E04059: Sozomen in his Ecclesiastical History recounts the discovery in Palestine of the relics of *Zechariah (Old Testament Prophet S00283) and *Stephen the First Martyr (S00030) under Theodosius II (r. 408-450). Written in Greek at Constantinople, 439/450.

Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, 9.16. 3-5, 17.

9.16
ἐν τούτῳ δὲ τὰ μὲν πρὸς ἕω τῆς ἀρχομένης πολεμίων ἀπήλλακτο καὶ σὺν κόσμῳ πολλῷ τὰ τῇδε ἰθύνετο παρὰ τὴν πάντων δόξαν· (4) ἦν γὰρ ἔτι νέος ὁ κρατῶν. ἐδόκει δὲ ὁ θεὸς περιφανῶς ἥδεσθαι τῇ παρούσῃ βασιλείᾳ, οὐ μόνον ἐξ ἀπροσδοκήτου τὰ περὶ τοὺς πολέμους ὧδε διατιθείς, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλῶν ἐπ’ εὐσεβείᾳ πάλαι εὐδοκιμηκότων τὰ ἱερὰ σώματα ἀναφαίνων· οἷον δὴ καὶ τότε συνέβη ἐπὶ Ζαχαρίᾳ τῷ παλαιῷ προφήτῃ γενέσθαι καὶ Στεφάνῳ τῷ διακόνῳ χειροτονηθέντι παρὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων. (5) ἑκατέρου δὲ τῆς εὑρέσεως παραδόξου καὶ θείας οὔσης ἀναγκαῖον εἰπεῖν τὸν τρόπον.

9.17.
(1) Ἄρξομαι δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ προφήτου. Χαφὰρ Ζαχαρία κώμη ἐστὶν ἐν ὁρίοις Ἐλευθεροπόλεως τῆς Παλαιστίνης. ἐπετρόπευε δὲ ταύτην Καλήμερός τις ὁμόδουλος τῷ ἀγρῷ, εὔνους μὲν τῷ κεκτημένῳ, χαλεπὸς δὲ καὶ δύσκολος καὶ περὶ τοὺς ὁμόρους ἀγροίκους ἄδικος. (2) τοιούτῳ δὲ ὄντι ὕπαρ ἐπιστὰς ὁ προφήτης ἑαυτὸν κατεμήνυσεν· καὶ κῆπόν τινα ἐπιδείξας «ἄγε δή», ἔφη, «ἐνθάδε ὄρυξον δύο πήχεις ἀναμετρήσας ἀπὸ τῆς αἱμασιᾶς ἐπὶ τὸν κῆπον, παρὰ τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν ἐπὶ Βηθθερέβιν τὴν κώμην ἄγουσαν· εὑρήσεις δὲ λάρνακα διπλῆν, ξυλίνην τὴν ἔνδον ἐν μολυβδίνῃ τῇ ἔξωθεν, ἀμφὶ δὲ τὴν λάρνακα ὑέλινον σκεῦος πλῆρες ὕδατος καὶ ὄφεις δύο μεγέθει μετρίους καὶ πράους καὶ ἀβλαβεῖς, ὡς δοκεῖν χειροήθεις εἶναι.» (3) κατὰ δὲ τὴν σύνταξιν τοῦ προφήτου παραγενόμενος Καλήμερος ἐπὶ τὸν δηλωθέντα τόπον σπουδῇ τοῦ ἔργου εἴχετο. ὑπὸ δὲ τοῖς προειρημένοις συμβόλοις ἀνακαλυφθείσης τῆς ἱερᾶς θήκης ἀνεφάνη ὁ θεῖος προφήτης, χιτῶνα καὶ λευκὴν ἐσθῆτα ἠμφιεσμένος, οἷά γε οἶμαι καὶ ἱερεὺς ὤν· ὑπὸ δὲ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ἔξωθεν τῆς λάρνακος παιδίον ἔκειτο βασιλικῆς ἠξιωμένον ταφῆς· εἶχε γὰρ ἐπὶ μὲν τῆς κεφαλῆς χρυσοῦν στέφανον, χρυσᾶ δὲ τὰ ὑποδήματα καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα τιμίαν. (4) ἀπορούντων δὲ τῶν τότε ἱερέων καὶ σοφῶν περὶ τούτου τοῦ παιδίου, τίς τε καὶ πόθεν εἴη καὶ οὗ χάριν τοιάδε ἠμφίεστο, λέγεται Ζαχαρίαν τὸν ἡγούμενον τῆς ἐν Γεράροις μοναχικῆς συνοικίας Ἑβραίᾳ καὶ παλαιᾷ περιτυχεῖν γραφῇ, οὐ τῶν ἐκκλησιαζομένων. ἐδήλου δὲ ὡς, ἡνίκα Ζαχαρίαν τὸν προφήτην ἀνεῖλεν ὁ Ἰωὰς ὁ τῆς Ἰουδαίας βασιλεύς, οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν περὶ τὸν οἶκον ἐχρήσατο χαλεπῇ συμφορᾷ. (5) ἑβδόμῃ γὰρ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς ἀναιρέσεως τοῦ προφήτου ἐξαπίνης αὐτῷ μάλα κεχαρισμένος ὁ παῖς ἀπωλώλει. συμβαλὼν δὲ κατὰ θεομηνίαν τοιούτῳ παθήματι περιπεσεῖν, ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ τὸ μειράκιον ἔθαψεν, ἀπολογούμενος ταύτῃ ὑπὲρ ὧν εἰς αὐτὸν ἥμαρτε. (6) καὶ τὰ μὲν ὧδε ἔγνων. ὁ δὲ προφήτης, καίπερ πρὸ πλείστων γενεῶν ὑπὸ γῆν κείμενος, σῶος ἀνεφάνη, ἐν χρῷ κεκαρμένος, εὐθύρρις, γενειάδα μετρίως καθειμένην ἔχων, τὴν δὲ κεφαλὴν βραχυτέραν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὀλίγῳ ἐν βάθει ταῖς ὀφρύσι καλυπτομένους.


