upon my name until you complete your struggle. But after a little while, you will find joy with me at my table in my kingdom which is in the heavens, and I will hasten quickly to follow the order of the church, saying thus: It is fitting for you to renounce the truth if you wish to receive a mortal king, and you have not heeded that you have turned away from the faith that is sweet, and from me, of our Lord Jesus Christ, to enter into the service of the false gods of the Greeks, and you have chosen for yourself to receive a mortal king who perishes, and you have removed yourself from the immortal king, Christ, and you have loved honors and gifts and dignities of a mortal king, not heeding that you have fallen away from the love of God, which will endure forever. Pay attention, then, and see what kind of man you are, who does his will, for he lives today, but tomorrow he dies, and he is buried like all the dead. For neither will his gifts benefit you at all on the day of judgment, nor will they save you from eternal punishment. Therefore, because you have not turned yourself away in time from this evil error and the worship of the Persian false gods, to enter into the true faith of the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, you will fear before the tortures of the present time. For neither will the sufferings of this present time be worthy of the glory that will be prepared for us. He said also:

...of our Lord, "If a man gains profit, if he gains profit from the whole world and gives his soul, be watchful, then, of yourself, from the deception of the devil, lest the wrath of God, which is terrible, and this dishonor, which has become your companion, overtake you, after he has sacrificed to the idols.

...he died in what manner of death? It is exceedingly shameful, like you who do not know. If you had died from these things in the service of the Persians, who serve the sun and the moon and the fire and the water, we are strangers to you, this place, and you have no portion with us, nor any lot in the other world. At that time, the king was in the mountains, commanding all the guards and those under his authority, and he was considering evil counsels with himself. And he brought great magicians against the Christians. When the blessed Jacob received the letters of his wife and his mother, at that hour he read the epistle that was sent to him. His heart was strengthened, and repentance entered into him like a spring drawing forth eternal life. And he spoke with himself, saying, "If my mother and my wife have betrayed me and become strangers to me in this world, and have cut me off from the other world, or will God do something for me, whom I have abandoned, having cut myself off from his faith and his truth? Perhaps he will turn his face away from me and give me shame instead of the evil things I have done to him among them, and he will deliver me to eternal punishment." At that hour he arose, went into his tent, took up the holy scriptures in his hands, read from them, and turned to himself, his heart being enlightened by the readings, like one who has been awakened from a dream. He then...

...he spoke with himself within himself, saying, "Where are you now, O my soul? Or where is my body?

...he spoke with himself within himself, saying, "Where are you now, O my soul? Or where is my body? Did my mother who bore me grieve over the destruction of my soul? And my wife who is hidden with me, since my childhood in the communion of this world, has she become a stranger to me? What now is the defense that I will find in the tribunal of God on the day of judgment, which is fearful, at the time when God will give to each one according to his deeds? For even my relatives grieved over my perdition. From that time when they will make the earth new again, those who are upright in their hearts will receive their reward, and those who have fallen away from Christ will receive their punishment. I have become like what? For I have changed the truth of God in falsehood. Now I know what is the salvation that my soul will seek, so that I may not be destroyed until the end, and be cast out from eternal life, the place from which my soul has fallen. Now it is fitting for me to repent and to pray with my hands, with fasts and prayers at night and day, until they open for me the gates of life and the good things in that place, so that I may not be destroyed with those who have fallen and those who have perished and been destroyed. While he was still thinking these things in his heart, some of the lawless ones heard his words, and when they saw him many times reading the holy scriptures, they gave information about him to the king in haste and informed him.

...they were saying, "Jacob, this one to whom you gave great honors and abundant wealth, and whom you raised to high offices in the kingdom of the Medes, Persians, and Babylonians—this one now wishes to turn away from the worship of the Persians to the worship of the Christians, after hearing these things." When the king heard this, he commanded that the blessed Jacob be brought before him. When they had brought him, they stood him before the king. The king said to him, "Tell me, Jacob, are you a Nazorean, one of those who deny the gods and the kings, whom my father zealously expelled from his kingdom?" Jacob said, "Yes, I am a Nazorean." The king said to him, "Then you are also a magician." Jacob said, "I am a Christian, but I am not a magician, and this shall not happen to me." The king answered and said to him, "Did you not receive great honors and gifts from my father the king because of your skill?" Jacob said to him, "That one who gave me these riches and these honors at that time—is he not now dead like those who have died?" Then the king became very angry and commanded that they stretch out his hands and feet and beat him with rods filled with lead until the earth was soaked with his blood. The king said to him, "Offer sacrifice to the gods of the Persians, which are the sun and the moon and...

The fire and the water, so that you might be cast out into great torments, and you might lose your rank, your age of youth, and your wealth. Behold, you have come to what has happened to the other dogs.

All those who heard the laws of the Persians, how they died an evil death because of the name "Christian," having given the good man an oath, the blessed Jacob said, "I am strengthened by the prayers of those who have been perfected before me. I hope that I too, in a contest, will enjoy with them the good things that no eye has seen nor ear heard, which have descended upon the heart of men whom God has prepared for those who love him and do his will." When the king heard these things, he became very angry and commanded that they strike him with clubs of hot iron until his flesh was removed piece by piece, while he said, "Sacrifice to the gods and renounce Christ, lest you die an evil death." The blessed Jacob answered, "It will never happen that I abandon my Creator and serve his creations." The king said to him, "Do not think that I will destroy you with a sword, but know this: that I will not remove you from this path on which I have found you. I will bring upon you terrible tortures." The blessed Jacob, however, looked within himself and said to him, "Do not trouble yourself, O king, and do not be disturbed by your words, but carry out the deeds. For your words will not trouble me, and your threats will not enter my ears, for I am with the one I love, Christ." The king said to him, "Your services as well...

