“Fools say to themselves, ‘There is no God.’
They are corrupt and commit evil deeds;
not one of them practices what is good.
“The LORD looks down from the heavens upon humanity
to see if anyone shows discernment as he searches for God.
All have turned away,
together they have become corrupt;
no one practices what is good, not even one.
“Will those who do evil ever learn?
They devour my people like they devour bread,
and never call on the LORD.
There they are seized with terror,
because God is with those who are righteous.
“You would frustrate the plans of the oppressed,
but the LORD is their refuge.
May Israel’s deliverance come from Zion!
When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice, and Israel will be glad.” [1]
I was overseeing a church plant in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia during the 1980s. At that time, I advertised the titles of the sermons each week. Marge was a veteran newspaper editor on one of the oldest papers in the Province, and she agreed to work with me to present catchy advertising copy. April 1st fell on a Sunday that particular year and the ad we planned invited people to come celebrate “National Atheist Day” on April 1st.
I was not prepared for the response from the community. Normally, we would have one or two phone calls resulting from each ad. We would see a new family perhaps every other week whom we could identify as having come because of the ad. This time, however, I was receiving several phone calls each day. Most of those phoning identified themselves as Christians; and most callers were berating me for being mean-spirited and unkind. Quite obviously, the mere act of identifying those who presented themselves as atheists as “fools” struck a nerve.
For most of these calls, I simply asked a few questions—Do you attend church? Have you ever invited a neighbour to consider Christ? Have you ever knowingly told a friend of your experience of grace? The answers I received were generally disappointing. Though most said they attended church, if only sporadically, none of these callers had ever invited another to share a service of worship. Not surprisingly, none of my callers had ever spoken to a friend or a neighbour to tell them of Christ and His salvation. If they had a testimony, they didn’t share it.
One phone call made a profound impression on me, however. Though this particular individual who was phoning didn’t give her name, it was obvious that she was a younger woman. She was quite agitated when I answered, immediately launching into the reason she had phoned. “I don’t like what you said in that ad. I’m an atheist and I’m a good person.”
“Who told you you were a good person?” I queried.
The caller was clearly taken aback, but she quickly recovered and sputtered, “My parents told me I was a good person!”
“And who told your parents that they were good people?” I asked again.
Somewhat hesitantly, she offered, “Well, their parents.”
“And who told their parents that they were good people?” I probed again.
“Look,” she said, clearly exasperated, “I know what you’re getting at, but we are good people—society says we’re good people.”
“And how does society know what is good and what is evil?” I probed more deeply still.
Somewhat engaged, she responded, “Society determines what is good and what is evil. Whatever society says is good is what is good.”
“Okay,” I began, “then it was a good thing to kill Jews in Germany in 1939. German society decided that it was good to kill Jews, so killing Jews can be a good thing.”
My caller was horrified as she now rejected that reasoning, “Oh, no! That wasn’t good. I’m Jewish,” she stammered.
“But, if ‘good’ is whatever society says is good, then you can’t argue against what German society collectively agreed was good at that time. No matter how reprehensible it may appear to us now, it was ‘good’ by your definition.”
“Oh, I’ve never thought of that in this way,” she said, thoughtfully. “How do you determine what is good?” she asked, emphasising “you.”
“Good is fixed by the One who gives mankind life. He created us; and He established the standard of ‘good’ and ‘evil.’ The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the God who determined what is good and evil. To reject Him and His standard is to subject yourself to a chaotic world in which the rules are constantly changing. Therefore, to reject God, to say that there is no god, is to open oneself to a world in which no standard can exist. That is a very foolish position.”
Our conversation did not continue much beyond this. The caller thanked me for my time, informing me that she wanted to think through our conversation. I hold to the concept that “Fools say to themselves, ‘There is no God.’”
I understand that some may take umbrage at what they deem to be ridicule of nice people. I find that when God’s prophets confronted false prophets, they didn’t hesitate to ridicule them and those who followed them. Elijah mocked the prophets of Baal when they were unable to rouse their god to grant their puerile requests [1 KINGS 18:27-29]. Through Isaiah, God mocked Sennacherib [2 KINGS 19:20, 21]. The Psalmist has written, “The Lord laughs at the wicked” [PSALM 37:13]. To expose error is not of itself ridicule. However, in our sensitive era, we are uncomfortable at any disagreement, especially when Christians are supposed to be “nice.”
