but he shall be upheld who continueth to the end.'
They all heard the Saviour's words,
and were affrighted, and therefore continued
without sleep until day, magnifying their Lord.
Then Agricola in the early morning gathered
his born kinsmen to his wicked council,
and bade lead to him the holy soldiers of God.
So they all forty stood before him.
Then began the judge again to praise them,
saying that there were none like them in the emperor's land,
neither so extolled nor so dear to him,
if they would not turn that love to hate.
Then said the saints that they hated him
for his unbelief, and loved their Lord.
Then raged the cruel one like a greedy lion,
and bade that they should be brought bound into the dungeon,
because he awaited the chief magistrate's coming.
Then about a se'nnight after this the chief magistrate came,
and immediately bade summon the faithful saints.
Then said one of them, whose name was Quirio,
Oh ye brothers, let us be encouraged;
as often as we have cried to Christ in the fight,
we were victorious straightway through His succour,
and we likewise overcame the approaching army.
Once we were in a great conflict,
and all our people escaped by flight,
except we forty who stood to the fight,
earnestly entreating our Lord's assistance,
and some we put to flight, others fell before us,
and not one of us was harmed by[1] all that multitude.
Now is our adversary this bloodthirsty Prefect,
another is the judge, and a third is the devil;
these three lay snares how they may deceive us;
but let us now call Christ to help us,
and neither the awful tortures, nor the sharp punishments,
- ↑ Read ge-derod, harmed ; not gaderod, gathered.