They were strengthened in the days of this father, worshipping in a service of this kind.

They were subjected to tortures and torments because they did not wish to obey the command of the king. The blessed Jacob said, "I have told you once before that this is my prayer, which I offer before God with faith, that just as those there fulfilled their confession unto Christ, I also walk in this same path with them. In this way, may my fulfillment be like theirs." The king said to him, "Do not be stubborn; listen to our command, lest you destroy your youth and lose your possessions, and afterwards die a miserable death." The blessed Jacob said, "This death is not a death to me; it is rather like a sleep from which one awakens from a dream." The king said to him, "I give you a little time to worship our lord the sun, which shines upon us in its brilliance, giving us fruits, the moon, the fire, and the water, which all the Persians worship." The blessed Jacob said, "It will never happen that I worship those who serve, whom my Lord God created for service, and all who serve him. For the sun will be darkened, the moon will become blood, the rivers and the sea will dry up, and in place of this fire, another fire will exist to punish all who abandon the true God and worship his creations. I, however, with boldness, I...

I am a Christian, and I will not worship the sun, nor the moon, nor the water, nor the fire with which they will torture you.

And all those who were brought forth from God, and all the lawless ones of your judgment. Then the king, in wrath and anger, commanded that they cut him into a hundred pieces, having been stretched out downward from his neck. He ordered that they throw spears at him—the spears which they were casting at the blessed one. None of them touched him at all, but they fell into the air. But one of the spear-throwers, that is, the one who had given a bribe for the holy one before the king, turned his face toward him, with his sword in his hand. He gave a blow to him in his neck with the sword that was in his hand, looking upward at him. Immediately, a spear came out of the air and fell upon his right eye, and immediately he died. And all who were around him, when they saw what had happened, cried out, saying, "One is the God of the holy Jacob!" Then the king was filled with great wrath when he heard the voices of the multitudes. He commanded that the soldiers surround them with their spears of war, so that a multitude might fall together and die, those who were confessing the Son, whom God has for the gate of paradise, because of the confession of God. Then the king commanded to put the holy one down and bring him to him. And the king said to him, "You see all these things that have happened to your limbs because of your stubbornness: the spears indeed fell into the air, and the great governor you killed, along with all the multitude who died because of your magic. But—

and now, O small one of your worship of the gods

of the Persians, you are a wonder of my father the king. And I do not wish to do evil to you." The holy Jacob answered, "The wonder of this world is enmity against God." The king said, "Have not the Nazoreans made you a slave, saying, 'This death of mine is a disgrace'? Do not fear for his sake. For even they themselves, the great kings, fear before death." The holy Jacob said, "The kings and the archons and those who are not servants of the living God fear before death, because they do not know what they have done in the world, nor do they have hope there for the flesh at the end of days, and the eternal good things. For their hope is only in this place. Therefore they fear before death. For this is the reason it is written: 'The Greek died and his hope perished with him,' and also, 'The hope of the impious is indestructible.'" The king said to him, "Do you think of us Christians that we are Greeks like this? Do you not worship the great gods, the sun and the moon and the fire and the water, which are the children of God?" The blessed Jacob answered, "You are mistaken, O king. It is written that those who struggle for God are the children of God. But you, who think only of yourselves, do you know God and

you worship stone idols and clay pots, and you have made them gods, and you are angry with the one who gave you

...so that your name may be sown in all places, down to the land of Egypt, the place where your body will rest. After a time, they will build a martyrium for you in that place, and a memorial for you, in which great powers and wonders will occur for all who act in your name. And they gave their voice, the choir of the holy ones, and they removed all the bonds from his body, and he was healed instantly. His entire body became healthy. He sang psalms in this manner, saying, "I will see the Lord before me at all times, for I will not be moved." Because of this, my heart rejoiced and my tongue delighted, and you gave strength to my flesh. In an instant, the Lord went up from him, and again he sang psalms, saying, "God went up in a prayer, the Lord in a trumpet sound. Sing psalms to our God, sing psalms, alleluia." When the first event occurred, the king sat on the tribunal and commanded them to bring the blessed one to him. And he sang psalms, saying, "Many times they have tried me, even from my youth, for they could not prevail over me, alleluia." And when they saw him steadfast and singing psalms, the king and his great ones marveled, and the multitude cried out, "One is the God of the holy Jacob." Then the king was greatly perplexed, and he arose and went into the palace. He commanded all his great ones to go in with him, and he said to them, "Tell me...

that death

...of what sort is it fitting that this one should die, because Jacob has dared to do this whole thing against our laws of the kings, and he has despised the will of the king and the dogma of the Persians. But one of them who used to take counsel with him at all times for evil, answered and said, "This one does not need a single death, nor... nor... but many. Because of him many have died. I wish, then, that our lord the king, the son of the sun and the fire, would command that he be stretched out by his hands and his feet, and that he be cut up according to all his limbs, because he did not wish to follow the worship of the Persians and our lord the king." Then the king commanded thus: "Jacob, who received great honors from my father and from me, so that he became the third in the kingdom of the Babylonians, the Medes, and the Persians—since he alone rejected the gift of my philanthropy in the matter of obeying the laws of the Persians, and he does not worship the great gods, our lord the sun and the moon, the givers of fruits, and the fire and the water, which the kings and those in the great offices worship—since he has become disobedient, I command, according to the counsel that the one who loves our salvation gave me, that his hands and his feet be cut off, that the nails of his hands and his feet be pulled out, and that his joints and the sinews of his thighs be severed.