I am also aware that this seems a rather strange subject at this Holy Season. However, we serve a Saviour who conquered death, hell and the grave. He gave His life as a sacrifice, was laid in a borrowed tomb from which He rose to life. If this is true, that anyone who would deny this fact is at best a fool. Such a person is playing with eternal condemnation, daring God who sent His Son to do something. Even the enemies of the Cross were forced to acknowledge that something momentous, something that could not be explained, happened at that borrowed tomb. The One they placed there could not be held by death.
WHO IS A FOOL? “Fools say to themselves, ‘There is no God.’” It isn’t always obvious, but those who are quoted as rejecting the Living God are speaking to themselves! Like children whistling as they pass the graveyard, they hope that no one notices how frightened they are. They couldn’t convince anyone else. I have always found it fascinating that the words “There is” are not found in the original language. Translators supply the words; they are not wrong in doing this. However, it adds force to what the Psalmist wrote if we understand that he is not making a declarative statement so much as he is informing us that those individuals identified as fools have made a choice. What we see in this Psalm reveals choice more than it reveals knowledge of a fool. Therefore, a reasonable translation might read, “The fool says in his heart, ‘No God!’” We see that the fool is saying, “No God for me!”
It is worthwhile to take a moment longer to consider this point. Most people believe there is a God—they simply don’t think of Him. Because God doesn’t aggressively invade our space, we can shove any consideration of Him far from our thoughts. Most of mankind is firmly ensconced on the throne of life, so God has no place in their life. At best, for the most of mankind, God is a distant entity that is not an immediate threat. However, people are perfectly willing to call on God in a time of crisis; they are confident that God will intervene to deliver them from the consequences of their choices. If He doesn’t, well they’ll teach Him a lesson; they’ll refuse to believe in Him! However, the fool under consideration is different from the condition just described; the fool has chosen not to accept the reality of the Living God. Therefore, the fool says, “No God for me!” Whether God exists or whether God does not exist is immaterial to the fool; she will live life with no consideration of God or His will.
When the word “fool” is used today, we don’t often mean what is meant when the word is used in the Bible. In modern parlance, a fool is someone who is intellectually challenged, or someone who is driven by mere emotion to disregard reality. In fact, much of modern politically correct thinking fits this definition, though we are hesitant to say this because no one wants to be accused of offending the naked emperor. In contradistinction to the contemporary view, while the Bible may consider someone who is intellectually challenged or someone who is surrendered to emotion rather than acting by reason to be a fool, in biblical parlance, a fool is assuredly someone who is morally deficient. Moral deficiency does not necessarily mean that one is emotionally driven or intellectually challenged, but it may encompass these situations.
I find it intriguing that the New Testament writings do not often speak of fools; when they do speak of fools, however, they reveal who must be seen as a fool. Jesus often challenged the religious leaders of that day, and His words still challenge religious leaders in this day. His major charge was that these leaders seized upon the externals of religion while ignoring the demands of a transformed heart. For instance, on one occasion He was castigating the scribes and the Pharisees when He said, “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So, whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it” [MATTHEW 23:16-22]. Jesus saw people so caught up in the minutiae of religion that they failed to honour God as fools!
On another occasion, a Pharisee had invited Jesus to dine with him. We read that “The Pharisee was astonished to see that [Jesus] did not first wash before dinner” [LUKE 11:38]. It was never a wise act to censure the Master in one’s mind, since Jesus knew what was in the heart. That was certainly the case in this instance. We read the response of the Master in the verses that follow. “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? But give as alms those things that are within, and behold, everything is clean for you.
“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it” [LUKE 11:39-44].
Jesus called religious leaders who performed their rituals with unchanged hearts fools. Anyone who purports to know the will of God and yet does not do what God wills must fall under the condemnation of this appellation, fool. On one other occasion Jesus spoke of an individual as a fool. Whereas He said the Pharisees and scribes as fools, on this occasion the Master identified one man as a fool. This is the parable the Master told. “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” [LUKE 12:16-21]. This man was said to be a fool because he was living for this life only. Jesus said this man was a fool because he gave no thought to eternity. Therefore, anyone who lives for this life alone must be seen as a fool. Anyone who lives with no thought of what lies beyond the immediate is a fool.
