For a period of eighty years none of our people have given any thought to this object, and to the doings of this none of our people has devoted himself thereto (that is to say, from the time of the blessed old man MICHAEL, the deceased...
moreFor a period of eighty years none of our people have given any thought to this object, and to the doings of this none of our people has devoted himself thereto (that is to say, from the time of the blessed old man MICHAEL, the deceased Patriarch, who compiled that great threefold historical chronography), and to the [information] afforded by the old and antiquated historical chronographies of EUSEBIUS, I mean him of CAESAREA, and SOCRATES, the scholastic, and ZACHARIAH, the rhetorician, and JOHN of ASIA, and DIONYSIUS of TALL MAHRE, together with what he himself quickened. It hath [2] seemed to me that a similar breach and a gap which inviteth [filling] existeth in respect of us and our people, and that the famous events in the affairs of the world, and also in those of the Church which have happened in the period which precedeth us which will fall into oblivion and be no longer found in our own times after the lapse of much time will be sought for. Therefore, according to what time hath brought I, having entered the Library of the city of MARAGHAH of 'ADHORBIJAN, have loaded up this my little book with narratives which are worthy of remembrance from many volumes of the SYRIANS, SARACENS (ARABS), and PERSIANS which are [preserved] here. And those which concern the government of the world I have set in order from the Patriarchs, the first of whom was ADAM, and from them I proceed to the JUDGES of the HEBREWS,
then to their kings, then to the CHALDEANS, then to the MEDES, then to the PERSIANS, then to the pagan GREEKS, then to the RHOMAYE (i.e. BYZANTINES), then to the Christian GREEKS, then to the ARABS, and then conclude with the HUNS who [live] in our own days, order after order. And these I have committed to the First Part of the CHRONOGRAPHY. In the matter of ecclesiastical affairs I have begun with AARON, the first high priest, and as I end, to those who stand at the head today in the Second Part of the Ecclesiastical History. This last I have sealed in two discourses; the first treateth of the Western high-priesthood which is of ANTIOCH, and the second treateth of our own Eastern high-priesthood.
The Book of the Chronicle of the Generations [of Kings]
WE, invoking the help of the Holy Trinity, Father, and Son, and Holy Spirit, One veritable God, begin to write the 'Book of the Chronicle of the Generations [of Kings]' which was composed by MAR GREGORY , the Maphrian, the Light of the East and of the West, who is ABU'L-FARAJ, the son of AARON, the physician, who [came] from the city of MELITENE, who is commonly called 'BAR 'EBHRAYA' (i.e. 'the son of the Hebrew').
Firstly. The Preface
GOD, help my feebleness!
Blessed be Thou, Lord, and Lord of the Universe, the BEGINNING and the END; Thou art the First, and Thou art the Last. W ith Thee every course of action is prepared, and unto Thee all praise is rightfully due; And to the Son, the Word, the strength of Thy wisdom, And to the Holy Spirit, the Life of Thy Being, From everlasting, and now , and for ever. And as this our rational being was created so that it might know righteousness, so that it might glorify it, and goodness that it might find it; and as knowledge in the first place becometh rich through thoughts of a theoretical nature, and it in the second place profiteth through practical (i.e, actual) hearings, the calling to remembrance of the things, both good and bad, which have happened in each and every generation conferreth no small benefit on all those who care greatly to acquire what is good, and who take pains to hate what is bad, and it urgeth a man to demonstrate pointedly the things which are excellent related thereby, and inciteth him to reject the disgraceful happenings which it narrateth.
CONTENTS
The Patriarchs from Adam to Moses. I.
The Judges from Joshua to Samuel. II.
The Kings of the Hebrews. III.
The Chaldean (Babylonian) Kings. IV .
The Kings of the Medes. V .
The Kings of the Persians. VI.
The First Kingdom of the Greeks. VII.
The Roman Emperors. VIII.
The Second Kingdom of the Greeks. IX.
The Kings of the Arabs. X.
The Kingdom of the Saljuks in Persia.
The History of the Crusades.
The Taking of Edessa from the Franks.
The Kingdom of the Mughlaye (Mongols), who are the Tataraye (Tartars). The Sons of Chingiz Khan.
The Laws of Chingiz Khan.
How the Mongols Cleaved to the Worship of Images.
The Cause of the Enmity between the Mongols and the Persians.
The Capture of Constantinople by the Franks.
The Capture of Samarkand by the Tatars.
The Capture of Khawarazm the Tatars.
The Murder of Amin ad-Dawlah Taoma.
The Death of Chingiz Khan.
The Enthronment of a Mongol Khan [Ogedei].