...until they entered into his limbs at that moment when they were going to cut off his members, member by member, and they were going to sever his head with the sword.

When he had gone out from the king, this order was given, and they attacked the holy Jacob and brought him to the place of his contest. And at that very hour, the whole city and all the great ones of the king followed him, and a multitude from the unbelievers, when they heard the end of the sentence of the holy one, they fell upon their faces and worshipped the Lord of the powers, saying, "The Most High Lord, the God of all the holy ones, it is you who give strength to those who are persecuted. May your Christ enter into us; it is you who give strength to the strong, the savior of those who have been destroyed. Give strength now to your servant Jacob, and let him depart from this life in victory, in persecution, for it is you who give the victory to all your athletes, these who contend for your holy name, our Lord Jesus Christ, our savior and the Lord of this one." And when the blessed Jacob reached the place where he was to complete his contest, he received the crown of his contest and arranged those who were to kill him, saying, "Leave me a little while so that I may reveal the Lord concerning the suffering that will happen for his holy name." And they left him. When he had prayed, he bent his knees upon the ground, his heart trusting in God who is in heaven, and he prayed, saying thus: "Lord, hear the voice of your servant, and grant me according to your great mercy. I, Jacob, your servant, beseech you, and have mercy on me. Grant me victory; hear me, for...

so that I may become worthy to be a companion with those who feared before your holy name, and I received the crown of martyrdom among the multitudes and those who loved you because of this. For those who ran after you, you placed a crown upon them; let them see.

so that my enemies may be ashamed, for you, O Lord, have blessed me and given me strength. And when he had prayed thus, at that hour they brought instruments upon the holy one without mercy, and they stretched him out, separating his hands and his feet, and they said to him, "See what you are doing! There is no merciful one here, nor any compassionate one, but they will cut you according to your limbs, limb by limb, and at the moment you look upon the destruction of all your limbs, then they will take your head with the sword, and you will be alone within yourself, for what have you chosen before you? Because in a single word you have brought death upon yourself. But if you persist in this resolve, you will die in these terrible tortures." Some of the impious who were standing there wept over his fate and the grace of his chosen material, and all of them said to him with one voice, "Do not destroy your body in a worthless manner, but spare your fate and your strength and your works that stand before you, and your possessions, your cattle, your gold, your silver, and your numerous flocks, and do the will of the king of your death. And afterwards, if you wish, you will return to your worship." The blessed Jacob answered, "Do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and your children, for you will receive a little rest in this world, and afterwards you will inherit.

and tortures forever, and the demons whom you worship. For I will destroy

in this my slaughter, but I will inherit eternal life. When all my limbs were cut off, they placed a reward of suffering upon me because each one will receive the reward of their pains from God. For there is no injustice, nor one who gives up before him. And at that very hour, the man sent by the king came to carry out the king's command. He said to the *skepōlatores*, "Be careful to cut out the nails of his hands." And they were careful to cut out the nails of his right hand. When his fingers were cut off, the blessed Jacob cried out, "May the helper of the Nazarenes receive the branch of your tree in your mercy, as it is cut. For also the branch of the vine of the grape is cut in the hand of the gatherer. And also in the month of Pharmouthi, it is stripped of its shoots, bearing fruit, and the branch becomes great with many clusters." Then the king's officer said, "The matter is difficult for you, that one of your nails was cut out for your God. If you wish, you have the power to save yourself. Only do not destroy your beautiful body. For there are many riches for you; I will give you the gifts immediately, and I will release you from the transgression. Only this word alone." The blessed Jacob answered, "Have you not seen the shoot of the vine of the grape? At the time when it is cut and they prune it, does it not stand up, being prepared? Because of the mouth of that time, it will grow. For the shoot becomes wood in the month of Pharmouthi.

in the slaughter of a small child, it will give forth its fruit and reveal its form. *But take heed, O you who are intelligent, for I go

The clusters, then, will marvel at the excess, and the man himself, the faithful one who is hidden within the true cluster, and if we pluck him with the hands of God, the true light, rather he will not increase the excess, and a multitude of branches will appear from him. They gave their woe into him, they cut the fifth finger, and he said in joy of heart, "Let my soul take the Lord, and my spirit will hope in him." He added again, saying, "Lord, take the second finger from this tree, which your right hand has cut." For his face was joyful and rejoicing in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. They cut also the sixth finger, and he cried out, saying, "I will sing psalms to the holy Trinity, which is in one divinity, before the angels and the holy company in the choir of the holy martyrs." They cut also the seventh finger, and the victor said, "In the twelve sons of Jacob, Judah is the seventh, because the blessing of Jesus Christ rested upon him. Therefore I also, in the seventh finger, will give a confession with him, that in his blessing the Savior will come to all the nations." They cut also the eighth finger, and he said, "My mouth is filled with joy, and my tongue with delight." He added again, saying, "In the ninth finger of the right hand of the tree, they offer the fruits of him who planted the tree." They came also

upon his hand, the clusters, and they said to him, "You say that what? And what is it that has moved you?