In summation, then, religion without a transformed heart demonstrates that the individual is a fool. Likewise, living without thought of eternity reveals that the person is a fool. There is yet another group that must be seen as fools, according to the New Testament. Paul writes in that dark chapter that opens the Letter to Roman Christians, “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things” [ROMANS 1:18-23]. Choosing to ignore God and righteousness is de facto evidence that an individual is a fool in God’s view.
Of necessity, there are severe consequences to being a fool before the Living God. According to the Word of God, the dire consequences of living as a fool are revealed as the Apostle continues his description of fools in the opening paragraphs of this particular letter. “God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
“For this reason, God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
“And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them” [ROMANS 1:24-32]. Step-by-step, the fool moves away from righteousness, always embracing what seems right, though it is self-destructive.
From the New Testament, we have unveiled five identify marks of a fool:
• They perform religious rituals with unchanged hearts–
• They purport to know the will of God and yet not doing what God wills–
• They live for this life alone–
• They live without thought of eternity–
• They choose to ignore God and righteousness–
Uniting these concepts to understand how they might apply in contemporary life, it is evident that anyone who knows of Christ and yet fails to receive Him as Master over life is a fool. Such a person is aware of the will of God, if only superficially, and yet, that individual chooses to ignore the grace that God offers through faith in His Son. Perhaps one might attempt to feign innocence and argue that people who never heard of Christ cannot be held accountable, but the point is that we do know of Christ. Therefore, to reject Him is to be identified as a fool.
THE CHARACTER OF A FOOL —
“Fools say to themselves, ‘There is no God.’
They are corrupt and commit evil deeds;
not one of them practices what is good.
“The LORD looks down from the heavens upon humanity
to see if anyone shows discernment as he searches for God.
All have turned away,
together they have become corrupt;
no one practices what is good, not even one.
“Will those who do evil ever learn?
They devour my people like they devour bread,
and never call on the LORD.
There they are seized with terror,
because God is with those who are righteous.”
[PSALM 14:1-5 ISV]
The Word of God convincingly frames the argument that fools are focused on fulfilling their own desires, even though such pursuit means they must deliberately ignore the will of God. The problem is not that they don’t know God’s will, but that they know the will of God and choose to ignore what they know! It is a grave problem for any society in which even a significant minority endeavours to fulfil their own desires; that pursuit must, of necessity, result in the introduction of social disorder throughout the entire culture. In contrast to that dreadful condition, note that a civil society is a society in which people have subsumed their own desires for the betterment of the entire society.
In the broadest sense, a civil society is a society that has agreed to live by a standard defining acceptable righteousness. Effectively, that society has a compact by which all within the society mutually agree to control private choices and actions. Should that agreed standard be rejected and people within the society begin to live as they choose without thought of fulfilling righteousness, the consequences will be terrible. Increasingly, such a society begins a downward spiral away from what was previously recognised as civility. We do see examples of such societies at several points in the Word of God. I won’t belabour the point, but I do believe it is important to recognise the situation is not unique to this present age.
Throughout the Word of God, as is also true throughout history, societies have exalted the desires of individuals though the cost to society is great. One example detailing the breakdown in society is detailed throughout the Book of Judges. Perhaps you will recall that the theme of the Book of Judges seems to be, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” [JUDGES 17:6b; 21:25b]. What times these were! Reading this dark book, it becomes obvious what life without a standardised social compact must inevitably become. Inflamed with pursuit of their own desires, people deserted any pretence of righteousness—God’s will was ignored as the will of the individual took precedence. Might makes right became the attitude that seems best to describe daily life in that dreadful day.
During this dark period, entire tribes disregarded the will of the Lord even though the consequences were dire. Theft, personal assault and even murder were commonplace. Individual feelings were more important than any musty rule of life. Debra, after the defeat of the armies of Sisera, recalled what life was like in Israel before that war.
“In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,
in the days of Jael, the highways were abandoned,
and travelers kept to the byways.
The villagers ceased in Israel;
they ceased to be until I arose;
I, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel.