The Kingdom of Badr ad-Din Lulu.
The Enthronement of Ghoyuk [Guyuk] Khan
The Enthronement of Munga [Mongke] Khan
The Capture of Baghdad
The Kings of the Huns. XI.
The Enthronement of Kublai [Qubilai] Khan.
'Abaka [Abagha/Abaqa], the Successor of Hulabu (Hulegu).
The Capture of Antioch. T akudar [Teguder] 'Ahmad Ar ghon [Arghun], the Son of 'Abaka [Abagha/Abaqa].
The Murder of Shams ad-Din.
Kanjatu [Geikhatu], the Brother of 'Arghon.
[The history of the last ten years in the Chronography was not written by Bar Hebraeus, who died in 1286; the writer was probably his brother, Bar Sawma Safi.]
The pagination of the present edition is that of Paul Bedjan's Syriac text, which Budge indicates in brackets within his English translation.
Other Syriac and English , Arabic , Greek works listed below I myself can obtain if you message me !
Table of Contents
1. The Life of Adam and Eve (Apocalypse of Moses) (Arabic)
2. The Testament of Adam (Syriac and Arabic)
3. The Cave of Treasures (Syriac and Arabic)
4. The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan (Arabic)
5. The Book of Adam (Codex Nazaraeus; Mandean Fragment) (Syriac)
6. Life of Abel, by Symmachus (Syriac)
7. Syriac Book of Seth (Syriac)
8. 1 Enoch (Syriac)
9. Apocalypse of Enoch (Syriac)
10. Tractate of Shem (Syriac)
11. The Testament of Abraham (On the Death of Abraham) (Arabic)
12. History of Melchizedek (Syriac and Arabic)
13. Joseph and Asenath (Recension Two) (Syriac)
14. History of Joseph (Syriac)
15. History of Joseph, Son of Jacob [Version A] (Arabic)
16. History of Joseph, Son of Jacob [Version B] (Arabic)
17. History of Joseph (Arabic)
18. Dormition of Joseph, the Son of Jacob (Arabic)
19. Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs (Syriac)
20. The Names of the Wives of the Patriarchs (Syriac)
21. The Conversation of Moses with God (Syriac and Arabic)
22. The Book of Jubilees (Syriac)
23. The Life of Moses (Arabic)
24. Instruction of David to Solomon (Arabic)
25. The Palace of Solomon (Arabic)
26. Questions of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon (Syriac)
27. Testament of Solomon to Rehoboam his son (Arabic)
28. The Final Counsel of Solomon (Arabic)
29. The Death of Solomon (Arabic)
30. Aphikia (2 Recensions) (Arabic)
31. History of the Rechabites (Syriac and Arabic)
32. History of the Prophet Elijah (Arabic)
33. History of the Prophet Elijah and the son of the Widow (Arabic)
34. History of the Prophet Elijah and his Ascension (Arabic)
35. Sermon of Elisha the Prophet on Sinners (Arabic)
36. Sermon of the Prophet Elisha on the necessity of purification (Arabic)
37. Prayer of Manasseh (Syriac and Arabic)
38. Prayer of Manasseh (Cited from the Apostolic Constitutions) (Syriac and Arabic)
39. Prayer of Manasseh (from the Byzantine Horologion) (Christian Palestinian Aramaic and Syriac)
40. 4 Esdras (The Apocalypse of Ezra) (Syriac and Arabic)
41. The Apocalypse of Ezra on the reign of the Arabs (Syriac)
42. History and Wisdom of Ahiqar (Syriac and Arabic)
43. 5 Maccabees (Syriac)
44. History of St. Shamuni (Arabic)
45. Syriac Apocryphal Psalms (Syriac)
46. Odes of Solomon (Syriac)
47. History of Job (Arabic)
48. Psalms of Solomon (Syriac)
49. The Lives of the Prophets (Syriac and Arabic)
50. The History of Jonah (Syriac and Arabic)
51. Habakkuk Apocryphon (Arabic)
52. History of Isaiah the Prophet (Arabic)
53. Apocryphon of Jeremiah on the Captivity of Babylon (Arabic)
54. Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch (2 Baruch) (Syriac and Arabic)
55. Epistle of Baruch (Syriac)
56. Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius (Syriac and Arabic)
57. On our Lord and on the end written by the youth Daniel (Syriac)
58. Fourteenth Vision of Daniel (Arabic)
59. Apocalypse of Daniel (Arabic)
60. On Daniel and the boy Caleb (Arabic)
61. Conversation of Joseph and Nebuchadnezzar (Arabic)
62. The Tiburtine Sibyl (Syriac and Arabic)