Within him there is power for you to live if you do the will of the king. There is a multitude of men in the world now of one hand, whose hands are cut off, and they live well. You also, do not be grieved in your heart because your fingers have been cut off from your hands. But from now on I will heal your soul, which will be tormented by the sufferings of your body. You will not leave your members for them to cut off, and your eyes will see them being cut off before you. The blessed Jacob said to them, "If a shepherd takes a sheep to shear it, they do not shear its whole body at once, but they shear its right side first, then afterwards they shear its left side, and it itself, the sheep, is silent, wishing them to take away all its wool from there. If the irrational animal does thus, then I, for the rational man, it is fitting for me to do more, to bless God and to give glory to his holy name, because they have found the sheep of Christ in the path, having sheared my hands and my fingers, and I will offer up to him all of myself as a sacrifice, I for the one who is glorious. The Lord, the good one, has given to me the means for those who will shear me like a sheep of God. They began to cut into him, to cut the nails of his left hand, having prepared to cut the little nail. When they had cut it, he became bold, saying, "I am small before the Lord, but you are great; you have humbled yourself, you have come down to us. I also will give my soul for your holy name.

You are the Lord of every one. You will raise them up, fulfilled, my soul and my limbs, being one single whole, all healthy, filled with every blessing. But the little finger was also cut off after the small one, and

He strengthened him further through the love of Christ, and said: "In the fifth finger, I will glorify the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit seven times." They also placed themselves, and they cut off the sixth finger. The holy one cried out, truly the strong Jacob, and said: "On this day, which is the sixth, they prepare the priests so that it may be revealed and spread out among them. I also, for your servant, you have scattered the memory of my heart because of my ignorance that is bitter. My soul has brought you, the living God, because I have done this so that I might see it revealed before the face of God." They also cut off the seventh finger. He said: "At the time of the seventh, my Lord, you will rest from the cross, you who are spread out because of our sins. Now, I also receive grace from you, my Lord, in the seventh finger, because just as they spread you out upon the wood, I also, for your servant, you have made me worthy to be spread out, and they cut the branches of my body because of your holy name that was called upon me." And they also cut off the eighth finger. He revealed, saying: "In iota, all things happen, and within it, various things happen, and Jesus is in iota, which is the savior of the whole world. Therefore, I also will sing to you on a psalterion of ten strings, which are the fingers, the one who made me worthy to enter into this death, which is in the place of the ten fingers and the seven of the sheep. I will bless your glory in a song, and I will sing to your holy name, because...

He strengthened him further through the love of Christ, and said: "In the fifth finger, I will glorify the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit seven times." They also placed themselves, and they cut off the sixth finger. The great ones of the king and his companions who were standing there entered in upon him.

They wept with great lamentation and bowed down to him, saying, "If you wish, O beloved, you have the power to live, even though your fingers have been cut off, without the matter disturbing you. There are skilled physicians who have the ability to heal you. Only do the will of the king, and free yourself from this necessity that surrounds you, so that you may not die and the grace of your soul be lost, and so that you may give a good example to this generation. For there are many possessions available to you; you have the power to live and to dwell in peace. Even if you are poor, you will say within yourself, 'Since my fingers have been cut off, what hope is there, or what is the use of my life?' But I have no power to endure suffering in the world. We know, and you also know, that you are a rich man, and you have abundant gold, and you have the power to rejoice with your wife, whom you have had since your childhood, and with your mother who bore you, for they are today in Iousios, your city. You yourself are in the land of Babylon, and you wish to save your soul, but you do not see them. Yet it is a small matter of words for you to utter from your mouth in order to live. For it is nothing, and your God will forgive you for it. For we hear that the God of the Nazarenes is merciful and forgives those who turn to him in repentance." The blessed Jacob answered and said, "He in whom you hope, I will never abandon. For nothing from him is upon a matter of his contempt.

ians who can heal you. Do not throw away your life for nothing." But the blessed Jacob answered them, "Do not speak to me in this way, my children. For I have not suffered these things for nothing, but for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. And if I endure to the end, I will receive the crown of life from Christ, my King.

e mother who bore me, or my wife, to abandon the faith of God which is in my heart, this one who said, "Whoever are the ones who will destroy his soul for my sake, he will find eternal life. And he who will leave his father, or mother, or brother, or sister, or son, or wife, or wealth, and follow me, I will give him eternal life and rest and my chosen ones." Do not your words say, "What honors will you give me? For I, on the one hand, they will not harm me; but you, on the other hand, you will receive punishments forever." But turn to me and do what was commanded to you, which they did to me. When they turned to him, they cut the great thumb of his right hand. And the blessed one opened his mouth and said, "Glory to you, who bore my body." They gave him a wound from a lance. Your spittle mixed with the blood and the water that came out from your wound, I cannot bear, for you have hidden the truth, hastening to paradise. I also, for your sake, your servant, I receive grace from you, rejoicing that my soul has suffered for its salvation, and my blood has poured out from within me from the cutting of my hands and my fingers. They cut the second thumb, and he said, "This is great for me, more than all my days, for now I have not entered into this service; my glory is diminished, and my heart is not in any of the works of the world. And the weakness of my life will not hinder me from prayer. For the place where the heart is, there also the altar will be." At that time,