When new gods were chosen,
then war was in the gates.”
[JUDGES 5:6-8a]
In those dark days as Israel was transitioning from a culture exalting godliness to a culture exalting the individual, there was no concern for what others might think—personal feelings were paramount! What a dark period in the life of Israel! Rape and mayhem were common, and aberrant sexual activity was tolerated and even defended. Social decay with all the concomitant problems that inevitably attend such generalised social degradation—murder, social unrest, national instability and war—characterised daily life in Israel.
One tragic observation concerning fools, is that fools exert surprising influence on their society. People think that fools are edgy, displaying attitudes to be emulated. Isaiah, looking forward to a day quite different from this present day, says of that coming day:
“Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
and princes will rule in justice.
Each will be like a hiding place from the wind,
a shelter from the storm,
like streams of water in a dry place,
like the shade of a great rock in a weary land.
Then the eyes of those who see will not be closed,
and the ears of those who hear will give attention.
The heart of the hasty will understand and know,
and the tongue of the stammerers will hasten to speak distinctly.
The fool will no more be called noble,
nor the scoundrel said to be honorable.
For the fool speaks folly,
and his heart is busy with iniquity,
to practice ungodliness,
to utter error concerning the LORD,
to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied,
and to deprive the thirsty of drink.
As for the scoundrel—his devices are evil;
he plans wicked schemes
to ruin the poor with lying words,
even when the plea of the needy is right.
But he who is noble plans noble things,
and on noble things he stands.”
[ISAIAH 32:1-8]
The great tragedy is that thoughtless people imagine that those who despise God, those who reject righteousness and who revile the godly, are somehow superior thinkers. The land that exalts those who reject righteousness, those who redefine godliness, those who push themselves forward as though they had superior thoughts, is a land that is moving toward judgement.
I read the Book of Amos this week, and I read again the warnings of the LORD God to a nation that was determined to have its way. God told the nation to look at all that was taking place in the land—
? Impoverishment despite a booming economy—can you relate?
? Religion without love of God or love of the vulnerable—do you hear?
? Uncertainty in natural and necessary phenomena—have you seen this?
? Poor harvests despite increased efforts—have you witnessed this?
? Increased international disorder and the death of the youth—can you witness?
Despite all this, despite knowing that God was calling the land to account, the nation refused to turn again to Him. Thus, nothing remained except for God to warn:
“Therefore, thus I will do to you, O Israel;
because I will do this to you,
prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
[AMOS 4:12]
TRANSFORMING FOOLS — I’m not clueless; I know that it is Easter. I know that many expect an Easter message today. Those who share the services week-by-week will know that the Resurrection of the Christ is a constant theme in my messages. As exemplified by the Apostles, I preach the Risen Saviour on an ongoing basis. It is that message this contrasts fools from the wise; it is this message that distinguishes the redeemed in the midst of the lost.
The Apostle to the Gentiles has written, “The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’
“Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” [1 CORINTHIANS 1:18-25].
The world about us considers us to be fools who follow the Risen Lord of Glory. However, with Paul, we Christians assert, “We are fools for Christ’s sake” [1 CORINTHIANS 4:10a]. Lest you imagine that I am somehow insensitive, I know how offensive it is to be called a “fool.” I understand that each of us wants to feel good about himself or herself. However, how is it that when the world about us exalts unrighteousness and seeks to relegate godliness to the closet, that we Christians are expected to silently acquiesce? Yet, when we speak the truth, though the truth is spoken in love, we are censured as hateful? How is that possible?
Are we fools because we believe the message that Christ has conquered death? Wasn’t His Resurrection one of the best attested events of all history? Isn’t it true that we date our years determined by which side of the Resurrection we are considering? Would you prefer to believe that Jesus never existed? It is a far easier explanation for some than to deal with the inconvenient truth that the death of a supposed carpenter set off a global religion. Only something profound associated with that death could have brought about such a situation. Only something profound would see men and women in less than a generation after His death, be willing to lay down their own lives for Him. It boggles the mind that so many would be willing to die proclaiming Jesus to be the risen Lord so soon after His death if it had not happened. Surely, there is something to those willing to die for Him even to this day?