‘16. Meanwhile the eastern part of the empire was free from wars and was governed in a very orderly manner - against everyone’s expectations, for the sovereign [Theodosius II] was still a minor. Yet God appeared to be manifestly pleased with the current ruler, not only by providing for such an unexpectedly positive state in the affairs of war, but also by revealing the sacred bodies of several persons that had been distinguished in the true religion in the past. Such was the case in that period with Zechariah, the ancient prophet, and Stephen, the deacon who was ordained by the Apostles. It is necessary to recount how each one of them was discovered, since both events are extraordinary and divine.

17. I shall start with the prophet. Chaphar Zacharia is a village in the territory of Eleutheropolis of Palestine. The land of this village was managed by a certain tenant called Kalemeros. He was loyal to his landlord, but was a harsh and difficult man, and unjust towards his peasant neighbours. Although he was such a person, the Prophet appeared to him in a living vision, announcing his presence. He indicated a certain garden, and said “Go then, dig in that garden, counting two cubits from the hedge of the garden by the road leading to the city of Bitheribis. You will there find a double coffin, the inner casket made of wood, the outer of lead. Beside the coffin you will see a glass vessel full of water, and two serpents of moderate size, but tame and harmless, so that they will seem to be used to being handled.” Following the instructions of the Prophet, Kalemeros went to the designated site and zealously started working. The hallowed tomb was recognised by the signs mentioned above, and God’s Prophet was uncovered clad in a tunic and white robe - in as much as he was also a priest, I reckon. At his feet outside of the coffin, there lay a child who had been granted a regal burial, wearing a golden crown on his head, golden shoes, and a costly robe. As the priests and learned men of the time were greatly perplexed about this child, who and whence he might be and for what reason he had been clothed like that, they say that Zacharias, the superior of the monastic community of Gerara, found an ancient Hebrew document, which was not among the canonical books. In this document, it was stated that not long after Joash, the king of Judah, had put Zechariah the prophet to death, a dire calamity befell his house. For seven days after the death of the Prophet, his dearest son suddenly died. Realising that this tragedy was inflicted on him by God’s wrath, he buried the boy at the feet of the Prophet, thus apologising for the crimes he had committed against him. This is what I know about this affair. As for the Prophet, although he had been resting in the ground for so many generations, he emerged intact; his hair was closely shorn, his nose straight, he had a moderately grown beard, a relatively short head, and his eyes were somewhat sunken and covered by the eyebrows.’

The account of Stephen has not survived, because the extant text of the Ecclesiastical History ends here.

Text: Bidez and Hansen 1995. Translation: E. Rizos.