who will pray for me, my body will be buried in the house

of my Lord, my heart was downcast within the prison of Amenti. But today I have cast my face outside this vain world and away from all its cares, striving to enter into his good things. He rejoiced, and with all the members that he had, which they were cutting off, and he was giving thanks to God. They cut off also the sixth toe of his left foot, and they placed it before him. When he saw it, he mocked, saying, "Walk, O sixth toe of your foot, to you beside your companions. And do not grieve, for as the grain of wheat falls upon the earth and its seed multiplies and bears fruit, and as the eyelid rests upon the eye, so also is your nature at the time of the resurrection; you will rest with your companions." They cut off the seventh toe, and he said, "Why is my soul grieved within me, and why am I troubled? Hope in God, for I will reveal to him the salvation of my face, my God." And they cut off the eighth toe. The blessed noble one, the holy James, opened his mouth and said, "I have prepared speech with my Lord." He rested within, and he made it worthy to stand before him in the contest, and he gave me strength to make a promise within it. They gave the signal to enter his swift chariot, and they cut off the little toe. He said, "You will not become small, because the small and the great are of one rest, which they will find at one time. And if he said, 'All the other hairs of your head are counted,' how then will you be scattered?

the midst of his companions, and they cut off the second toe. After the little one, he said, rejoicing in a joyful manner. But the executioners rushed in upon him in anger and fury. They crushed their teeth down upon him. They cut off his right hand, and the blessed one said, "All the members of my body which you cut off, I offer them up as a sacrifice to God and an offering to the Pantocrator, the king of heaven and earth." They also cut off his left hand, and the holy Jacob said, "Listen to me, O Lord, for you are good and your mercy is abundant to all who beseech you." And they cut off his right arm, and he cried out, saying, "Your mercy, O Lord, has benefited me. Save me and rescue me from Amenti below." They also cut off his left arm, and the blessed one said, "You are God, the one who alone works wonders. Listen to me and save me." *They also cut off his right foot. The noble one again submitted, saying, "My soul blesses the Lord, and I will sing psalms to my God as long as I exist. My word will be pleasing to my God." They also cut off his left foot, and the holy Jacob said, "By the foot of your power, you will crush your enemies. My power and my blessing are the Lord. He has become for me a salvation." And they cut off the rest of his right leg, splitting it up to his thighs, and he endured the pain. He cried out in a loud voice, saying, "O Lord Jesus Christ.

Help me, for the executioners of death have surrounded me. The torturers said to him, "Did we not tell you from the beginning that great ones would come upon you?

My light and my helper, let him prepare himself for you, O Lord, of my countenance, and hear my prayer according to the manner in which I have become a stranger to all my limbs, while the division of my body lies as dead, while the other division is before you, since there is no finger or hand for me, as you created me so that I might spread them out before you. They have broken my thighs and my ribs, and they have pulled out my joints, and behold, I am stretched out before you like a house that has fallen suddenly, with a small child hidden in it. This is the manner in which I have become. I give heed and I beseech you, O Lord, to hear my prayer and to bring my soul out of this prison, so that I may proclaim your name, O Lord, and all your holy ones, and all those who have rested upon them through your philanthropy, and through all your martyrs who were slain, and all those who are slain for your holy name. Grant me, O Lord, a peace for your people, the Christians who are persecuted in every place. And peace from you; let them be gathered together and united in one bond throughout the whole earth. And your church, O Lord, establish it in your peace. And the bishops also, strengthen them in your faith, so that they may find the manner of the monastery for your people. And the presbyters also, and the deacons, grant them a power to give heed to you, O Lord, over your people and your inheritance. O Lord, look down from your holy heaven upon this whole multitude that stands.

in this place today they will behold the sufferings and the contests which you have given me strength to endure for their sake.

and that he should release the man, my Apa, because he is prepared to build him in a wall of lime, and they also cut off the first of his fingers. The blessed Jacob said to them, "Do you know that the multitude of my lower parts, they throw at him in a number of airs? And in this multitude of vessels, they cause them to be shaved and they drag them over him. The multitude itself did not withstand, nor did it suffer in this multitude of tortures." And they cut off the first of his fingers. He said, "Lord God, give me strength in truth, for my soul has hoped in you." They also cut off the second of his fingers, and the blessed Jacob became like one who had forgotten from the dream. He cried out, saying, "Judge for me, God, and let you take my judgment from a nation that is harsh. Behold, Lord, they have killed in a slaughter that is violent for your holy name, and they did not spare your creation, like wild beasts that destroy, because there is no compassion in them." The presbyters and the virgins who stood by were saying, "We have not seen nor heard anyone speak in this manner from the holy scripture." The strong one of Christ, Jacob, said to the executioners, "Why do you stand and turn away from the work that was assigned to you? Cut the tree in the manner that you cut its branches, and do not spare." He completed the whole of the contest to receive the crown. Then he rejoiced in a joy, saying, "Let my heart be glad over

the Lord, and let my Apa rejoice in God, my Savior.

the torturers, the blessed one said, "O senseless ones, do you not know that I have suffered because of my love for Christ? I have suffered so that I might know that the flesh which I bear is also flesh and blood, and I am a man of flesh and blood. For all the saints have suffered coming out of this world. Know that all the tortures you have inflicted upon me have not made me faint until now, because they have assaulted my mind. It has come to be near the Lord now that you have not stood firm, but you have failed. Rather, it is fitting for you to complete what has been commanded to you. For I am ready, even if it be until the Lord whom I love more than the whole world." Then the executioners let go, cutting off the limbs of the saint, casting them before him from the beginning until the ninth hour. And his faith increased towards God. And they split the skin of his foot in two, having split it up to his armpits. The holy James was astonished at that hour when all his limbs were cut off like a tree having no branch upon it, and there was nothing left to drag in his body except his head, his chest, and his navel. For he was astonished like a cypress tree giving its fragrance when it is cut down. This one also is like the holy James, the servant of God, whose head alone remained standing, along with his chest and his navel, and all his limbs were scattered on the ground before him, and the division of his body.