Isn’t it true that those who look to Him are transformed? Drunkards are made sober. Drug addicts are cleaned up—freed from dependence on chemicals. Prostitutes are purified. Thieves are made trustworthy. The vengeful grow peaceful. The hateful begin to love. Broken homes are mended, families are restored and broken lives are made whole. These are not fools who look to Him and are transformed. The fools must be those who refuse to look to Him.
Isn’t it true that this Risen Saviour gives purpose to those who were once adrift in life? That glorious Name stands for new life, new hope and renewed power. In His Name we find forgiveness of sin, freedom from guilt, full pardon before the throne of the Father and healing of the sickness of our souls. When you see the transformation that faith in Him brings, why would you not believe? We have more contemporaneous accounts of the existence of Jesus of Nazareth than we do of several Roman Emperors, including the Emperor Nero. There is more evidence of the existence of Jesus of Nazareth than there is evidence for the existence of Mohammed.
Examine the historical record and you will be hard-pressed to argue that the life of Jesus is a myth. Writing around 115 A.D., the Roman historian Tacitus noted, “Nero fastened the guilt [for burning Rome] and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular.” [2] That “mischievous superstition” to which Tacitus referred was the belief that Jesus was still alive. In the Roman Empire, everyone was expected to worship a god. Christians were considered enemies of mankind because they worshipped a living person, not a dead man, and in the eyes of the people, this made the Christians atheists. Who is the fool? People who worship gods made of stone and wood? Or those who know and worship One who lives forever and ever? Who is the fool? One who has to carry his god? Or one who worships a God who carries him?
I have to ask you—Who is at the centre of your worship? Have you made your family a god? Is your spouse a god or a goddess for you? You are so fearful of losing your god or your goddess that you dare not allow anything to compete for your affection? I love my wife, but I could never love her as I should if I did not love the Lord my God with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my mind and with all my strength. I love my children—each one is precious to me. But I could never love my children as I should if I did not love the Son of God supremely. Who is the fool? The one who loves God above all else? Or the one who loves someone else supremely? If loving God makes me a fool, then I will be a greater fool still.
Well, what do you worship? Do you worship youth, endeavouring to chase away wrinkles and the aches and pains that accompany the ageing process? As you worship your faded youth, do you try to dress as though you were still twenty? What do you worship? Perhaps you worship pleasure. Your sacraments include chasing a phantasm, a figment of your fevered imagination and you have no rest. In your quest to sate your longing for pleasure, you invest hours surfing the Net, looking for some new thing to titillate your imaginations. Your pursuit impels you to invest hours in driving, in hiking the fields and in wading the streams of our great province. Let me ask you to think—What will happen when you can no longer pursue pleasing your god? Are we who worship the Living God, who walk with Him and flee sin, to be considered fools? Who is the fool in this case?
Is it possible that you worship your possessions? Perhaps it is a car, and your sacraments include changing the oil on a Sunday morning or washing your god to ensure that it is clean and shiny. It may be that your god is a house, and the rite of shovelling snow or mowing the lawn requires your attendance each weekend. Again, I ask you, who is the fool? Surely it is not we who find rest in Him and who are secure in the promise of eternal rest!
The great issue before each person who hears the message this day is, Who do you worship? Whether at Easter or at any other time, why bother attending the services of a church? Do you come to honour the Risen Son of God? Or is your purpose more a matter of seeking your own comfort? I declare to you that Jesus, the Son of God, conquered death. He gave His life as a sacrifice because of my sin, went down into the grave and cleaned it out, making it a pleasant place to await the resurrection. Now, I am satisfied to declare that He is God.
Paul would urge Christians, those who would honour the Risen Saviour, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” [PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11].
The Father has highly exalted Him. Now He has the Name that is above all names. At the Name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father. Why would you wait? There is opportunity to declare Him Lord now. Why would you put off calling on the highest Name ever presented? Call on the Lord while He may be found. Believe on Him and be saved. Do it now. Amen.
[1] International Standard Version (ISV Foundation, Yorba Linda, CA 2011); Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] James Stevenson, A New Eusebius: Documents Illustrating the History of the Church to AD 337 (SPCK, London 1987) 2; Tacitus, Annales 15.44 (Latin) (AD 115)
