4 Maccabees 6

1 When Eleazar had made his answering speech against the ruler’s urging, the spearbearers standing by seized him and dragged him off bitterly to the instruments of torture. [a] 2 First they stripped the old man, adorned though he was with the dignity that devoutness gives. 3 Then they pinned his arms back on both sides and beat him with whips, 4 while from the other side a herald kept shouting, “Obey the king’s commands.”

5 But Eleazar — great-hearted, and truly noble — was not turned in any way at all, like a man tortured in a dream. 6 He lifted his eyes high toward heaven while the whips tore the flesh off the old man, and his blood ran down, and his sides were pierced through. 7 And when he fell to the ground, because his body could not carry the agony, he held his reason upright and unbending. [b] 8 One of those bitter spearbearers jumped on him and kicked him in the flanks, to make him get up as he fell.

9 But he endured the pains, thought nothing of the compulsion, and stood fast under the abuse; 10 and like a noble athlete taking blows, the old man was defeating his torturers. 11 His face ran with sweat and he was gasping hard for breath, and even the men torturing him marveled at the good heart in him.

12 And so, partly in mercy for his old age, 13 partly out of fellow feeling from long acquaintance, and partly in wonder at his steadfastness, some of the king’s men came up to him and said, 14 “Eleazar, why are you destroying yourself with these evils, against all reason? 15 We will set some of the cooked food in front of you; act the part of a man tasting the pork, and save your life.” [c]

16 And Eleazar, as though their advice abused him more bitterly still, cried out, 17 “May we, the children of Abraham, never think so badly as to go soft in the soul and act out a part that does not become us. 18 It would be against all reason if we, who have lived our lives to old age in truth and have lawfully guarded the good name that came of it, should change now 19 and become a pattern of ungodliness to the young, and so an example of eating defiled food. 20 It would be a disgrace to live on a little longer, and to be laughed at all that while by everyone for cowardice, 21 and to be despised by the ruler as men without courage, and not to hold up our shield for our divine law to the death. 22 So then, children of Abraham: die nobly for devoutness. 23 And you, the ruler’s spearbearers — what are you waiting for?”

24 When they saw him so great-hearted in the face of their compulsion, and not changed even by their pity, they brought him up to the fire. 25 There they burned him with instruments wickedly contrived, and flung him down on the fire, and poured stinking liquids into his nostrils. 26 And when he was burned through to the bone and about to faint away, he lifted his eyes to God and said, 27 “You know, God, that I could have saved myself, and that I am dying by burning tortures for the law. 28 Be merciful to your nation. Be satisfied with the justice taken from us on their behalf. 29 Make my blood their cleansing, and take my life in exchange for theirs.” [d] 30 With these words this sacred man died nobly under the tortures, and to the very tortures of death he stood his ground by his reason, for the law’s sake.

31 So then, by common agreement, devout reason is master of the passions. 32 For if the passions had mastered reason, we would have given them the witness of that mastery; 33 but since reason conquered the passions, we rightly assign to reason the authority to lead. 34 And it is right for us to agree that the mastery belongs to reason, seeing that it masters even the agonies that come from outside — since otherwise the thing would be laughable. [e] 35 And I am showing not only that reason has mastered the agonies, but that it masters the pleasures too, and gives way to them in nothing.