...the torturers, the blessed one said, "O senseless ones, do you not know that I have suffered because of my love for Christ? I have suffered so that I might know that the flesh which I bear is also flesh and blood, and I ...the torturers, the blessed one said, "O senseless ones, do you not know that I have suffered because of my love for Christ? I have suffered so that I might know that the flesh which I bear is also flesh and blood, and I am not a torturer. It is my flesh that has suffered, but my soul is with Christ." And when he had said this, he was silent for a short time. Then after a little while, he opened his mouth and said, "O Lord,

...your holy name. But you will also preserve all the vessels that will serve my body with your blessing, all the vessels that will pray to you in my name, or whoever will become a stranger to it, or whoever will do good with an orphan, or a widow, or offer a prosphora for my memory, O Lord. You will receive them from them as a fragrant garment upon your altar which is in heaven. I am your most humble servant, I reveal to you, I hasten down to your greatness and all your martyrs and your confessors. From the north and the sea, with blessing and glory. The Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever, amen. And at that hour, he saw the Lord Jesus Christ standing above him, saying to him, "Blessed are you, for you have endured suffering for a little while in this place. Come now, inherit the eternal life and the incorruptible crowns that are prepared for you, which are constant forever. Lift your eyes upward and see the throne that is prepared for you, and behold, here is your crown in the hand of Michael the archangel, and all the first-born children whom Herod killed are coming before you, singing psalms before you, and all the saints, until they bring you in before my Father, the place where there is no earth, nor suffering, nor sorrow, but your joy and all the saints who have existed in this age, such as Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and the rest. These our Savior took to himself and went.

...to the heights, to the gods in glory and joy. He will give his spirit, one of his companions, and he lifted the head of the holy martyr, the holy Genneos, Saint Jacob.

He rested in peace, having received the crown of the confession, the mighty and strong one, the holy Jacob, in the kingdom of Iskarat, the son of Sabor, the king of the Persians, who is called Sychordates, which is interpreted in the Persian tongue as “the son of the sun.” And it was the time when Arcadius and Honorius, the sons of the pious king Theodosius the Augustus of the Romans, were reigning, in the year 427 of the month of November, which is Hathor, on the evening of the day of the Preparation. When he had finished, some men from among the faithful came, they gathered a multitude of meliarisions, and they brought them to those who were guarding him, so that they might give them the body of the holy one. But they did not listen to them, for they were afraid before the king. And as the sun was setting, those who were guarding him withdrew, being afraid before the wild beasts, because evening had come. When they had gone, some faithful ones came, they took up the body of the holy one and all his limbs, making thirty-two limbs, and his head and his body they buried with great zeal in a hidden place, according to his worth. When evening came, they placed him in a secret place, giving glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen. When his mother and his wife and his brothers heard—these who had given him strength unto the endurance until he completed the contest of martyrdom—

They came to the place where he had been placed, having brought with them some wild asses and

some fine linen cloths and costly spices. They placed the body of the holy one and the noble ones, the holy Jacob, with honor, and laid him beside the bodies of other holy martyrs, those who had also become martyrs in the time of King Shapur of the Persians, those who had endured *in great strength* under severe and terrible tortures, and who had completed their course. They went up to the one they loved, Christ, that is, the holy Akepsima the bishop, and Aithalas, and Joseph the presbyter, and Abdiesus, and Dadiesus the presbyters, and Hormisedek, and Daniel the deacons, and Qubitlaas, the son of King Shapur of the Persians, and Xu, his sister. His mother, however, and his sister and his wife gave great sums of money to those who were there. They built for him a glorious martyrium of the holy martyr of Christ, Jacob, which is in the land of Persia, built to this day, a place where many multitudes gather among the faithful, singing psalms, blessings, and spiritual hymns, giving glory to God. His mother, however, and his sister and his wife prostrated themselves upon his honored body, embraced him, and returned to their homes in peace. *After many days, however, they informed the king, saying, “These Nazoreans whom we drove out of your kingdom, they are honoring the bodies of those whom you killed unjustly, because they did not worship the gods of the king.

of the Persians, the Babylonians, and the Medes. But they are troubled and worship them, and they will sing psalms all night and all day.

