Chapter V. How for Their Piety They Were Rewarded With the Recorded Theophanies and Oracles

OBSERVE then further to what a degree of godly virtue these men are said to have advanced. The Deity having accepted them for the general piety and wisdom of their life, and especially for their devotion to His service, now vouchsafed to them diviner oracles and manifestations of Himself and visions of angels, correcting the defects of their mortal nature by suggestions to guide their conduct, and revealing to them the knowledge of doctrines and precepts worthy of God: so that their minds were enlightened no longer by mere arguments and conjectures, but by the bright light of truth itself; and so inspired by God they pondered over the attainment of things future, as if already present, and prophesied what was to happen universally to the human race.

Such are the examples of the excellence of the Hebrews contained in the much celebrated and truly divine oracles, which we have preferred to the fables and the follies of the Greeks and of our forefathers: for these latter contained the foulest tales concerning their gods, while the other contained religious teaching concerning men beloved of God.