They give them great gifts, lest the region turn away from the worship of the Persians, and they set aside the gods of the king of the Persians, which are the sun, the moon, fire, and water. When King Iskarat heard these things, he became very angry and issued a decree written thus: "I am Iskarat, king of the Babylonians, the Medes, and the Persians. I command that all the bodies of the Nazoreans that are found among you, those who were killed because of their disobedience, be burned in fire until they are completely consumed. And all those who are found hiding them shall be cut into small pieces and cast into the air until they give up the spirit." When this decree was issued by the king, the whole region was greatly disturbed. And all who would receive the holy brothers were very afraid, lest they take from them the bodies of the holy martyrs and burn them. They arose at dawn and gathered the bodies of the martyrs, one by one, and strengthened them with ropes, and changed their appearance, giving them the appearance of the magi of the Persians. They placed upon them the body of the blessed Jacob and the bodies of the holy martyrs. They marched in a single procession with them for three days' journey. They came to Jerusalem and placed the bodies of the saints and the body of the noble holy martyr Jacob in a monastery called...

of him, that is, the new one. He was, however, in the monastery there, a great saint named Abba Peter, the bishop of Gaza, the city of the Maimuma. He was the son of those who wished to leave behind the forty days of his journey to the places of the Maimuma of Gaza. While he was pondering these things, behold, the holy Jacob revealed himself to him. He said to him, "Do not go to Palestine, but arise and go into the city of Egypt, and you shall be in that place. For I wish to be in that place, according to the manner that the Lord wished to build for me a martyrion in that place. For I myself will be a guide for you on every road that you will travel until you place my bones in the place that I will show you, in a small village to the east of the city of Egypt, about three stadia, whose name is Paim, according to the language of the Egyptians." He then left behind the city of Rakoti and went to the place of Egypt with some men who were carrying the bones of the holy martyr of Christ, Jacob. He stayed near a great citizen of that city, whose name was Moses. This man received him with great joy, for he was a God-lover exceedingly and a lover of strangers, like the faithful Abraham and Onesiphorus. It was also said about him, Moses, that his revenues would produce three hundred thousand measures of wheat annually, which he gave to his public works and his needs, and the other half he gave to strangers and the poor.

the poor. He made a sign, however, near Moses in the midst of the city, while he was building the cities there and strengthening them in the right faith. The governor heard about him, the one who had seized

the streets of the city, and they gave him to them, and the streets of the Romans. This one found a way out and went to Jerusalem. He became a monk, living a life of asceticism, and he received the episcopate of the city which we mentioned first. This one was a great lover of the saints, therefore they called him Abba Peter the Lover of the Martyrs. Now it happened at that time that Marcian was ruling over the Romans. He began to persecute the orthodox bishops because they did not submit to the synod which had taken place in Chalcedon and the Tome of Leo. Therefore they also seized Abba Peter the bishop. He came to Alexandria, the metropolis of Egypt, but from his disciples, some Jerusalemites took the holy relics of Saint James, which were in a silver casket. They brought them to a monastery around Alexandria and placed them there in that place. Now a certain Proterius was in charge of the church of Alexandria at that time. This one had become the cause of much bloodshed of the saints who were murdered, those who had contended for the truth unto death. This Proterius gained power in this way, so that he drew to himself the military commander of Alexandria and all the rulers. He corrupted their hearts with much money, so that they would persecute all the monks who were around the city of Alexandria and drive them out of their monasteries. This happened. When he learned of these things,

the holy bishop and confessor abba peter

Over the church of Rakoti, that Moses is blessed, and that he is strengthened in the faith of the orthodox, he sent many soldiers who were very eager to arrest Abba Peter. When Moses learned of this, he took it upon himself that they were seeking him to arrest him, and he presented himself to them so that he might flee from the city. He dwelt in a village of his own, to the east of the city, a short distance away, whose name is Paim, so that he might find a way to carry out his work in peace, for he was hidden from them. Then Abba Peter came and dwelt in that place. The brothers also brought the body of Jacob and placed it before them in the place where they were, performing great synaxes around it, at all hours, day and night. Now it happened at the hour of the evening of one day, when the holy Abba Peter was performing his liturgy with the brothers who were with him, suddenly the martyr of Christ, the holy Jacob, appeared to them, along with a multitude of martyrs, wearing the schema of the Persians, in the form of the iconography of Daniel the prophet and the three holy youths. And they stood in their midst, singing psalms with them, saying, "They will be glorified, those who are holy, in their glory, the heights of God, which are in their exultation. Alleluia." When the holy Peter and the brothers with him saw them, they were amazed, and they worshipped the holy one. And the martyr of Christ, the holy Jacob, said, "This is...

This place where I am, I have desired it, for it is the place that the Lord has bound for me from when I was in the land of Persia. Rise up, come out from beside this small village, and pray in that place. For it is fitting that they build a martyrium for me in that place, and that they place my body in it, so that it may be a healing for all who come to the Lord within it and pray in my name. Then the holy one came out with the brothers, and they prayed. They sealed the ground of that place, and our father Abba Peter placed the body of the holy martyr Jacob in that place, in a small dwelling. For the place was not yet a shrine, for Abba Peter desired to take it to his monastery, which is in the region of Gaza. But the brothers who were standing by the body of Saint Jacob and serving him wished to take the body of the holy one. They did not wish to go with Abba Peter the bishop, but they remained in that place, wishing to take him, for they loved him greatly. After they took the body of the martyr, they rose up and went with him to the river, seeking a boat to cross over, before the people of that place knew and took him from them. When they arrived at the shore, they bowed before a boat, hastening. Suddenly, the holy one stood above them and said to them, "What is this?

...that you do it? Did I not receive you by force? Did I not walk with you all this hour, the whole day and the night, lighting the way for you like the children of the cross of this hour, over whom God keeps watch in the day, in a hidden pillar, and...

...in a pillar of fire throughout the whole evening, from the time you were thrown into the furnace by the multitude of my brothers who came upon you in the fire. Are you not coming out of Persia? Did I not receive you by force? Did I not walk with you all this hour, the whole day and the night, lighting the way for you like the children of the cross of this hour, over whom God keeps watch? Did I not bring you through the fear of the Lord, which came upon them? Did I not, from the time the devil envied you, wishing to sink the ship under you, because of me? Did I not save you from the sea of the waters of bitterness? Why now do you wish to break a covenant that the Lord has strengthened? It is he himself who wished to place me in the place where they put his holy name, receiving glory in it. Leave my body then in this stone quarry, and you will go to this ship that is coming, and you will sail. For he who fought Abba Koum in the lake of the lion in Babylon, and Ezekiel in Babylon, and Jerusalem, he himself will sit with you in the place from which you have driven me out. The Lord Christ will give you the reward of your sufferings, and he will make a way for you, and he will save you from all the afflictions of the evil one. But keep yourselves in all steadfastness, and do not transgress the straight faith. And I will be with you in all the places to which you will go. These things he said to them suddenly. The body of the saint and the stone quarry were hidden in the air; they were placed in the right side of the evening. There was a God-fearing woman in that village, who was practicing the life of virginity from her childhood, a hospitable woman, and...

...in a pillar of fire throughout the whole evening, from the time you were thrown into the furnace by the multitude of my brothers who came upon you in the fire. Are you not coming out of Persia? Did I not receive you b The holy one whose name was Theodora, and the holy martyr of Christ, the holy Jacob, appeared to her in the form of the holy prophet Daniel and many others with him, wearing the attire of the Persians. When she saw them, she fell into great fear. But the holy Jacob spoke to her, saying, “Do not be afraid. I am Jacob from among the Persians. I did not deny the faith, for I became a martyr in the name of Christ. For the Lord sent you, and he granted me to you to be a support and a great strength for your entire village. Rise, go to the presbyter and the entire clergy, and go with them to the east. You will find a great stone cave in which my body lies. Bring it, and you shall bury it according to the will of God.” Then the virgin arose, went, and told everything to the presbyter of the village. He came himself with the clergy and all the people of the village, with lamps and torches filled with fragrant oil and beautiful lights. They brought the holy Jacob down into the cave, and they sang psalms over him until they brought him into that village. And they placed him within the church with great zeal. They began to build a martyrium for him on the eastern side of the village, and they completed it in a few days until the twenty-eighth of the month of Mechir. A church of this kind, so honored that the word written in the Acts is fulfilled concerning it.

This is the one who says, “The church indeed in Judea and Galilee and Samaria shall be in peace, building it, and it shall go forward in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

Many were the people who gathered after the completion of the holy martyrdom. They brought the body of the holy one, singing psalms over him. A great multitude assembled, bringing out the holy martyr, reciting psalms, blessings, and spiritual hymns. They took him into the place that had been prepared for him, and they laid him within it, with honor, dignity, and glory, to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen. If anyone should object, saying, “How did this saint appear in the land of Egypt, since he was from the land of the Persians?” Let him know that the one who brought Joseph out of the land of Egypt after his death, and brought him into the land of his inheritance, is the same one who guided the holy Jacob. He brought him out of a land where they serve the creation more than the Creator, and brought him into the land of Egypt, the place where many martyrs completed their struggles and received the crown of martyrdom. These also gathered together in the entire land, coming to the shrine of this place that had been prepared for him. And they walked with him, carrying him into his sanctuary, guarding the multitude so that the devil might not snatch anyone away. And they sang psalms with him, rejoicing together that they had been deemed worthy of this great luminary in their land. And they blessed all the people who had gathered to celebrate the feast of the noble martyr of Christ, the holy Jacob, and they greeted him.

of him. Each one placed him in his dwelling place in peace.

All the holy ones of our Lord Jesus Christ, our God, gave glory to the holy Jacob. And great healings occurred through him from the day they brought him into his holy martyrium. These are things we cannot fully describe, with full assurance and unity of heart in that entire place, for what a great gift it is that he was deemed worthy. He stood before them, being great for them in all the works they would do, and he would find a way before them in all the paths they would walk. And again, he heals those who are sick among them, and he cures all who are afflicted with various illnesses, and he drives out demons, and he appears many times blessing his people whom he loved. He stood before them, and he also, the holy Jacob, gave glory to our Lord Jesus Christ over all who come to his holy place, and over all who enter in his name. And he receives from them their gifts, and their offerings, and their firstfruits, interceding for them before Christ Jesus our Lord. This is the glory for him, and his good Father, and the Holy Life-Giving Spirit, forever and ever. Amen. The humble Isaac, the reader, the God will forgive him. Amen. Remember, O Lord, forgive me my sins, the one who will remember me. As it is said, God will forgive him his sins. I have written this in the month of the holy ones. May the Lord Jesus Christ dwell in a place.

upon us

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our God, in truth. I am the work of the unworthy one, the poor deacon Kiriani, the son of the deacon of the cross, the humble one, that is, the repentance. I call upon all who will read in this writing, that the Lord Jesus Christ may give grace and peace to me, and forgive my sins, and grant me his mercy. Amen, for he who ... remember.